Friday brief: Brymo's bigotry
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Good morning.
We are covering Brymo’s recent controversy. It’s not pleasant.
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Brymo’s bigotry
On December 30, Ọláwálé Ọlọ́fọ̀ọrọ̀, the supremely talented singer and songwriter better known as Brymo, asked one Comedian KlintonCod to “shut up” after the latter mocked those who were living in Nigeria and not supporting a Peter Obi presidency. But it was not clear whether Brymo wanted KlintonCod to move back to Nigeria or stay abroad. “Shut up and move back ….just shut-up and stay there … idiot!!” the tweet read.
And thus began a series of quote tweets that have put some spotlight on the Ozymandias crooner. Brymo pitched his tent with Bola Ahmed Tinubu, a former state governor who has cast himself as the builder of modern Lagos and the presidential candidate who can recruit the best team to catapult Nigeria into greatness; Tinubu has also been dogged by allegations of corruption, certificate forgery, identity theft, drug trafficking and serious health issues. “This is the new I promised you,” Brymo wrote.
Brymo’s support of Tinubu is not what is under scrutiny. After another user challenged his ideas, he appeared to admit that Tinubu and Obi were eligible for the presidency but that he would rather support “an ailing one than possible anarchy.”
In Brymo’s thinking, Tinubu unites the entire country because he is from the south-west while an Obi presidency will lead to anarchy as he is from the south-east. “An Igbo VP first maybe to test the waters with (sic) the region is safer,” he said.
Brymo’s argument is a popular trope in the south-west: that a south-east presidency will open the door for the actualisation of Biafra and the eventual breakup of Nigeria. To see it shared in public by Brymo wasn’t surprising—he’s been known to court controversy in the past—but it was utterly debilitating, a reminder of how easy it is to put a (tribal or religious) sword to the things that unify us as Nigerians.
The argument itself is unconvincing. An Obi presidency will not lead to the strengthening of Biafra. It is like saying a Buhari presidency will lead to Nigeria becoming a Fulani state, another trope often repeated by southerners but with no substantial evidence behind it. In recent years, agitators in the south-west have clamoured for a Yoruba nation, but no one has suggested a Tinubu presidency will give credibility to the Igbohos of this world.
Brymo is entitled to his choice for president, but to seek to discredit a presidential candidate by resorting to dog whistles is appalling. In Gambu, Brymo said ‘Person wey befriend dog go chop shit’. He is not a dog, but voting for an ailing man because of ethnic considerations is ‘chopping shit’. So one wonders who Brymo has befriended.
What else is happening?
INEC: Perhaps to ensure more Nigerians are able to exercise their franchise in the 2023 elections, the electoral agency has moved the collection of permanent voter cards from the 774 local government areas to the 8,809 registration areas/wards across the country.
Alleged rape: After a magistrate court in Yaba remanded some teenagers to a juvenile centre in Ogun state for allegedly raping an eight-year-old girl, the police asked the victim’s father to provide a vehicle to transport the defendants.
Hope Uzodimma: The Imo state governor said completing the second Niger bridge was enough for the south-east to vote for the ruling APC in February’s presidential elections. He also claimed that only APC members have been victims of attacks in the state, repeating his argument that insecurity in Imo is politically motivated.
Economic burden: Nigeria’s total public debt could rise to N77 trillion this year from N44 trillion as of last September, according to the Debt Management Office chief, Patience Oniha.
Olisa Agbakoba: The senior lawyer questioned the existence of the anti-graft agency, EFCC, arguing that it duplicates the functions of the police. He also said because the EFCC is a creation of the federal government, it should not have jurisdiction over state affairs.
Boat tragedy: At least ten people have died after a boat carrying more than 100 women and children broke apart on a river in Kebbi state. Local officials said the boat was loaded “beyond its capacity.” According to reports, rescue operations were still ongoing as of Thursday evening.
Busted: Investors in cryptocurrency lost a total of $3.9 billion to hackers and fraudsters in 2022, according to bug bounty and Web3 security services firm, Immunefi.
And that’s it for today. Thank you for riding with me this week. Have a fantastic weekend.
lol. of all the notorious interest groups e.g. miyetti-allah, mend, afenifere, opc etc. which one of them can you boldly call secessionist and anti-nigeria? when sunday igboho, who you cited in your writing started his crass "yoruba nesan" agitations, how long did it take yoruba traditional rulers and governors to snuff the life out of him and his movement?
ipob and esn on the other hand are openly anti-nigeria. they started calling the country a "zoo", called the president jubril from sudan and a lot of other insidious things. they even tried to economically and politically disenfranchised their own people in their effort to push their secessionist agenda. now, add the fact that a significant number of easterners are sympathetic to the cause of these destructive groups.
if people feel the way they feel about igbo presidency, then they're well-justified. you can't insult every other people as unwise, spit on and desecrate what brings us together etc. and now turn around to say you want to lead the country (while certain segments of your ethnic group are still fighting to break away from the country).
as devastating as mend was during their peak, they came together to support jonathan as (vice) president, made sure inec was present in the most remote areas, right from the build up of the election to the conduct and post-election. they supported him with a cease-fire and zero anti-nigeria rhetoric.
can ipob and esn do the same? guess who's burning up inec offices and impeding their own people from participating in the nigerian electoral process? mm, the zoo.