In the 19th century and even before, Bobriskys were lynched like common criminals. Their sin was their considered unusual sexuality. Until then, homosexual activities were classified as “unnatural crime against nature” while sodomy got punished with, sometimes death. In comparison, Okuneye Idris Olanrewaju, famously known as Bobrisky, has suffered one of the mildest fates. Between 1877 and 1950, over 4000 of such lynching occurred. As recent as April 2017, Kenne McFadden, a black transgender woman who didn’t have experience of swimming, got drowned when she was pushed into the San Antonio River in Texas on account of her “nauseating” sexuality.

That much was said in 2020 by Emily Lenning, Sara Brightman and Carrie Buist in their “The Trifecta of Violence: A Socio‑Historical Comparison of Lynching and Violence Against Transgender Women.” Writing for Critical Criminology, they said five months after the McFadden case, specifically in September, 2017, Ally Lee Steinfeld, a white 17-year-old transgender teen, also got brutally murdered. Her cruel fate was brought about by three teenagers. She was stabbed in the genitals, her eyes gouged out, her body set alight and her remains dumped “in a chicken coop near a mobile home park in Missouri.”

Two months later, in the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, Sherrell Faulkner, a forty-five-year-old Black transgender woman, got cruelly beaten and then dumped behind a dumpster. Days after, the injuries she suffered led to her death in the hospital. Till today, Faulkner’s murderers have not been identified. The three cases, according to Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRCF) 2018, represented a tiny strand of at least 29 murders of transgenders that the United States recorded in 2017, ranked as the deadliest year for the Bobriskys in recent history. HRCF also reported that between 2013 and 2019, it tracked 157 cases of fatal anti-transgender incidents.

Perhaps this was what weird but hugely talented Nigerian singer, rapper and songwriter, Habeeb Okikiola, a.k.a. Portable, was referencing in Brotherhood, a short musical he did attacking Bobrisky recently? In the song, Portable condemned Bobrisky for morphing from “brotherhood to sisterhood.” While body-shaming the embattled cross-dresser as “a disgrace to brotherhood” and having ameoeba-shaped buttocks that looked like a clay pot worth only a pound – e wo idi e bi koko ponun kan – Portable asked that Bobrisky be stoned to death – “e le l’oko pa!”

Like Portable, from ancient times, the world has never hidden its hostility against people who profess sexual orientation different from its. Like, it says, can only be compared to likes – ohun t’o ba jo’hun l’a fi nwe’hun. The world even gave its anger towards homosexuality religious validation. Following this route, Italian priest, philosopher and theologian, Thomas Aquinas, condemned homosexuality as “unnatural.” The biblical book of Leviticus 18: 22; 20:13 is often cited: “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination,” as well as Romans 1: 26 where biblical Paul hoisted up lesbianism for condemnation: “For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature.”

The Bobriskys come in various names and appellations. They are either bisexual, in which case, they are attracted to persons of both sexes; Butch, male and female who dress in stereotyped male ways; “In the closet,” because they do not disclose their gender identity; Femme, due to their acting and dressing in feminine ways; gays, for their attraction to persons of same sex and as LGBTQ, a sweeping categorization of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, Transgenders and Questionings. Bobrisky is Nigeria’s own daughter of the historical Greek woman, Sappho, an Archaic Greek poet, who hailed from Eresos on the Island of Lesbos. Sappho was the first known woman “accused by some of being irregular in her ways and a woman-lover.” She is venerated by lesbians as the foremother, the near mythical prototype of people with queer sexual cravings. Lesbianism, the community of same sex women, was forged from Lesbos, the name of the island Sappho lived. Bobrisky patterns her life towards Sappho and has become a controversial self-confessed transgender, LGBTQ personality and campaigner.

According to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (2015, 47), the umbrella term used to describe the Bobriskys of this world, called transgender, refers to “… people whose gender identity and expression does not conform to the norms and expectations traditionally associated with their sex at birth. Transgender people include individuals who have received gender reassignment surgery, individuals who have received gender-related medical interventions other than surgery (e.g. hormone therapy) and individuals who identify as having no gender, multiple genders or alternative genders. Transgender individuals may self-identify as transgender, female, male, transwoman or transman, transsexual, hijra, kathoey, waria or one of many other transgender identities, and they may express their genders in a variety of masculine, feminine and/or androgynous ways.”

