“I was not a tribalist when I had a long-standing and intimate relationship with Miss Bianca Onoh, an Igbo lady, who later married Colonel Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu the leader of Biafra and who is now our Ambassador in Spain. I was not a tribalist when I had a long-standing and intimate relationship with Miss Chioma Anasoh, another Igbo lady, who I almost married. I was not a tribalist when I had a long-standing and intimate relationship with Miss Adaobi Uchegbu, another igbo lady, who was exceptionally close to me and who is now a leading figure at the National Headquarters of the ruling PDP.” —Femi Fani-Kayode.

In an earlier reaction to other Fani-Kayode’s strivings, I had taken the simple view that Femi Fani-Kayode should not be taken seriously. I figured that he lacked honor and integrity. I figured also that he did not and could not have represented any group really, and indeed, that he was a mockery to the richness of the culture and class that the people of the Western Nigeria have been known for.

The latest statement by Fani-Kayode, in which the above quoted remark is contained, clearly dismisses any hope that I might be wrong in my assessment of the man. The reality about Fani-Kayode seems to be far worse than I could have argued – that he may not be well. Otherwise, it is almost unheard of that a man would publicly proclaim that he had intimate relationships with women who later got married to other men, and goes forward to identify such women. Only a sick man would do that in such a fashion.

Fani-Kayode’s intentions and motives are clear: He intended to actually mock the Igbo people by suggesting to them that he once had a long-standing affair with the widow of their hero. And his emphatic reference to Ojukwu with his pre-1967 military rank of Colonel, which would have been totally unnecessary, is equally remarkable. If anyone really had to insult the Igbos, it would appear that one good way to do it is to make this kind of claim and statement. For that motive factor alone, an intelligent mind must treat Fani-Kayode’s claims with considerable doubt. Any man with such combination of megalomaniacal tendencies and instability and silliness of the mind would be tempted to link himself amorously to an icon such as Bianca. Laughingly enough, I could imagine that Femi Fani-Kayode similarly had a “long-standing relationship” with Jacqueline Kennedy before she married JFK. Consistent with his hatred for the Igbos, he simply set out to insult them indirectly by insulting Ojukwu and his family.

But note that Femi Fani-Kayode admitted some crucial facts about himself, by implication? He admitted that while some decent women might have taken him at the first impression, probably on the basis of his family name, they quickly dumped him when they learned the type of person he is – unreliable, untrustworthy monger of hate and a blackmailer. Hence, each presumably “long-standing relationship” ended up in nothing. And he must have been so elevated by such relationships that he carries them on the front page of his resume.

As for the main issues, from which Fani-Kayode conveniently deviated, his hatred for the Igbo people was not a product of some fanciful assumptions or claims. He stands adjudged by his own words and behaviour. If intelligent, he would have known that he could never prove those allegations in his favour by spitefully listing all the Igbo women he might have dated in his life. On the contrary, his acts of desperation merely confirm the allegations, and went further to raise serious doubts about his mental health condition.

I end my remarks as I began: no honourable man would list publicly the names of women he had affairs with in the past. If true, each such affair would have been a private and confidential matter between him and each woman. Why make it public, if not to spite and hurt those women and their families? He showed no respect for the rights of these women and aimed to subject them to abuse. He has no respect for women regardless of their ethnicity or race. That is despicable, to put it mildly.

•Emeka Ugwuonye, Esquire, is an international lawyer practising in the US and Nigeria. •Photo shows Fani-Kayode.

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