What was meant to be a joyous celebration for one of the richest business tycoons in Africa turned into an internet viral moment of surprise amusement.
On Thursday, Nigerian business magnate Aliko Dangote turned 68 with a shower of love and loving wishes from around the world.
But the celebratory mood briefly took a weird turn after a graphic shared on his official X (formerly Twitter) handle left everyone confused — and then in stitches.
The birthday card, with its somber portrait of the business magnate against a simple, plain background, brought cross-country puzzlement.
Its dark colors and formal lay-out led others to believe that it was an obituary advertisement rather than a birthday party.
Social media commentators did not wait to react.
“I thought it was an obituary poster,” user @Mayordavid_9 reacted. “This your designer no sabi work oooo.”
Another commentator, @TFKhaleed, wasn’t far behind: “2025 and y’all can’t hire a good graphic designer to do this. Still being 1998.”
@ambalium joined in, “Pay your graphics team to forget and learn design principles all over again. Or simply sack them all and employ confam professional graphics designers.
I can recommend 3 right now sharp sharp. This shouldn’t even scale approval in a big company like Dangote. Happy birthday Alhaji Dangote.”
