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From Asia, to America and back home; how Presidents get ridiculed by their children

With roles like First lady and titles like First Family, leaders have been unable to keep their kids and spouses away from the spotlight. This spotlight has often meant that any misstep by a member of the first family is read as a misstep of the leader. Here are three cases to help form an opinion on if indeed leaders should be blamed for their family’s mistake.

Asia: Yair Netanyahu

A tape recording from 2015 has Yair Netanyahu, son of Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, bragging about his father’s role in a controversial gas deal.

While traveling in a government-supplied vehicle, through Tel Aviv, in company of his friends; Roman Abramov and Ori  Maimon (shareholder of Isramco, Israel’s offshore Tamar gas fields and eldest son of gas Tycoon, Kobi Maimon). Yair is heard discussing with his friends about strippers and how much they have spent and who spent most, which made it apparent that Yair owed his friends some money from the night. when Ori asked Yair to pay for a stripper as recompense, the latter said;

“Bro, you have to spot me. My dad made an awesome deal for your dad, bro. He fought in the Knesset [Israeli parliament] for this, bro.

“Bro, my dad just got you a 20 billion dollars deal and you can’t spot me 400 shekels?”

Although Yair had issued a statement after the tape was broadcast, declaring his naivety about details of the gas deal, he also iterated the illegality of the tape recording.

“The things I said about Ori Maimon were nothing but a bad joke aimed at mocking him, and any sane person understands that, I have never taken interest in the gas deal, nor have any understanding of its details”.

However, the office of the Prime Minister has denied any connection to Kobi Maimon and also denied knowledge of their friendship.

“Yair had no input into the gas arrangement, and if he commented on the matter, he did so jokingly”.

The tap was broadcast by Channel 2 on Monday night, after failed attempts by the Netanyahu’s lawyers to halt the broadcast, as the family viewed it as “cheap, vicious gossip”, and a “witch hunt” (Netanyahu is being investigated for corruption charges).

United States of America

Following the Hillary email fracas, new information came to light after the elections, of the complicity of Donald Trump Jr., which contributed to his father becoming President.

According to a Russian lawyer, Natalia Veselnitskaya, she met with Trump Jr., Paul Manafort (Donald Trump’s campaign manager at the time), and Jared Kushner (son-in-law and senior adviser to Donald Trump), to deliver dirt on Hillary Clinton in exchange for an alteration in a U.S law (2012 Magnitsky Law).

She quoted Trump Jr. as saying “Looking ahead, if we come to power, we can return to this issue and think what to do about it”.

She also said Trump Jr. had asked for written evidence that Ziff Brothers evaded taxes while donating to Democratic candidates (Clinton and others), which she didn’t have at the time.

When the news broke, Donald Trump denied knowledge of the meeting, but as matters unfold, he rescinded on his earlier denial.

“Honestly, in a world of politics, most people are going to take that meeting. If somebody called and said, hey – and you’re a Democrat – and by the way, they have taken them – hey, I have really some information on Donald Trump.

“You’re running against Donald Trump. Can I see you? I mean, how many people are not going to take the meeting?”

Nigeria

During the last days of the year, Yusuf Buhari, only son of President Muhammadu Buhari, was involved in an accident while racing on a power bike.

Although many sympathized with the family, others chastised him for such extravagance, in contrast to his father’s perceived conservativeness.

Some reports claimed the bikes were gotten secretly for  $157, 000 each (he got two), at the behest of his friend, Bashir Gwandu, an allegation which further smeared the President’s personality and gave the opposition a talking point.

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