Thursday 29 August 2013

Nigeria's Boko Harram- What do they really want? Thursday 29th Aug 2013. 8-9 PM (UK) on BEN-TV



Nigeria's Boko Harram- What do they really want? Thursday 29th Aug 2013. 8-9 PM (UK) on #PolitricswithKo Ben-TV . Studio Guest: Dr Aliyu Odamah Musa

Dr Aliyu Odamah Musa is a lecturer with the department of media at Coventry University. He holds a PhD in War and Peace studies from the University of Liverpool. His PhD, titled 'The role of Political, Socio-Economic factors and the Media in Nigeria's Inter-Religious Conflict', takes a look at inter-religious conflicts in Northern Nigeria and specifically examines the possibility of political meddling and the role of the media in peddling falsehood, hyping tension and/or escalating conflict.


Aliyu has a background in print, online, radio and TV journalism. His field studies in some parts of Northern Nigeria after the July 2009 suppression of the Boko Haram insurgence has substantially enriched his experience of the sect’s modus operandi and forms the nexus of his forthcoming book titled “Boko Haram insurgence and sub-state conflict contagion in the Sahel region – a framework for conflict analysis and resolution.”

He has written several articles, including those published in peer-reviewed journals warning of the possibility of the violence enduring and spreading to other parts of the Sahel as the sect members escape capture and migrate continuously while intermittently carrying out lethal strikes.

Using the Epidemiological Triangle argument he insists that military action alone will only result in more civilian casualties and less likelihood of a permanent resolution of the crisis. His research interests include religious violence, Boko Haram, media and communications and conflict reporting/resolution.

Sunday 25 August 2013

'If Your Pastor Is Harassing you Speak Out! Do Not Hide In Shame' @esewalter Ese Walter



First off, good morning fellow Nigerians, Christians and who ever else is dissing or supporting on this blog. I want to state first and foremost that I never used the term “sexual abuse” in this post. I have never been sexually abused my entire life. However, I have been on about researching abuse generally because I started to realize the reason I had been how I was was because I didn’t have confidence in myself as a human being and I struggled with self esteem for as long as I can remember. Abuse is not only sexual and what I refer to here is not sexual abuse but psychological (mental and emotional), manipulation and control. These are forms of abuse and this is what I was referring to.


When I joined COZA, I didn’t know my left from my right. I was finding my way and naturally I was drawn to the word and the fact that I thought this was the one church that would help me grow. As for my then pastor Biodun, I really did see him as a god. I knew nothing about God for myself and I wasn’t reading the bible. I felt he was the one that would help me understand and grow. At the time, I had been attending church for less than three years. I will not deny the fact that I lived my life as I pleased all the while I was in University and even afterwards but like every human being knows, there comes a time when you decide to get it together.

Secondly, I am not hurting or broken anymore. The times I mentioned those in the blog, I was talking about what was happening to me at the time. By God’s grace I crawled out of the self-destructive hole I had entered. This experience drove me to dig deeper and understand grace for myself. Not only that, it made me understand how wrong it is to fear ‘men of God’ and even treat them as God. And I dare say, if I didn’t have this experience, I wouldn’t understand what it means to have a relationship with God.

I have asked God for forgiveness, I hold no grudge against Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo or anyone displaying ignorance here or elsewhere. I did what I knew to do as it regards meeting church elders. Not just pastor Flo but others and it seemed no one could talk to Pastor Biodun. As for those saying people will loose their faith, I think that would turn out for their good eventually because when you loose your faith because of man,you would then be able to seek God for yourself and find truth. After all, the bible states that He wishes that ALL men come to the knowledge of truth.
Yes we were both guilty,I have not excused myself from the role I played. I was guilty as sin, however, I have come to know better. If you know anything about low self esteem, you would understand why it went on for as long as it did. Looking back, I think I expected him to know better than me but I know better now. That being said, the whole affair ended because I put my foot down. He made all sorts of propositions to me when I returned to Nigeria but I was looking to heal and move forward.

My aim with this blog is to show other ladies who suffered same fate at his hands both in Illorin and Abuja (some of whom have emailed me but are still trapped in guilt and shame to speak up) that there is nothing to be ashamed of. The clout he has over people can cause them to do thoughtless things but in the end, it’s all out there and I am at peace with myself and with God.

For those calling me a liar, please ask Pastors Biodun Fatoyinbo and Flo if I have lied. I rest my case!!! Ese Walter

Friday 23 August 2013

My Take on Ese Walters "7 Days 7 Nights London Sexual Deliverance With COZA Pastor Fatoyinbo" Kayode Ogundamisi

Ese Walter



The problem with the Ese Walters watery allegations against 'GOD OF MAN' Pastor Fatoyinbo of COZA is that it ridicules genuine cases of rape and abuse, people will become dismissive and weary. It does not justify Pastor Fatoyinbo's alleged consensual sexual relationship with his Jezebel Ese Walters. If story is true, then he's failed in his callings.

