Yoruba Nation activist Chief Sunday Adeyemo, also known as Sunday Igboho, has called on President Bola Tinubu to caution Vice President Kashim Shettima over what he described as unwarranted verbal attacks on Kemi Badenoch, leader of the British Conservative Party.
Igboho’s statement, released on Sunday, December 15, followed reports of Shettima’s criticism of Badenoch. The British politician recently commented on corruption in Nigeria while affirming her Yoruba heritage and distancing herself from Northern Nigeria.
In the statement personally signed by him, Igboho urged Shettima to focus on Nigeria’s pressing issues instead of engaging in disputes.
“It is incumbent on President Bola Tinubu, who is also from the Yoruba ethnic nationality and lineage, to direct Shettima to face his duties as vice president rather than dissipate energy or engage in verbal war against Badenoch, who merely expressed her candid but true opinion on the pervasive corruption in Nigeria’s system,” Igboho said.
Drawing a comparison to the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari, Igboho noted the consequences faced by critics of the Fulani ethnic group during Buhari’s tenure.
“When the immediate past President Muhammadu Buhari was in power, nobody dared launch offensive or verbal attacks against his Fulani ethnic nationality without being dealt with or muzzled through the instrumentality of the state or paying the supreme price,” he stated.
Igboho also recounted the July 1, 2021 raid on his residence by security agents, which resulted in the deaths of two individuals and the arrest of 13 others. He attributed the raid to his agitation against the actions of Fulani herders during Buhari’s administration.
Criticizing the Federal Government’s inability to address critical issues like poverty, insecurity, and economic hardship, Igboho said “majority of Nigerians are currently being subjected to a harrowing experience, excruciating poverty due to harsh economic policies, and are bogged down by kidnapping and other forms of insecurity, but the Federal Government is still groping in the dark, finding solutions.”
He further questioned the backlash against Badenoch’s comments, defending her right to express her views. “When has it become a sin for someone to express his or her opinion or say the obviou about how corruption has retarded the growth of Nigeria as a nation or proclaiming her true identity as a member of the Yoruba ethnic group?” Igboho asked.
He concluded by urging Tinubu to redirect Shettima’s focus, stating “it is high time President Bola Tinubu called Shettima to order now to desist from needless verbal attacks and face his duties as the vice president of the country.”