Homosexuality, cross-dressing or lesbianism is as old as humanity. The holy writs seem to abet the cruelty and violence that humanity has inflicted on these creations of God. While some antiquities tolerated their sexual fates, others visited their wraths on the offspring of Sappho. Well-known lesbian Emeritus Professor of Religious Studies at San Diego State University, Christine Downing, in her Lesbian Mythology, suggests that lesbianism is a grueling life of isolation, confusion and terror. This was her conclusion while re-casting Roman poet, Publius Ovidius Naso’s myth. Naso, simply known as Ovid, had told a story which has almost become a global lesbian epistemology. Heroine of the story, Iphis, born female, desired to be male. Her mother had hidden her gender from her father, a poor Cretan peasant who badly wanted a male child. Iphis’ mother was in despair in her pregnancy until the goddess, Isis advised her to deceive her husband about the child’s gender. At age 13, Iphis fell in love with the most beautiful girl on the island called lanthe. Raised as a male, there was confusion, making her mother to cry to the god, Isis. As Iphis and Ianthe walk home one day, Iphis’ features suddenly change to a man’s and “the boy Iphis gained his own Ianthe.” Downing apparently retold this story to reduce the tension of horrific encounters of the children of Sappho.

Bobrisky leapt into the news again recently. He/she had been named winner in the ‘Best Dressed’ Female Category of popular Yoruba actress, during the premiere of Eniola Ajao’s Beast of Two Worlds, Ajakaju movie premiere. Scalding criticisms erupted on the social media. Bobrisky’s choice sparked uncomplimentary reactions. Not even Eniola’s immediate apologies on her social media handles and reversal of what she declared was a stunt gone sour were enough appeasements. A few days after, the EFCC arrested Bobrisky, charging her to court for mutilation of Nigeria’s currency totaling N490,000. He/she was immediately convicted, ranking it as one of the Concorde supersonic airliner -speed convictions ever given by the Nigerian judiciary. We hope the Nigerian judiciary and the EFCC will give the Kano State government-filed criminal charges against the immediate past governor and APC chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, same expeditious trial. Kano had resorted to try Ganduje over alleged $413,000, N1.38bn bribery during his governorship and has assembled 15 witnesses to testify against Ganduje.

In a country where mutilation of the national currency is an off-the-cuff weekend pastime of the elite and the political class in Nigeria, it was obvious that a deeply religious, conservative, African-centric animosity against unusual sexuality was fighting back. When stunned about how odd events fit into one another to form a mesmerizing wonder, Yoruba will say Ó jọ gáté, kò jọ gàté, ó fi ẹsẹ̀ méjèèjì tiro. It is similar to the case of a limping masquerade (atiro) who enters the “Igbale”, where masquerades remove their mask regalia –ago. If an agbada-clad, limping person now walks out of the Igbale immediately, it shouldn’t be difficult to situate who the atiro was. No one needed to be told that the masquerader, like the nightingale – the beautiful Awoko bird – had shed its quills. Such is the wonderment and clinical precision of Bobrisky’s lynching. A highly religious Nigeria was obviously taking vengeance for Bobrisky’s sexuality audacity.

Some scholars have said that, until about half a century ago, lesbianism or gay relationship was a nonexistent phenomenon in Africa. According to them, per adventure it even ever did exist, it was an aberration imported from the West. Anthropological researches have however proved that the existence of same-sex sexual practices predates the now in Africa into before, during, and after colonialism. The practice was however disparaged. Dobrota Pucherova said this much in her “What Is African Woman? Transgressive Sexuality in 21st-Century African Anglophone Lesbian Fiction as a Redefinition of African Feminism.” Africans saw lesbianism as an example of a woman’s corruption, moral depravity and even madness. Pucherova uses the Kenyan Rebeka Njau’s novel, Ripples in the Pool (1975) and Ghanaian Ama Ata Aidoo’s Our Sister Killjoy (1977) as affirmation of this thesis. In Njau’s novel, the protagonist, Selina, gets infatuated with her husband’s younger sister. She was cast as exhibiting “predatory sexual desire” toward the two siblings. The book consigns Selina’s behavior into the trash basket of egomania and a damaged personality. It also suggests that Selina makes use of witchcraft to control her victims. No wonder she ends up murdering the young girl and her male lover. Aidoo’s Our Sister Killjoy sees same-sex as less predatory. In it, a German housewife becomes obsessed with Sissie, the Ghanaian protagonist. Marija’s obsession is painted as a measure of moral degeneration reminiscent of post-Holocaust German society. All these and other African literature openly thematized lesbian desire, showing however that black women are victimized through patriarchal control of their sexuality. An example is Monica Arac de Nyeko’s short story, Jambula Tree, which is the first East African text to so do.

