The Trumpet Newspaper Issue 597 (May 17 - 30 2023)

Opinion
Tales the country told me:
Hilda Baci and Seun Kuti
Continued from Page 12<
stomach. A woman that is an acclaimed
cook is a special target for stomach-driven
Nigerian men. Ms Baci will get invited to
cook by seemingly appreciative men who
just want to taste. Beware, Baci. There are
too many idle men in this society of ours
who promise marriage and heaven, but are
closet idiots. Focus on growing your
business, and talent. Watch out for those
who will soon begin to use your
achievement to catch clout as they say.
The fifth and final point here is to
congratulate, Hilda Baci’s mother. She is
herself a chef. She runs a restaurant in
Abuja. Her daughter follows in her
footsteps. She learnt the trade at her feet. I
have seen a video showing her expressing
her delight at her daughter’s achievement.
It is the prayer of every parent that their
children should do better than them. Mrs.
Bassey’s glory came on Mother’s Day, a
mother’s hilarious delight! She has every
reason to be grateful. Lecherous Nigerian
men have observed that Mrs. Bassey
herself is a very good spec. As a seriousminded
person, I no longer engage in such
conversations, so I won’t tell that side of
the story. What I see here is the importance
of parenting. In all of this, however,
nobody has mentioned Mr. Bassey. Is he
alive? This is the burden we bear as fathers.
When the children do well, it is their
mothers who step forward like characters
from Bournvita cartoons. Still, we thank
God for all children and mothers who bless
the land as the Basseys have done.
Hilda Baci
Chef Hilda Baci and her mum who runs a Restaurant in Abuja
Now to Seun Kuti, the enfant terrible,
about whom terrible things have been
reported during the same weekend that
Hilda Baci did us all proud. Seun Kuti was
reported to have dropped the ball. He
assaulted a policeman. There was a video
in circulation that showed him telling a
policeman in uniform that he would deal
with him. He slapped the police officer in
uniform. He assaulted the policeman. He
reportedly boasted thereafter that he has
dealt with many policemen in similar
manner in the past. Seun Kuti is my
kinsman. I do not want anything bad to
happen to him. But this time around I think
he has carried his offering beyond the
Mosque. It has been argued that it is a DNA
thing. He is after all, the son of Fela
Anikulapo Kuti. Fela did not wilfully break
the law. He was in fact a law-abiding man.
He challenged autocracy. He questioned
the law as all citizens are allowed to do so.
He was like his mother, the legendary,
Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti. Seun Kuti’s
forebears were defenders and promoters of
good governance and the rule of law. Even
when State agents attacked Kalakuta
Republic, an assault in which Seun’s
grandmother lost her life, the State
prevailed, even if unjustly. I think therefore
that those who think it is a DNA thing for
Seun Kuti to attack a policeman are wrong.
People make their own choices. They do
not inherit choices. What I am saying is that
it would be most disrespectful to drag the
dead into Seun Kuti’s matter. He is an adult
and he must be made to answer for his own
acts. The law does not recognize pedigree.
You commit an act; you answer for it. The
only thing the law recognizes is the equality
MAY 17 - 30 2023
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Page13
of persons before the law. Seun Kuti is not
above and cannot be above the law because
he enjoys hereditary privilege.
From Saturday, there is a video in
circulation showing him assaulting a
policeman on the Third Mainland Bridge in
Lagos. The video evidence shows that he
insulted the policeman and slapped him. He
has since claimed that he has enough
evidence to show that the policeman
threatened his life and that of his family
members. There have been other evidence
notes on social media. We are told for
example that he told the policeman before
slapping him: “You dey craze? You dey
mad?” In the meantime, the Inspector
General of Police and the Police Service
Commission have ordered arrest and
investigations. The Police have a duty to
ensure that their officers are not routinely
assaulted by Nigerians. Dr. Solomon Arase,
the Police Service Commission (PSC)
Chairman has commended the affected
police officer for the restraint that he
demonstrated. That officer whom nobody
has named – we need his true identity -
should be promoted by Arase’s PSC. In my
view, Seun Kuti was indeed lucky. If that
policeman or his colleagues had rifles with
them, they could have gunned him down.
By now, he would be dead and we would
all be talking about extra-judicial killing.
The lesson here is that people must know
their limits. In today’s Nigeria, my father
was this or my grandmother was that, is not
a protection claim in the face of the law.
The present generation of Nigerians don’t
know ancient history anyway. They should
not rely on what grandpa and great grandpa
and daddy did.
It is however refreshing to hear that
Seun Kuti has shown up at the police
station. He was reportedly put in silver
ware. The offence that he has committed
under Section 98 of the Police Act and
Section 356 of the Criminal Code puts him
in line for a three-year jail term. He says he
has enough evidence to prove his
innocence. He has a good lawyer: Femi
Falana, SAN. Let them go and prove their
case in the court of law, and as soon as the
case is properly placed, let them address all
the allegations including the underlying
innuendo that Fela Kuti ‘s son is above the
laws of the land. Should anyone be above
the laws of Nigeria? I am aware however
that there are other interested persons and
groups in the public domain who are now
beginning to say that if Seun Kuti is let off
the hook, they too will begin to slap and
beat Nigerian policemen, and they would
cite Seun Kuti’s case as precedent. The
substance of this matter lies in Seun Kuti’s
relationship with the sovereign but
whichever way it is resolved, his brand is
already somewhat diminished. He doesn’t
need that. This is the sad part of it.