If Oga Daddy Pastor embarked on this affair then he has failed in his calling and is of course a hypocrite.

Next time your handsome pastor fixes deliverance in a London hotel room every day for one week, pick race on the first day of the invitation, if you transport yourself to a man in a hotel, every single day of SEVEN days that doesn't sound like manipulation to me, it is two consenting adults enjoying sexual rendezvous, that is if Efe Walters tale is to be believed.

EFE WALTERS STORY BELOW

http://esewalter.wordpress.com/2013/08/22/my-affair-with-pastor-biodun-fatoyinbo-of-coza/


WARNING!
This article contains stories that most ‘church people’ don’t want to address. So, if you are one of those living in denial and covering up crap going on in the church, this is where you should stop reading. Thanks for stopping by.
**************************************************************************
Now, for the rest of us, please sit down and switch on your open mind. I want to talk about something I have kept bottled up inside for longer than necessary. I have also decided to use real names, as my defense for any accusation of slander is justification. I tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but. However, feel free to throw your doubt around but know that I am past the shaming game (where victims of abuse are shot down by blame) I am no longer a victim but a survivor who is sharing her experience to help others caught in same web of abuse, guilt and shame. We only get to live once right? So here, it goes…
I recently came to know this event too was abuse (recently here means about 6 months ago). It has literally been eating me up having to drive by another billboard advertising preachers, or hearing his name, or even trying to ask about the validity of the entire salvation story and whether or not there is a God that truly watches over his people. That being said, I’m just going to say it as it is. This is a recap of my affair with Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo of COZA (Common Wealth Of Zion Assembly) Abuja chapter. This affair I have come to know as a form of abuse as you would see the different elements of abuse very present.
I met Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo many years ago. I was getting bored of the church I was attending and someone suggested COZA. At the time, I had never heard about it. My friend said, go there, I’m sure you would enjoy the word. But he also gave me a strong warning. He said he would advice that I remain a member only and not join the workforce. I agreed. The first time I attended COZA, I felt it was my church and decided I was going to plant my ass there. About eleven months had gone by and I was still attending the services quietly and faithfully. I really did like the church. One day a worker in the church approached me that the senior pastor wanted to see me.
Me? I thought. Why would the senior pastor want to see me? Not the second man but the head nigga in charge? Ok na! I started to think my sin was oozing so bad the pastor could tell I needed Jesus. (Poor old me.) I saw him at the end of the second service (they had two services at the time) and he said to me that he would like me to work with him. I knew I had no intentions of becoming a pastor so I had to ask in what capacity. He said he’d like for me to join a department, preferably the Pastoral Care Unit (PCU).
A few weeks later, against my friend’s advice not to join the workforce, I was a PCU member. All of a sudden, I had some status in church. I was ‘somebody.’ Dress had to be on point, hair, shoes and what not… As workers, we were literally trying to outshine each other or so it seemed. Anyways, I felt like I was a privileged member of an elite circle. Hehehe. (It did feel good though, for the most part.)
About a year after joining the workforce, I was on my way to London for a Masters degree program that would last two years. As was the rule for workers travelling, I wrote to say I would be away for 2 years and Pastor Biodun Fotoyinbo asked that I keep in touch by sending him my number and email when I had settled in London so he “makes sure I continue in the faith” because according to him, people loose their faith when they leave home and he wanted to make sure I didn’t. So, on that note, as soon as I got a phone line in London, I was sure to call ‘my pastor’ to say I arrived safe, had settled in and also gave my phone number. 
We had spoken a few times especially when COZA started to stream online. I always watched and would give feedback on quality of production and share a little bit on the challenges I faced settling in a new land. One evening, Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo called me that he was coming to London and needed me to help him make some hotel bookings as the person who was meant to do it couldn’t get it done (this was rather strange as I had never been involved in his travel itinerary) Later that day, he said it had been sorted and my help would not be required but that he would like me to arrange a cab to pick him up from Heathrow. I was happy to help my pastor from Nigeria and even saw it as a privilege. (I would later come to learn that all of this was a calculated attempt to hatch a plan that I suspect was set in motion when I was asked to join the workforce.)
The cab guy was there to get him the next day and when he arrived, he called to ask why I didn’t accompany the cab to pick him up (again, this was strange but I stopped my mind from overanalyzing the situation as I knew I had no business with his visit to London) About two hours later, he called me and said he would like to see me. When I arrived his hotel, I called from the reception but he asked that I come upstairs. I got to the room and tried to stop my mind from thinking why I was going to his room. As he opened the door and invited me in, I had to speak to my heart to stop its palpitations. My better judgment asked me not to go into the room but the kind of reverence I had for Pasotr Biodun Fatoyinbo bordered on fear and I steeped into that room. 
“Care for a drink?” Asked Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo.
“No sir,” I said.