Last week was Easter, a sacred day in the annals of world Christianity. Nigeria’s Federal Inland Revenue Service’s (FIRS) communication agency would not allow the day go by without marketing its tax portfolio. So it put out the brilliant, catchy and arresting phrase “Jesus paid your debts, not your taxes.” This brilliance and mental ingenuity should earn any student of PR a Distinction. Not Nigeria’s churchpreneurs. They saw it as a reckless audacity operating on same dangerous Fahrenheit as Bobrisky’s. I haven’t heard the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) lament the danger in the current obnoxious hike in electricity tariff. That won’t make Bola Tinubu know that CAN is a combine of Christian principalities. On FIRS, CAN reached for its ancient pouch immediately. It brought out those archaic, boring refrains of “offensive” “derogatory” and “religious harmony.” I have been struggling to find a difference between CAN’s obvious intolerance and a similar one that happened in Kaduna in November, 2002. Twenty one year old Isioma Daniel, who worked for the Thisday, had written on a Miss World contest Nigeria was to host. She off-handedly and harmlessly suggested that Prophet Mohammed might have approved of the contest and probably wished to marry one of the beauty queens. Hell was let loose. The newspaper’s Kaduna office was burned down. Hundreds of people were reportedly killed. The ensuing riots lasted for several days, prompting the organizers of the Miss World contest to relocate it to London to protect further lives from being lost.

One thread links our Bobrisky demonization, CAN’s hypocritical anger and Islam’s pesky religiosity. It is called intolerance. I referred to the witch-hunting of same sex people as “our” because, if today, Bobrisky offers his/her hand to me for a handshake, I will shudder. I am almost too sure I will refuse it. My refusal will not be strictly me in action. Rather, it will be centuries of culture, religion and our collective aversion to change which have bored deep roots in me. These three hate change. Their mantra is, as it was in the beginning, so shall it be. Static as statue.

Take for instance our cultural and religious perception of child-bearing and polygamy. For centuries now, Africa venerated procreation almost to a point of deity. Whoever brings forth a child owns this world – “Olomo l’o l’aye” – our mothers proudly sang. In Africa, barren women were stigmatized because women were seen as procreation vehicles called motherhood. In the bible, Peninnah scorned Hannah’s barrenness. Our mothers, who, due to no fault of theirs, couldn’t bring forth children, were witches. In earlier centuries, some cultures abetted barren women being stoned to death by scorners. Today, the world has re-interrogated the whole corpus of child-bearing. Couples willingly decide they don’t want to be encumbered by it. Is it really true that Olomo l’o l’aye? Great men and women have traversed this world without bearing children. Their corpses were not fed to the swine. Nor are we told that child-bearing is a passport to the hereafter. We have had parents who gave birth to children but died miserably, due to their abandonment by their children.

Today, there is a huge traffic back to where we were before the advent of colonialism. Soon after Britain and its Middle East allies came with their Bible, Quran and guns, we abandoned our centuries-old medicine, dressing and culture. Now, Africans are going back to those same abandoned roots, apologies to Lucky Dube. One of such is polygamy. Last week, Bassirou Diomaye Faye was inaugurated as the fifth Senegalese President, flaunting his two wives – Marie Khone and Absa. I could see the west squeeze its face like excreta beaten by rain. The hypocritical west flushes monogamy and homosexuality down the throat of the world while abhorring our ancient practice of polygamy. Reproached in high places as Faye just did, monogamy and its icing of hypocrisy are getting perforated. The truth is that, the stringent rules of monogamy have destroyed more homes than they built.

We must interrogate every teaching and dogma of religion, culture and society and hold on to those that will assist us live quality lives. That is what existentialist philosophy teaches. Today, churchgoers are asking questions about the stupendous wealth of the Daddy G.Os and the poverty of the congregants. We must not be slaves to them, nor be their mannequins. While upholding values that will strengthen humanity, we must also show respect for otherness and recognize individual human rights. What is Jesus’ business with FIRS’ quest to bring more people into its tax net? Parodying Isioma, if Jesus were here today, He would recommend a national honour for the fellow whose brilliant idea birthed that FIRS line. Why drag Jesus and Mohammed into this needless pettiness? What should infuriate a sensible human being about Mohammed enjoying Miss World? Why should we be captives of dogmas? Why should we allow the bigotry of CAN and zealotry of Islamic fundamentalists drive our thinking? Religious charlatans and their naïve accomplices merely make their enemies the enemies of God. If CAN has been slumbering and needed to talk by all means, couldn’t it dig a hole like that old Yoruba fable of Alade’s friend, who couldn’t stomach the confided secret of Alade growing a horn on his head, who then dug a hole, inside which he shouted, “Alade has horn on his head!” – Alade hu’wo? From that same hole grew a tree and whenever anyone brought a flute beside it, the rhythm sprouting off the flute was, “Alade hu’wo.”

