Tobias Sylvester
Afrobeats maestro, Femi Kuti has finally opened up about his meeting with the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi who visited his home.
KanyiDaily recalls that the 60-year-old musician wa recently accused of using the term ‘zombie’ to describe Obi’s supporters known as ‘Obidients’.
However, Kuti clarified his statement saying he only expressed his reservation with the term “Obidient”, adding that he is not against Obi’s presidential ambition.
The singer stated that after all his family has been through at the hands of the previous Nigerian government, he’s too angry at his age to be Obedient.
Kuti also revealed that his family was being threatened by some supporters who vowed they would burn down the Afrika Shrine over his political statements.
On Wednesday, Obi who had cautioned his followers and supporters to stop heckling and harassing people on social media, paid a courtesy visit to Kuti.
He visited the singer and his son, Made Kuti at their residence with veteran musician, Charles Oputa, known better as Charly Boy, among others.
The former Anambra governor assured the singer that his ‘Obidient movement’ will base its campaign on issues rather than personality attacks.
Obi said that his campaign would be based on everyday issues affecting Nigerians and Nigeria, adding that the recent controversy was not what the movement and his ambition stand for.
Femi Kuti Reveals What He Discussed With Peter Obi
During an interview with Saturday Beats, the singer stated that though he would not like to discuss the details of his meeting with Obi because it was a private one, he admitted that they discussed politics and the state of the nation.
He said, “I really don’t want to talk about what I discussed with Peter Obi. The Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, also visited me and I did not reveal what we discussed. Some people even said Osinbajo gave me money. And, I told him to tell the world if he indeed he gave me money, and he said he did not. Even at that, some people chose not to believe us. That shows that some people already have their minds made up regardless of the facts on the ground.
“If I tell you about my discussion with Obi, I feel that will not be right. But, if he comes out to say something different from what actually transpired, I would then have to talk, at least to set the records straight. However, I can give you the periphery of our discussion. We talked about how bad Nigeria is, and I gave him some ideas on what I felt needed to be done to put the country on the right path of development.
“He also mentioned that campaigns should not involve threats, and he said that was why he came to apologise to me for the actions of some of his followers who threatened and abused me on social media.”
Kuti, however, maintained that he was not moved by the backlash he got over his statement. He said, “I cannot be forced to support anyone. A candidate can even caution their fans against doing certain things, but not all of them will listen. If I want to campaign for a certain person, I will give my reasons for doing that.
“I have spoken against many politicians in the past, including Bola Tinubu (presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress) and Atiku Abubakar (the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party).”
The Grammy Awards nominee also maintained that he did not call Obi’s supporters zombies. He said, “A particular journalist came to the New Afrikan Shrine and I expressed my views, only for people to start attacking me because the media said I called Obi’s supporters zombies, which I did not do. When I got home, I saw the post and I quickly corrected it that I didn’t call them zombies. But, they kept on attacking me. Some people even threatened to burn down the Shrine. I had to do a video explaining in clear words what I meant.”
KanyiDaily recalls that Ghana president, Nana Akufo-Addo had disowned a report circulating on social media that he advised Bola Tinubu to step down and give Peter Obi a chance.