“You don’t have to be shy Ese, even if it’s alcohol, feel free and order what you want.” I wasn’t sure I heard my pastor asking me to order alcohol. I imagined it was a test and ignored the voice inside that was saying, “I’d have henny and coke please.” He proceeded to ask how I had been coping in London and if I was a committed member of any church. He also said he thought there was something special about me and wanted to know that I had not strayed from my faith. I really thought he had heard I was doing something I shouldn’t while in London but tried my best to focus on the conversation instead of my straying thoughts. He kept telling me to relax and feel comfortable with talking to him. After a few minutes, he asked that we go to the roof of the hotel as his room was a pent suite and had a connecting door to the roof.
While there, he sat on a reclining chair and asked me to come sit on his laps. This was a bit awkward for me and I froze for a moment as I asked why. He said he had told me to feel free with him and loosen up. I found myself strolling to sit on his laps. At that moment, I felt like a little girl who was experiencing something her mind couldn’t fathom. He asked me to kiss him and all I could think about was seeing him preach on the pulpit back in COZA Abuja, Nigeria, which was my home church. He again said ‘feel free Ese.’ And asked again, that I kiss him.
A few hours later, let’s just say, we were rolling under the sheets. It felt as though my mind had paused. I am not saying I was jazzed, (although it’s possible I was in some trancelike state and didn’t know it but I just was so afraid that I couldn’t say or think otherwise.) That was the beginning of this affair. A sexual affair that went on for a little over a week, DAILY!
I can hear somebody’s mind thinking, ‘well, you weren’t raped.” And I remember a pastor I opened up to when I couldn’t take all the mind games asking if I seduced him. No, I didn’t seduce him and no, I wasn’t raped but I felt trapped in this affair. Come to think of it, how could I have seduced him when I wanted nothing from him? I mean, I was too busy minding my business in London trying to get through with my masters program and I was overly comfortable. And even if I wanted to seduce anyone, it wouldn’t be a married man, not to mention a married pastor.  
What I couldn’t reconcile the whole time, was how the same person who preached against the very things we were doing (i.e drinking in pubs, fornicating, committing adultery) was the same person endorsing and encouraging it.
At some point, I got really confused about what Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo and I were doing that I had to ask how he handles it. I will never forget what he said to me. He said and I quote, “I will teach you a level of grace that you don’t understand.” My mind couldn’t fathom that somehow grace was enough covering for not just fornication on my path, adultery on his path and the many lies that was bound to follow what we were doing that was clearly abominable. I somehow dealt with the thoughts and fears that followed on my path. He had said to me that he wanted me to be his girlfriend and he would take me around the world and spoil me with money and things. Somehow, money had never been one of the things that motivated me (I am from a home where all my needs have been adequately met) In all my ‘badness’ through finding myself, I never did things I did for money but more of rebellion against rules and authority.
Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo also said to me that he had a dream where I exposed what was happening to the media. Said it was all over the place and that people were calling me the girl that caused chaos in COZA. He also said I should remember the bible said to “touch not God’s anointed.” I immediately started to rebuke the devil and said I could never do anything like that. I was almost swearing with my entire family as I thought really I had touched God’s anointed by submitting my body to be used. Little did I know at the time that all of these were ways to mess with my mind and even manipulate my thoughts.
Fast-forward a few months later, I was back in Nigeria and my church had become uncomfortable. Anytime I sat in church and listened to Pastor Biodun preach, I felt shame. I finally sent him a message saying I wasn’t comfortable anymore. I was confused and needed to talk about what had happened. He said I should meet him to talk and I did. It was a really weird meeting for me especially when he tried to kiss me at our meeting. I finally realized at this point that he couldn’t help me. I thought God was angry with me and I couldn’t pray so I decided to withdraw completely from COZA. This was the beginning of my mental torture. I couldn’t talk to my family because already, I was the only one attending a different church and somehow my mom never liked the idea. As the days went by I tried to use drinking and smoking to cover up the deep shame and guilt I was battling with. But as soon as the high was over, the thoughts came back and I felt stuck like I couldn’t move forward.
I felt I had to talk to someone and I decided to speak to my then good friend, Ernest Akale but unfortunately for me, Mr. Ernest did not have the capacity to hold what I said to him. He broke down completely the days that followed and I found myself having to pause how I was feeling and what I was struggling with to help my friend be strong. After a while, he withdrew from not just me but his then fiancé and friends. I had to then tell the fiancé what had caused it (she suspected we were having an affair so I had to clear the air) To my surprise she was a lot stronger than her man and told me to suck it up (I’m paraphrasing). She said if she were me, she wouldn’t leave the church but stay to torment Pastor Biodun and collect money from him. Ok! That sounded extreme for me, as my intention was not to blackmail but to heal my broken self. Anyways, I finally found the courage to speak to my then unit head who said he was going to talk to Pastor Biodun but didn’t have the liver to do so. Before long, the story was spreading and naturally getting twisted.
