Desist from “Unwarranted” verbal attacks on Badenoch- Igboho tells Shettima

Yoruba Nation activist Chief Sunday Adeyemo, popularly known as Sunday Igboho, has called on the Vice President Kashim Shettima to desist from what he termed unwarranted verbal attacks on Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the British Conservative Party.

He called on President Bola Tinubu to intervene and redirect Shettima’s focus.

It would be recalled that the British politician had recently spoken about corruption in Nigeria, affirming her Yoruba heritage while distancing herself from Northern Nigeria.

Igboho in a statement he personally signed on Sunday responded to reports of Shettima’s criticism of Badenoch.

“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,”

The activist notee that critics of the Fulani ethnic group during former President Muhammadu Buhari’s tenure often faced harsh consequences.

“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 said.

Reflecting on his personal experiences, Igboho recalled the raid on his residence by security agents on July 1, 2021, which left two people dead and led to the arrest of 13 others. He linked the raid to his activism against Fulani herders under Buhari’s government.

Igboho criticized the Federal Government’s handling of pressing issues such as poverty, insecurity, and economic hardship.

“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 said.

Igboho further urged Shettima to focus on addressing these challenges rather than engaging in unnecessary disputes.

“Instead of deploring measures to mitigate the suffering of the masses and frontally tackle the nation’s challenges, Vice President Kashim Shettima is busy taking on Badenoch,” he said.

The activist also defended Badenoch’s right to express her views and identity.

Igboho added “When has it become a sin for someone to express his or her opinion or say the obvious 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?”