Biafra, Buhari and elections: Nigerian musicians take to politics

If approved, young Nigerians will be able to contest presidential elections at age 35 while the minimum age for becoming a governor or senator will be 30. Previously, aspirants had to be five years older in each case. A number of artists have now shared their intentions to run for office.

One of the most public announcements has come from Kingsley Okonkwo, the musician popularly known as Kcee. With a poster that has been widely shared on social media, he announced that he would contest for the governship election in Anambra State. “I will submerge myself in the next coming months to seeking necessary counsel and support in achieving this goal,” he said. “I encourage every youth and all of my fans to join this movement of contributing our quota to the rescue of this great nation.”

Okonkwo's announcement has been met with bewilderment online and, in some cases, ridicule. So far he has appeared unfazed by the negative reactions.

His colleague, Terry G, who scored a hit years ago with a song titled ‘Free Madness’, has announced his intention to be governor of Benue State. The artist, whose real name is Gabriel Ochie Amanyi, took a less sober route than Okonkwo, saying, “Power belongs to the youths. Say no to old cargos. Vote Terry G for governor/deputy of Benue State. I will make you proud. When I say legalise you say ginjah.”

Expectedly, Amanyi’s strange bid—for both “governor and deputy”—has been derided online.

Okonkwo and Amanyi were beaten to actually contesting elections by 9ice, who in 2014 contested and lost a bid for a seat in the House of Representatives. He never made it to the general elections as he lost at the party primaries.

Beyond seeking elections, some Nigerian artists have chosen to use activism as a tool for political change. The most famous of these acts was the late Fela; perhaps the youngest contemporary act to do the same is 2Baba, who was set to join a protest against the Nigerian government. The ‘African Queen’ singer later changed his mind, sparking both condemnations and commendations. The reaction to his failed bid has been said to have led to his recent single ‘Holy Holy’.

Recently, Charly Boy, a pop act popular in 1980s, joined a protest insisting on the resignation of President Muhammadu Buhari who has been away from Nigeria on health grounds for months. His activism, he said, saw him assaulted by the police. “They were hostile and then suddenly unleashed the dogs which were coming voraciously to attack us,” he told The Guardian. “One of the dogs bit a fellow protester, before we knew it, they fired a hot-water cannon which hit me at the back, and then started firing the teargas at us. An overzealous policeman then hit me with the butt of his gun, I collapsed and my people have to carry me.”

On 12 August, Charly Boy addressed clamours for the creation of Biafra by some Igbos in a public letter. “My question to those agitating for secession would be that if each tribe decide to secede from Nigeria today, what then would happen?” he wrote. “Who would lead the new nations? Will the people be happy? Will injustice be defeated in the new societies? Will criminality end in leadership positions? Will there be happiness in the new nations? Will the people finally have a country to call their own?”

His reckoning—that “the suffering of the people from the southeast is also the suffering of the people from the other geopolitical zones in Nigeria. And the oppression of the Igbo people is also the oppression of all Nigerian peoples. An injury to one is an injury to all. A Biafra state is not going to change the players of the game, it will only exacerbate the sufferings of the victims of the game”—hasn’t been unanimously accepted by his fellow citizens.

As with the other musicians he, too, has had to deal with ridicule. These artists may have used different means to engage politically, but reactions to their intentions have been equally divisive.