Sunday Igboho: A cat with no life

They said he turned into a Cat when the DSS invaded his House. It looked like he was infallible, like the system couldn’t take him on and had garnered an aura of invincibility.

Then they struck. He turned into a Cat and disappeared but his people were dragged away to an uncertain fate. The mystery continued, sighting at various places was announced and finally we heard he was trying to secure another passport to leave town.

This holiday, the news finally came that he was arrested in neighboring Benin Republic and as we speak is to be arraigned on immigration charges and not what the Nigerian Government would have most likely expected.

Well for me, my issue is how easily Mr. Igboho allowed himself to be demonized pushing his otherwise very legitimate struggle into the realms of criminality.
You will recall that he came to the limelight when he stood up to rail against the incessant killing and maiming of his people. This gave him a very strong and credible platform throwing him into the forefront of Yoruba leadership.

As it is wont to be, his inexperience and exuberance quickly derailed his mission. His push for the Yoruba Nation alienated him from the vast majority and weaponized his enemies not only in Government circles but within the Yoruba hierarchy.

This must have emboldened the Government who have stated very clearly that the territorial integrity of the Nation cannot be discussed, to move in.
The ‘attack’ of his home elicited a paltry resistance from the people. Very few people raised their voices and his cry for secession must have pushed him within the realms of State Security where Human rights is no longer a concession.

Today, he is now viewed as a villain and this is sad because we can really see his genuine interest in resolving our problems. His was not a personal mission for positioning but a genuine cry that got derailed.

Sad.