I went to a new church and it seemed like the COZA bug had chased me there. The pastor would always refer to COZA as some example and each time that was done, it seemed like a spear was thrust through my chest. One day, I broke down in the service and started crying uncontrollably, as I couldn’t take another mention of COZA and the pictures it painted in my head.
Very long, boring story cut short, for the last 5 months I gave the whole church thing a big space and break. I wasn’t sure I believed in God. I wasn’t sure I understood what it meant when people said ‘Jesus saves” and I definitely wasn’t sure how to deal with the mental torture that was affecting not just me but my relationships with family and friends. I was very unstable, fearful and worst of all guilty. I got a chance to talk to Pastor Folarin of COZA Lagos Chapter, popularly called Pastor flo about everything. I made an effort to reach out to him because I realized the right thing to do was talk to an elder in the church and seek some sort of remedy to a wrong I believed had been done me. Instead, Pastor Flo said, Pastor Biodun had confessed to him and they had ‘talked’ about it and somehow that was supposed to be Ok. He asked what it was I wanted coming to talk to him about it when I did, I told him I realized what happened between Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo and I was wrong and not just that I felt abused and manipulated. I also said I thought it was wrong for Pastor Biodun to go on preaching without taking time to deal with his personal character flaws. I said I thought he was danger to all the young women that attended the church. Come to think of it, maybe he meant if I wanted something monetary or material (as someone had suggested when I opened up to her) but the truth is, I never wanted his money (or is it the church member’s money.) All I wanted was to meet with him and have him accept that he misled me, betrayed his wife and the church he pastors. I wasn’t the only lady in COZA who had been a victim of his sexcapades and manipulative patterns but I was the one who could come back after months of struggle with not just my faith but also my affair with him. And I wanted to set things right. I wanted to talk to Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo maybe for closure and I felt like I needed an apology because he played the “touch not my anointed” card to keep me locked in guilt, shame and fear when all along it was a calculated plan and I dare say, it started when he asked me to join the workforce.
Not to mention the audacity to talk about teaching me a level of grace I didn’t understand. I had no intention of understanding a grace that would permit me to go on doing things that were wrong and what’s worse having to carry the burden for almost a year.
Different surprising advises came up in the weeks that followed the rumour making rounds. I was told to hush because Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo had been a cultist in the past and could send people to shut me up. All my so-called friends in COZA withdrew from me and treated me like I had the plague. What was worse was Pastor Flo finally saw my then pastor to ‘talk’ about what had happened with Pastor Biodun and lied that it happened once and was a mistake. My question then became, ‘do these people even care how broken I had become?’ ’do they care about the emotional and spiritual welfare of the people they were pastoring?’ The sad answer was NO. Most of us old members of COZA kept leaving but they couldn’t care less. What was important was to keep growing the church and having more and more cars with stickers that read “More than enough.”  Back then, I always felt horrible when I saw another car drive past me with the sticker. I was breaking, I was struggling but no one could help. All they could do was ask me to hide so Pastor Biodun’s goons don’t hurt me. And then the interesting one was if I had evidence to prove my claim. Let me just say here that, it isn’t a claim, it’s a confession to free me from all of the guilt and shame I have had to live with for no reason at all. (That being said, I have evidence to prove all I have said here, the latest being a 58 minutes recording of my meeting with Pastor Flo a few months back)
This is my confession and I cannot begin to describe how much weight has been lifted off of my shoulders just pouring the truth out about what went down. So, to all my ex COZA friends gossiping about me, get your facts right. To those who said they’d help me deal with the pain but didn’t, I forgive you, I have learnt how to deal with it and I am doing just fine. To those who fear for my safety saying Pastor Biodun would send people to shut me up, I really have gone past fearing for my life. To live is gain and to die is Christ (or how does Paul say it again?) And to the only person who ever supported me through it all, thank you, I am learning to be brave. Please don’t think I am perfect in all of this but in line with living my authentic life and putting all forms of abuse behind me, this is where I press the stop button and stop the bleeding. This is where I break the silence and call the church to stand up for what it has been commissioned to do. If you will not enter the Kingdom, please don’t stop others who are trying to enter.
I still remember when I used to nurse the idea of digging up emails, text messages, hotel billings (as once I used my card to pay for his room when his master card failed to work) to prove there was an affair. It was pathetic. Why for the love of heaven was I trying to dig up evidence? I am satisfied setting the record straight. I am ready for any shaming or bashing that would follow because the truth is, because of what I have suffered and come through, I am really not moved by what people say or think about me anymore. I am a stronger woman and a damn abuse survivor seeking to connect with other victims of abuse to show them how to deal with the shame, hurt and guilt and how to come out stronger. Turning their mess into their message.
I am Ese Walter and I have gone through all forms of abuse from family, boyfriends, my ex pastor and some strangers not to break me, but so I stand and so I qualify to help victims. My scars have qualified me and when all is said and done, I will still be standing. I AM WOMAN, I BEND, I DON’T BREAK!
Cheers to the freaking weekend!!!