Earlier, it was society’s view that people like Bobrisky were suffering from psychological disorder. Or that homosexuality was an abnormal condition. Science has since discovered that many atimes, the Bobriskys may be prisoners of their biology and psychology. Researches have shown that you do not choose to be gay, bisexual, or straight. And that homosexuality is a natural and normal sexual orientation, expressions of human sexuality. The American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its radius in 1973, and with it the stigma of mental illness that had long been associated with the children of Sappho. Why do we demonize those who, like accidents of birth, have no say in the kind of sexuality they are imposed upon by nature?

Do I agree with Bobrisky’s open flaunt of his/her sexuality? No. I think one’s sexual orientation should be a private affair. I also advocate that children of Sappho deserve pity from society and should be clinically lured out of their natural affliction. I also think that, if dug deeper, Bobrisky’s untapped major infraction against the law may just be that she has turned her cross-dressing into commodity. EFCC should openly admit that it is acting the script of a vindictive, homosexual-hostile Nigerian society in lynching Bobrisky. Singling him/her to face the wrath of the law is akin to the lynching treatment given homosexuals in the early centuries. Currency mutilation is a fad which very few Nigerians are not guilty of as charged, from Bola Tinubu, to the lowest Nigerian. An orgy of celebration on the social media has since followed Bobrisky’s lynching by the law. It reminds me of a hunter who proudly hoists the decapitated head of a buffalo as symbol of his masculinity.

The launch of the Student Loan Programme in Nigeria, coupled with the endorsement of its Amendment bill by the administration under President Bola Tinubu, signifies a promising step towards revitalizing the nation’s education sector.

This initiative holds the potential to revolutionize the educational landscape and empower Nigerian youth, paving the way for a brighter future.

It is gratifying to note that the Federal Government has allocated five billion naira (N5bn) in 2023 supplementary appropriations and fifty billion naira (N50bn) in the 2024 budget.

However, the lack of disbursement of the loans despite the allocation of significant funds raises concerns about the effectiveness of the implementation strategies, particularly the committee-based management approach outlined in the law.

The truth of the matter is that the student loan concept is a noble and much-needed initiative by the current administration to improve access to quality Education for indigent students but may likely fail because of a lack of a well-thought-out implementation structure and operational frameworks.

Overview of Management, and Administration of the Student Loan Fund in accordance with Student Loans Acts 2023

The fund is to be domiciled in the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and managed by an 11-person special committee chaired by the CBN governor, as the law stipulates in Section 5.

The special committee consists of the CBN governor as chairperson and a secretary to be appointed by the chairperson.

Membership of the committee as dictated by the law includes the ministers responsible for Education and finance, or the latter’s representatives, and the Auditor-General of the Federation.

Other members are the Chairman, the National Universities Commission (NUC), a representative of the forum of university Vice Chancellors, a representative of the forum of polytechnic Rectors, and the forum of Provosts of all Colleges of Education in the country.

Also, a representative of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), a representative of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), and a representative of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) are members.

This committee is saddled with the responsibility of deciding the broad modalities, including the process of application for the loan, qualification criteria to get the loan, and also the repayment plan among other details.

“The Committee shall establish regulations and guidelines for the management, administration, disbursement, and recoupment of students’ loans under this Act, and all stakeholders, including parents, the beneficiaries of the students’ loans, and the deposit banks, shall comply with the regulations and guidelines,” Section 5(5) states.”

Section 5 (2) of the Act also states that the fund “shall be domiciled with, managed, and administered by the Central Bank of Nigeria through the money deposit banks in Nigeria for the purpose set out under Section 6 of this Act.”

Meanwhile, the tenure of each member lasts through the time he/she holds the position. As soon as he/she is replaced or retired, the successor takes his/her position in the special committee, Section 8 states.

