Yoruba nation champion, Sunday Igboho, has issued a clarion call to President Bola Tinubu, urging him to rein in Vice President Kashim Shettima concerning his continued verbal onslaught on Kemi Badenoch, the prominent leader of the British Conservative Party.
Igboho’s statement, sourced in Osogbo on Sunday, arrived in the wake of Shettima’s recent comments regarding Badenoch, who has not shied away from making forthright denunciations of the endemic corruption that plagues Nigeria.
Badenoch, proudly identifying as Yoruba, has distanced herself from being categorized with Northern Nigeria, a move that seemingly heightened the sensitivity around the topic.
In a pointed critique of the previous administration, he noted, “During Muhammadu Buhari’s tenure, no one dared to unleash derogatory or verbal assaults against his Fulani ethnicity without encountering serious repercussions. My own protest against the devastation of agricultural lands, the shocking killings, and the sexual violence inflicted by Fulani herdsmen during Buhari’s reign was met with a violent response; security personnel, on his directive, besieged my abode on July 1, 2021, resulting in the loss of two lives and the detention of 13 others.”
Igboho lambasted the Federal Government for its inability to mitigate the myriad challenges afflicting Nigerians, including overwhelming economic strife, pervasive poverty, rampant kidnapping, and escalating insecurity. He articulated his dismay that, while the populace grapples with these urgent dilemmas, Shettima has opted to expend his energies targeting Badenoch rather than addressing the heavier burdens facing the nation.
“The majority of Nigerians are ensnared in a cycle of acute poverty and insecurity, yet the Federal Government seems adrift, incapable of providing viable solutions. Instead of implementing strategies to alleviate the burdens of the populace, the Vice President is fixated on levelling attacks against Badenoch,” he remarked.
Igboho further questioned, “At what juncture did it become an offense for an individual to voice their opinion or lay bare the obvious truth regarding how rampant corruption has stifled Nigeria’s development?
“Badenoch’s assertion of her authentic Yoruba identity does not constitute an infraction. The Vice President should redirect his efforts towards the duties intrinsic to his office instead of waging futile shadow wars.”
He passionately appealed to Tinubu to step in and ensure Shettima refrains from unwarranted verbal assaults against Badenoch, calling for a prioritization of the responsibilities that come with his position as Vice President.