Tuesday 20 August 2013

2015 Elections: Past lessons & Future hopes Pius Adesanmi on #Politrickswithko Thursday 22nd Aug 2013 8-9PM on BEN-TV




Nigerian writer Professor Pius Adesanmi will be discussing 2015 Elections: Past lessons & Future hopes on Thursday 22nd August 2013 on BEN-TV UK Watch Live SKY 182 and in Nigeria on Star Time and on line on www.bentelevision.com on Sky 182 you can phone in on +442088080693

Pius Adesanmi is the author of You're Not a Country, Africa. Poet and critic, Pius Adesanmi obtained a First Class Honours degree in French & Francophone Studies from the University of Ilorin, Nigeria (1992). He subsequently obtained a Master’s degree and a Ph.D in the same discipline from the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, and the University
of British Columbia respectively. He has since pursued a career as a scholar of Anglophone and Francophone African and Black Diasporic literatures and cultures.

He is a two-time Fellow of the French Institute of South Africa (IFAS) and has guest-lectured widely in Universities in Africa, Europe, and North America. He has contributed essays on literature and culture to several learned journals, literary reviews, newspapers, and edited books. He regularly
serves as a manuscript reviewer for literary publications. His poetry collection, The Wayfarer and Other Poems won the Association of Nigerian Authors Poetry Prize in 2001. Before joining Carleton, he was an Assistant Professor of Comparative Literature at The Pennsylvania State University from 2002- 2006. Adesanmi is a prolific writer and columnist with leading Nigerian news-media including award winning anti corruption on line news outlet www.saharareporters.com

Tuesday 13 August 2013

#PolitrickswithKO on Thursday. Topic: Women, Gender Inequality and Nigeria's democracy. Guests Ayisha Osori & Jenny Okafor.




#PolitrickswithKO on Thursday. Topic: Women, Gender Inequality and Nigeria's democracy Guests Ayisha Osori & Jenny Okafor.

Live on BEN-TV UK Sky 182 on line on www.bentelevision.com on and in Nigeria on Star Time: Thursday 15th August 2013 8:PM-9:PM (UK TIME)

Aysiha Osori


Ayisha is a lawyer, consultant and writer with experience in corporate practice, communications and gender advocacy. She has worked in energy, financial services and FMCG sectors and written a weekly column since 2008. She is the CEO of the Nigerian Women’s Trust Fund, an organization focused on increasing the number of women in decision-making.

Ms. Osori is a graduate of law from the University of Lagos and Harvard Law School and recently graduated from the Harvard Kennedy School with a Masters in Public Administration. She was called to the Nigerian and New York State bars in 1998 and 2000 respectively.

Ayisha is passionate about supporting the creation of an enabling environment for women & girls to maximize their abilities to live happy, productive, fulfilled lives.


Jenny Chika Okafor

President Nigerian Women in Diaspora Leadership Forum president.

Jenny is a UK based lawyer, passionate about equality issues, which promote and protect the physical, mental and moral integrity of all people regardless of their gender, background or circumstances in life. She believes in the sanctity of life. Her organization Nigerian Women in Diaspora aims to promote the interest of women and girls, including empowerment and leadership training.

VIDEO: Is Governor Babatunde Fashola 'SAVING' the POOR to EMPOWER THE RICH?