A member also ceases to be a part of the committee when he/she becomes bankrupt, convicted of a felony or any offence involving dishonesty or fraud, becomes of unsound mind, or is incapable, for any reason, of discharging his/her duties.

The Flaws of the Committee-Based Implementation Model for Nigeria Student Loans:

The committee structure outlined for managing the student loan programme in Nigeria may encounter several challenges that could hinder its effectiveness.

The federal government should rework the proposed student loan administration and management framework as encapsulated in the Acts. While there is nothing wrong with the caliber of people included in the committee, such a committee should be upgraded to a “Governing Board” to perform oversight and provide strategic leadership and corporate governance for the management of the loan, and not be involved in the day-to-day running the loan disbursement operations under a new agency called “Nigeria Student Loans Management Agency” (NSLMA).

In my view, administering a newly established student loan by a committee headed by the CBN Governor instead of establishing a Nigerian student loan agency or commission like the US Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid (FSA) and the Student Loan Company (SLC) as being practiced in the US and the UK may lead to several potential problems.

Firstly, the committee may lack the necessary expertise and experience in managing student loans, thereby resulting in inefficiencies and unoptimised processes.

Also, without a dedicated agency or commission, there may be a lack of accountability and transparency in the loan administration process.

Additionally, the absence of a specialised student loan entity could lead to delays in loan disbursement, inadequate support services for borrowers, and inconsistencies in loan policies and procedures.

Furthermore, the diverse composition of the committee, including government officials, education stakeholders, and union representatives, could lead to conflicting interests and slow decision-making processes.

Lastly, the lack of a specialised focus on student loan management within the committee may result in inefficient operations and delayed disbursement of loans.

Successful Student Loan Management Model: Comparative Analysis

In countries like the United Kingdom and the United States, successful student loan programmes are managed by dedicated agencies with specific expertise in financial aid disbursement. For instance, the United Kingdom established the Student Loans Company (SLC) who administer student loans efficiently. Similarly, the U.S. Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid (FSA) manages federal student loans effectively through streamlined processes and specialised resources.

Here are the website links for the government student loan management agencies in the US and the UK: United States: U.S. Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid (FSA): https://studentaid.gov/

FSA manages federal student loans in the US, including direct loans, PLUS loans, and federal Perkins loans.

United Kingdom:

Student Loans Company (SLC): https://www.gov.uk/student-finance

SLC handles student loans and grants for students in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

Advocating for a Dedicated Student Loans Agency to Manage Nigerian Student Loans:

(Appeal for Review and Action: The Way Forward)

1. To ensure the success of the student loan programme in Nigeria, the implementation model needs to shift towards establishing a dedicated agency such as the Nigeria Student Loans Management Agency (NSLMA).

This agency would be solely focused on managing student loans, with a clear mandate and expertise in loan administration. By emulating successful models from countries like the United Kingdom’s Student Loans Company (SLC) and the United States’ U.S. Department of Education’s Federal Student Aid (FSA), as earlier emphasized Nigeria can streamline loan disbursement processes, this will enhance transparency, and improve efficiency in managing student loans.

2 In light of the potential challenges posed by the current committee-based implementation model for the student loan programme, it is crucial for the Nigerian government to reevaluate its approach. A call is made to President Bola Tinubu and the National Assembly to consider amending the existing legislation to establish the Nigeria Student Loans Management Agency (NSLMA) for the effective management of student loans.

3. The Federal Government should set up a panel and committee to visit and study US-FAS and the UK student loan companies to gain insight into their operations.

4. The Federal Government should consider establishing the Nigeria Student Loans Management Agency (NSLMA) to be managed by top-notch professionals in order to guarantee the loan’s scheme effectiveness, proper accountability, easy access to the loans by the students, and overall sustainability of the scheme.

5. To address the shortcomings of the committee-based model in Nigeria, the establishment of the Nigeria Student Loans Management Agency (NSLMA) is hereby proposed. The NSLMA would serve as an independent agency solely dedicated to managing student loans in the country.

Key Functions of NSLMA:

Loan Disbursement: The NSLMA would be responsible for overseeing the disbursement of student loans in a timely and efficient manner.

(a) Loan Administration: Managing the administrative processes related to student loan applications, approvals, and repayments.

(b) Regulatory Oversight: Ensuring compliance with regulations and guidelines related to student loan management.

(c) Stakeholder Engagement: Collaborating with Educational institutions, financial institutions, and student associations to enhance the effectiveness of the student loan programme.

