Omawumi Ogbe, a Chimamanda communications team member, clarified the situation by telling The Guardian that the author turned down the honor.
“Following the recent conferment of national awards by the President, there have been conflicting reports about one of the announced recipients, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. Some social media users say the award-winning writer rejected the award, while others say she accepted it.
The author did not accept the award and, as such, did not attend the ceremony. She, however, did not want to create undue publicity around it, so her non-acceptance was conveyed privately”
President Buhari defended the honors when presenting awards to 450 Nigerians and foreigners, stating that the recipients had distinguished themselves in the service of the country and humanity.
“We have among the recipients today, Amb. Prof. Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo Iweala, Ms. Amina J. Mohammed, and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, who is doing our country proud on the international scene. Our dear sisters are a source of inspiration to our young women that through the dint of hard work and dedication, they can achieve greatness.” the President said