Lagos State Governor Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) destroyed 'poor shanties' in Badia East, Lagos to replace it with '1008 modern high class flats' not one poor resident evicted is penciled down to own a flat in the newly planned '1008 modern flat' that will be 'facing the lagoon (Lagos Sea Side) Yet again like Maroko poor people are going to be displaced for 'environmental health' reasons and replaced with the same Nigerian upper class elites who made them poor in the first place.


Monday 12 August 2013

God Gave Me 45 years Extra-Time! Short musing By Kayode Ogundamisi


Special Thanks to all who joined me in thanking God for the 45 years 'extra time' God gave me on earth. (Not really an overtly religious person but who else can turn few weeks into 45 years, certainly not me)

According to the soothsayers shortly after my birth in August of 1968, I was only expected to last 'a few weeks'.

I am not sure if I am deserving of every single day of the 45 years, but I have utilised every single moment to the best of my ability and do not regret any of the great, the not so great, the good, the not so good, the bad and not so bad times, for every challenge, it's been double victory, for everyone who had any reason to doubt, its been double reassurance, for those who have remained faithful to me, not minding my imperfections, my exceedingly 'irrational' moods, I say a huge THANK YOU.

One thing I am very sure of is that I owe all my existence, every breath, every single hair, and every dot that make up my existence to the mercy of the Almighty God and the special people he’s sent to me, friends, family and even adversaries, they together helped in saving me from me and most times saving me from others. I can never pay back the debt of gratitude. I can only say THANK YOU.


Kayode Ogundamisi

August 12, 2013

Colchester, Essex England.

Sunday 11 August 2013

And we the #Mob Moved On: #ABSURAPE revisited BY Kayode Ogundamisi


In 2011 the Nigerian social media erupted when the horrific gang rape video of a young lady surfaced online. The hour long video depicts a rape by at least 5 men and at a point she begs to be killed. Bloggers broke the story online which had before then reportedly circulated amongst the Abia State University student community earning it the ABSU RAPE tag.


In the fallout of the expose the full weight of social media, women and human rights organizations was mobilized in commentary, petitions, letters to Inspector General of Police, an interactive session by the then Youth Minister Bolaji Abdulahi, a special session with women and human rights NGOs with the House of Reps committee on human rights.

There were strident denials from the Abia State Govt. a mind-blowingly embarrassing statement from the Commisioner of Police in Abia saying the rape looked "consensual" and the usual blame the victim brigade. It was a virtual firestorm.

Fast forward to 2013. In March a police report indicated that the rape victim and accused rapists in the video had been identified and located not in Abia State but in Obite Rivers State.

It revealed that the victim was a married woman and at least one of her rapists a relative of her husband. Compared to the frenzied outrage of the rape video this news got the equivalent of a bored yawn.

There were no petitions or freedom of information requests to get more information from the police. No campaigns to raise money to investigate the claim and raise money for the victims legal fight or rehabilitation. We all failed in our duty, the ever loud #Mob No catchy hash tag.

Nothing but a few feeble tweets and updates about the story sounding doubtful and sad, we couldn’t afford to resuscitate #ABSU so as not to drown our current # party, a new Voyeur  for social meetings under the name of protest, candle at night, opportunity for ‘networking’ then a chance on the daily shows of the television, our best suits, a fresh haircut and then another ‘sponsorship’ from telecommunication firms, who could as well also donate some of the ‘investment’ into helping victims of rape. Like vultures the #Mob wait for another fancy cause, then we rake, we increase our ‘followership’ graphic designers in waiting, it is now trendy to shout it, wear few T-shirts and then go to sleep.


Fast forward to August 2013: The Nation publishes a truly heartbreaking follow up story that reads like an over the top Nollywood tragedy.


The gang rape victims husband has been tracked down to Obite and he reveals the horrific consequences of the rape. His wife suffered a miscarriage after the rape, is now HIV positive and has lost a baby to HIV/AIDS. The suspects (some his relatives) are walking free. The arena for justice was a magistrate’s court? The couple lives in fear of the alleged big shot sponsor of the rape who he claims is influencing the case and has a band of thugs on call.

The now HIV positive rape victim is with her parents in Owerri. They are clearly on their own. Yesterdays outrage from strangers will not get them justice. The hashtag brigade has moved on, to another trendy # voyeur.

Ironically only thing the campaign may have succeeded in doing was alert the husband to the rape. His wife kept it secret and he found out when friends showed him the video of the latest Nigerian scandal.

I have heard defense put up about the story sounding fishy or being a cover up by some parties. That misses the point. Did the March police release even generate a discussion? An investigation? The follow up whether accurate or not was not pursued with any interest.

Without these journalists attempt to track down the story we have now all the emergency citizens journalists who emerged in those times wouldn't stirred from the next big thing.