(d) Evaluating loan applications and determining eligibility criteria

(e) Providing financial counseling and support services to loan beneficiaries

(f) Monitoring loan performance and enforcing repayment agreements

Composition and Structure of NSLMA:

1. Governing Board: Comprising individuals with expertise in finance, education, and governance, the Board would provide strategic direction and oversight to the NSLMA. The current management compositions as stipulated in the Loan Acts 2023 can be upgraded or converted to the Governing Board.

2. Executive Leadership: A dedicated team of professionals, including a Chief Executive Officer and key executives, would be responsible for day-to-day operations and decision-making.

3. Specialised Departments: Divisions focusing on loan processing, customer service, compliance, and data management would ensure the efficient functioning of the NSLMA

Parting Words:

The success of Nigeria’s Student Loan Programme hinges on the effectiveness of its implementation strategies. By recognising the limitations of the committee-based model and advocating for the establishment of a dedicated student loan agency, Nigeria can overcome obstacles and pave the way for a more inclusive and sustainable education financing system.

It is time for Nigeria to prioritise the needs of its students and invest in a robust and independent student loan management agency to drive positive change in the Education sector.

Oroge is the Chief Executive Officer of Debt Doctors Consulting Services International Limited, a firm specializing in credit, debt, and financial advisory services.

He can be contacted via WhatsApp at 08023551457 or by email at saoprofessional@yahoo.com.

It has indeed been a tumultuous month for the Nigerian entertainment industry, with controversies unfolding one after the other, each sending shockwaves through the very foundation of the industry.

Amidst the glitz of premieres and captivating performances, two incidents have particularly captured public attention, revealing the intricate complexities within the entertainment sphere. It has been a moment of reckoning.

The first incident occurred during the premiere of the Anikulapo Series by renowned cinematographer Kunle Afolayan, a figure revered in the Nigerian film industry. What should have been a night of celebration turned sour as controversy overshadowed the event. Caught on camera was a moment that stirred discomfort and disbelief: Afolayan, celebrated for his cinematic prowess, was seen engaging in a sexually suggestive dance with his daughter.

This unsettling scene wasn’t merely a family moment but rather a spectacle fraught with suggestive undertones. As his daughter gyrated provocatively while Kunle joined in, the atmosphere turned tense with confusion and disappointment palpable among spectators.

As the dust began to settle on this controversy, another storm brewed in the entertainment world, this time involving Olori Omo-Oba Akile Ijebu, K1-De-Ultimate, Wasiu Ayinde Marshal, and Ayankunle, K1’s former drummer of over three decades. Allegations of exploitation and maltreatment hurled at Marshal, a Nigerian music icon, cast a damning shadow over the industry, exposing systemic inequities faced by many artists and musicians.

Adding fuel to the fire was the backlash over the selection of the best-dressed female celebrity at the premiere of the Nollywood film “Beast Of Two Worlds (Ajakaju),” produced by Eniola Ajao. The organizers’ decision to thrust the controversy into the spotlight amidst a sea of elegantly dressed celebrities only served to ignite further debate, overshadowing the movie itself.

In the ensuing firestorm, societal expectations were disregarded, and the movie suffered from a lack of focus. The ill-conceived marketing strategy failed to grasp the principles of customer focus, leading to a cascade of negative reactions.

At its core, these issues underscore the delicate balance between individual expression and cultural preservation. While freedom of expression is essential, it must be exercised in harmony with societal values and norms.

The selection of controversial figures like Okuneye Idris Olanrewaju, predominantly known as Bobrisky, a Nigerian transgender woman and LGBT personality as symbols of fashion and style raises questions about the misrepresentation of femininity and societal values. Events such as the “Ajakaju” premiere should promote positive role models and uphold cultural values rather than sensationalism.

Moving forward, the media and entertainment industry must prioritize substance over spectacle and celebrate individuals based on their contributions and character. It’s not about stifling creativity but about upholding standards of decency and respect for cultural sensitivities.

As we navigate the intersection of tradition and modernity, let us strive for a society where respect and authenticity take precedence over controversy. Only then can Nigeria’s entertainment industry emerge stronger and more competitive than ever before.

In conclusion, I leave my esteemed readers with the wisdom of an African Proverb: “When the sinner seeks forgiveness, she doesn’t linger on her knees for long.” Let us support Eniola Ajao and the movie “Beast Of Two Worlds” as they navigate through this challenging time.