By Martin Cole-
The British Deputy High Commissioner to Nigeria, Ben Llewellyn-Jones(pictured) has clashed with a Nigerian politician, after it was revealed that 10 Nigerians were on Britain’s visa ban watchlist.
Lewwellyn directed some of his criticism at the outspoken All Progressives Congress(APC) Presidential Campaign Council’s Director of New Media, Femi Fani-Kayode, on some comments he made, the Deputy High Commissioner appeared to insinuate the outspoken former lawyer and politician is included on the list for some of the tribalist rhetoric he has published on media platforms in relation to tension between the yoruba’s and igbo’s residing in Lagos, following the violence that accompanied the governorship battle in the city that saw the incumbent governor, Sanwo Olu retain his position after voting concluded.
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Some of the former minister’s tweets in reference to the opposition have contained words and phrases deemed divisive and inciting by some people.
Reacting to the development, Llewellyn-Jones said, “Yes, let’s be specific; there were some people, like Femi Fani-Kayode, what is he saying and why is he saying it? I don’t understand.
“It is wrong from my perspective that he will speak on behalf of a party and that party does not distance itself from him and say, ‘stop doing that. It is wrong to say that’.
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“We have a list, we are working through our list but we don’t publish those names. I know people say we should, but we have laws, and the law prevents us from doing that.
“At the moment, the list is between five and 10 and growing,” he added.
Responding to the criticism, Nigerian born Fani-Kayode defiantly said he would not be intimidated by a visa ban threat, saying, “these are my personal views and I am constrained to express them.”
“Nigeria stopped being a British colony 63 years ago, and we need no lessons from him on how to run our affairs or conduct our politics,” Fani-Kayode wrote.
“I wonder who the hell he thinks he is. I am not one of those Nigerians that bows, shakes, shivers, and trembles before the British or indeed any other foreigner. And unlike most, I do not need any validation or endorsement from him or his ilk and neither can I be intimidated by his veiled threat of a visa ban. Frankly, I could not care less.
“Neither will we accept lessons in decency, etiquette, what to say, or how to speak from a British civil servant. I advise this Englander to respect himself and remain a silent observer when it comes to the politics of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. As a nation, we are not a poodle of the British and we came of age 63 years ago,” the APC chieftain added.
Femi Kani Fayode Image:Skabash.com
Kayode’s defiant comments have been deemed foolish by analysts who have highlighted Nigeria’s incompetence in conducting elections without the sort of backward violence witnessed in many cities. His critics have also attacked what they describe as his divisive stance, given the fact he was educated in Cambridge University in England and hails from a family of lawyers from three generations who were also educated in Britain’s elite higher education institution in Cambridge University .
Writer Ade Martins said: ”Having been well education in one of the best universities in England and come from a lineage of very well educated family, he should draw the parallel between his kind of rhetoric on this kind of tribal issue and racism in the Uk. He is definitely trying to a political audience and an audience of those who would warm up to his ideology. His lines of thinking is wrong, but Igbos saying Lagos is a no man’s land and aspiring to take over the land need to know they cannot talk like that even in response to any ill treatment they might be subjected by ignorant people trying to turn these election to a tribal war.
The ongoing drawn up list is designed to sanction people deemed to be undermining democracy in Nigeria, particularly following the recently concluded elections that imploded into violence across various sections of the West African country. Britain had vowed to impose visa bans on political actors who served to disrupt the elections through rigging and the hiring of thugs.
The Nigerian elections were marred by incidents of ballot box snatching and intimidation of voters in some cities, with further allegations of distortions to the number of votes cast in some parts of the country by INEC officials. Electoral body, INEC, has also been at the centre of allegations of corruption surrounding the elections.
Yusuf Akinpelu from the Nigerian PREMIUM TIMES told The Eye Of Media..Com: ”The British High Commission should really name those on their banning list, but they may want to avoid a diplomatic stand off.
”The whole incident began through trading words about indigenship, land ownership and migration. Some of the rhetoric pushed by public figures or individual pushing narratives on social in which suggestions were made that igbos were going to take over Lagos- land of yoruba.
This was the genesis of the whole affair. Some of the rhetoric made by nobodies on social media were perceived to be inflammatory and derogatory, sparking tension. There are an appreciable number of igbos living in Lagos, and when words like these are said on social media, was a push back
”Humans are territorial, nobody wants to be told that their land will be taken
Some of those replying openly, like Fani Kayode can be held accountable
It needs to be tackled at the base and there needs to be open scrutiny
What really needs to happen is for people to respond in a democratic manner and vote in those they feel will effectively front their concerns. Leaders on both sides need to dampen the pressure’, and this has already been happening in many states. President elect Tinubu has himself called for peace”.
Some have said the entire issue arose when some individuals from the yoruba tribe ordered igbos who voted for Peter Obi to leave Lagos, this prompting the reaction from the aggrieved tribe that they it is a no man’s land and they would take over.
Writer, Lucy Caulkett said: ”it all sounds like racism in a black country amongst Nigerians. Igbos I have spoken to say their parents and grandparents were born and grew up in Lagos, but they get told to leave the town because Peter Obi won Lagos city during the election. This, despite the fact a number of yoruba’s would also have had to vote for him to win
”The yoruba people will tell you they are being provoked by claims from the igbo indigene that their land will be taken over, though they remain the predominant people in the city of Lagos- a city in which they have clear ancestral roots.
The tribal issues of Nigeria runs deep and had its part to play in the elections in terms of voting and alleged rigging since many voters chose their candidate along tribalist lines, and those who induced violence did so for similar reasons in order to secure the candidate of their choice.
Opposition parties, the Labour party, and the APC party are currently contesting the results of the Nigerian elections. No election outcome has ever been overturned in the Nigerian judicial system.
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