No women or human rights NGO coalitions issued press releases or headed out to provide legal aid. Even the bounty offered online for information on the rapists wasn't used for follow up or converted to a legal fund.

While a victim lives with bone crushing injustice thoroughly unaffected by righteous intentions the #hashtag mob has moved to the next sexy hashtag. No closure. No ability to sustain. No strategies. No moral ground to demand anything better from our leaders. No impact on anything of value. We all need deliverance.

Follow Kayode Ogundamisi on twitter @ogundamisi

In 2015 Nigeria's desperation for change should not lead to replacing Hitler with a Mussolini. Kayode Ogundamisi




When politicians take the support of traditional friends for granted, make assumptions that they do not have to make policies clear, they should know it is the beginning of failure.

You do not pick power on the street, Nigerians have been deceived over and over again that EVERYONE and ANYONE aspiring to lead us after several years of PDP disaster must be ready to be subjected to the minutest of scrutiny.

Every word is important, every policy statement scrutinised, it is not just saying we have to replace PDP. It is telling Nigerians what will be different, and that story of how things will be different should be told, street by street, village by village, town by town, city by city, from from the bottom, the sea and creek of Rivers to the tip of Nigeria in the edge of Katsina, cutting across the border-town of Niger to that of Adamawa. Spending days and night in the creek of Ijaw to the deep Savannah. If ANYONE thinks power will fall on the table simply because 'CHANGE IS INEVITABLE' that person underestimate the plague called PDP, it is a deadly infectious decease that is killing Nigeria slowly and steadily since 1999.

So as you keep sounding me off about 'working for the enemy' let me leave you with a quote from  South Africa's former leader of the Black Consciousness Movement


"You must not forget how Hitler and Mussolini emerged as leaders because desperate people were looking for an alternative," Mamphela Aletta Ramphele

Our desperation for change will not see us replace Hitler with a Mussolini.

Kayode Ogundamisi

Saturday 10 August 2013

NDI-IGBO are we that desperate that we must force ourselves on others? Dr. Pat Obiefule asks!





I greet you all. Ndewo nu! I have tried very hard to resist the urge to jump into this Igbo-Yoruba-Hausa-Nigeria discourse; but the more I read the posts on all sides of the argument, the stronger and more irresistible the urge became. So here we are.

As a brief recess from all these high and low impact intellectual aerobics, may I please ask that you patiently walk through and analyze the following basic anecdotal scenario with me regarding the Igbo-Nigeria quagmire? Here we go:
Nigeria is a polygamous man; hence the many wives - Alhaja Yoruba Nigeria, Hajia Hausa Nigeria, Lolo Igbo Nigeria, Mrs. Efik Nigeria, Mrs. Edo Nigeria, Mrs. Ijaw Nigeria, etcetera.

Picture Nigeria’s majestic mansion (main house) strategically located in the front center of his compound and surrounded by the individual bungalows belonging to each of the wives and her children.

While each of the other wives and her children are busy developing/beautifying and maintaining their bungalow and its surrounding, Lolo Igbo’s children decide to leave her own bungalow and instead reside with her co-wives and help develop their bungalows.

Lolo Igbo’s children are fairly patriotic, but regrettably not “matriotic” (made that up, hahaha!) because they help their half-brothers and half-sisters develop and maintain their mothers’ bungalows while neglecting their own home which is Lolo Igbo’s bungalow.  
Now, Lolo Igbo’s bungalow is rapidly becoming dilapidated. Meanwhile, Lolo Igbo’s co-wives and their children feel that Lolo Igbo’s children have overstayed their welcome and want them to go home to their mother and help her rebuild her crumbling bungalow.

Understandably, Lolo Igbo’s co-wives and their children insist that Lolo Igbo’s children are welcome to visit their respective bungalows to enjoy for a while, but not to move in and try to displace them from their own homes.

But alas! Lolo Igbo’s children would not have it. They feel instead that it is their father’s compound and they are ENTITLED to leave their mother’s bungalow and reside in any of the other ones, if they so desire. (IDEALLY RIGHT, WHERE THERE IS LOTS OF LOVE; BUT NOT ALWAYS PRACTICABLE ESPECIALLY IF THERE IS NO LOVE LOST)
Of course the half-brothers and half-sisters are enraged by Lolo Igbo’s children’s stubborn defiance; so, in attempting to forcibly eject them from Lolo Igbo’s co-wives’ domains, lots of the Igbo children lose their lives.

Now, Lolo Igbo and her surviving children cry, “Bloody murder!”

