A former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili and her ex-colleague, Femi Fani-Kayode, on Tuesday got into verbal altercation over opinion articles targeted at the Igbo ethnic group published by Mr. Fani-Kayode.
Mr. Fani-Kayode had written a controversial opinion piece entitled “The Bitter Truth About The Igbo” (Read the article HERE) In what appears a reaction to the heated debate that followed Lagos’ repatriation of some destitute people believed to be of Anambra origin to Onitsha.
However, Mrs. Ezekwesili on Tuesday said Mr. Fani-Kayode’s opinion piece was “hateful” and potentially destabilising. “The current slippery slope of our country cannot be allowed to worsen with the kind of hateful speeches Fani-Kayode has been releasing,” she said. "FG must stop this stoking of hate-flame for an ethnic group that had once been tragically massacred in an avoidable civil war. Do it NOW!”
Mr. Fani-Kayode quickly hit back via his twitter handle, saying he has freedom of speech to comment on national issues. In a series of tweets, he argued that his article should be used to correct “the wrong things done by our past leaders” instead of criticising him.
“Oby Ezekwesili should learn that we have the right to freedom of expression in Nigeria,” he said. “She should provide evidence of my “hate’ speech.”
Mrs. Ezekwesili: “Freedom of speech is not to be confused for Freedom to stoke hatred for people of different ethnic, religious or ideological persuasion,” she replied.
Mr. Fani-Kayode: “When supposedly educated people run away from facing the truth they should be called to order. If Oby Ezekwezile wants a fight I am ready,” he said.
Mrs. Ezekwesili: “I have no intentions of engaging Fani Kayode,” she said. “His hateful language is far gone from normal. In decent societies Governments respond to such.”
She further argued that Nigeria’s problem was not ethnic and that rather, it was “the curse of a CRASS elite class east-west-north-south.”
The altercation suddenly had a third character when the special assistant to the President on social media, Reno Omokiri, jumped in to mock the feuding former ministers.
“Days ago, a bitter man used hate speech on the President. We kept quiet. Don’t tolerate hate speech until its directed at your own ethnicity,” Mr. Omokri said in a tweet apparently directed at Mrs. Ezekwesili.
-culled from African Spotlight.
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