As a bona fide Eziada Igbo, I then ask:

1.     Under the circumstances, do we really have the right to blame anyone else but ourselves?
2.     Do we not say in Igbo that: ukpara okpoko gburu, nti chiri ya”?
3.     Are we so resolute in our own self-ascribed level of knowledge and wisdom that we’ve gone to the stream to fetch water with a basket (amakam ihe, jiri ekete kuru mmiri)?
4.     Do we not understand the simple basic fact that we cannot force ourselves on someone who does not want us even if we happen to be siblings or half siblings? After all, we don’t get to choose our relatives (half-siblings included), only our friends.
5.     Have we stopped to wonder why our half-brothers and half-sisters are not breaking down our mother’s door trying to come and reside with us their?
6.     And what about our polygamous father, Nigeria? What is his stand in all of this?
7.     Could it be that he has turned deaf ears and looked the other way because our mother, Lolo Igbo Nigeria, is his least favorite wife?
8.     Could it also be that allowing us to renounce his paternity claim on us and secede from his polygamous dominion would hurt his ego and embarrass him, but more importantly deny him access to the economic resources in our mother’s backyard?
9.     Assuming these reasons were totally or partially true, shouldn’t that be strong enough motivation for us to retreat to our mother’s domain, rebuild it, and then make our case when we come to the general family meeting table at the main house (father’s mansion)?
10.  Have we not determined that we can actually retreat to our mother’s domain, rebuild and develop it while still sharing our last name (Nigeria) and a peaceful co-existence with our half-siblings within our father’s polygamous kingdom?
11.  Isn’t that how it really works in most polygamous families?
In more general terms (non-scenario specific), may I then ask:
1.     Will it be deemed over-reaction on my part if I characterize as callous, those who cite “One Nigeria” as the impetus for espousing the establishment of micro Igbo dominions within other linguistic regions of Nigeria even in the face of foreknown unflinching hostility?
2.     Are these individuals capable of empathizing with the individuals and families whose hearts and lives have been shattered and forever changed by the consequences of the pogroms that have punctuated our history?
3.     Does it not make more practical sense that a sustainable egalitarian “One Nigeria” would be better negotiated and achieved with mutual respect by designees of each linguistic group who come to the Federal table from a strong, confident and respectable home base rather than a resentful, envious, and even spiteful victim-minded one?  
4.     If I come to your home and you decide that I have overstayed my welcome and ask me to leave, or else lose my life; is it not foolhardy, to say the least, for me to not only insist on staying, but also demand the right to share your home?
5.     Will it not be wiser for me to heed your request or threat and exist gracefully, and once secured in my own home (developed or not), then express to you my disappointment for being excused from your home?
6.     For those who propose claiming dominion in another man’s land, and then establishing and nurturing strategic alliances for safety and security; do you honestly believe that when the chips are down, there are enough Hausas and Yorubas that would lay down their lives to save that of an Igbo friend?
7.     Given the proven intellectual prowess and enterprising acumen of Igbos, can any of you even begin to imagine the paradise that Igbo land would become if Igbos were to invest in their land, half the energy and resources we spend in developing other lands?
8.     Even though Igbos don’t have the enormous land mass that exist in the north, for instance; could we not build on top of buildings, so that Igbo land becomes known in the world as, among other things, the land of sky-scrappers?
9.     Would that be such an impossible dream to accomplish?
10.  Have we not yet realized that we are the direct architects of all the ills (kidnappings, child trafficking, corruption, armed robbery, etc) that plague Igbo land? Why? Because all those ills are the unintended consequences of our insatiable lust for non-Igbo lands and our willful neglect of Igbo land?
11.  Will I be branded a pessimist if I dare predict that until we choose to shift our focus from constantly retelling the tales of woes in Igbo land (problem mindset) to churning out possible solutions (solution/result orientation) to those ills; we will continue to spin the wheels of status quo, while delusively expecting a new outcome?
My brothers and sisters of Igbo extraction, “ariri erigbuole umu Igbo”! Let us for once in our collective live take the challenge to retreat and develop from within. Let us initiate an “Operation Develop Igbo land” and insist that until full development is accomplished, all roads lead to Igbo land. We can do it! The devil is always in the detail, of course. So, think results! Think solutions! Brainstorm! No idea is too big, too small, or too irrelevant to be considered. Keep your ideas coming until we find one or some that will work! If you condemn someone else’s idea, please lay out your reasons, then present your alternative(s) along with the underpinning rationale(s).
Long live Ala Igbo (Lolo Igbo Nigeria)!
Long live Nigeria!!!

Udo diri unu!
Much love
Eziada Dr. Pat Obiefule
(Opuruiche Nwanyi)