Pretty Okafor is the President of the Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria, PMAN. In this chat with BrandiQ, he responded to the current #EndSARS protests rocking the major cities of Nigeria, with a sprinkling effect in some other cities across the world. He also spoke about the case of Yahaya Sharif-Aminu, a Kano based Muslim musician sentenced to death for allegedly singing a song deemed blasphemous against the Islamic religion.
What is your response to the current #EndSARS protest rocking the major cities of Nigeria, with some sprinkling ripple effect abroad?
These protests are signs and expressions of negative energy, bottled up in the youths for years. The Nigerian youths have been brutalised in several ways through insensitive governance by our political leadership, from the law enforcement agents and agencies, and from the general dehumanising conditions in Nigeria. I have been warning people that care to listen that, they should not take this younger generation for granted. Because they are respectful, or because they are very busy – trying so hard to put food on the table for their families, and loved ones – does not mean they do not know their rights, and what to do. I just pray that these protests don’t escalate more than this because this generation is ANGRY RIGHT NOW.
Music Artists have played a major role in the success of this protest. How do you feel about the enthusiasm shown by your colleagues?
It was good that they all came out to support the protests. Over the years it has been a pocket of us trying to fight injustice and oppression, but the rascality of the police has brought out the best in the youths generally, and the music artists particularly. Ruggedman, for instance, has been fighting against the SARS and police brutality since 2017. It appeared he was alone. But things are changing. Honestly, this is the first time I have seen music artists, in collaboration with other entertainment celebrities, come together as a family, in unison with other Nigerians to stand firm on an issue of urgent and national importance. I really commend their efforts. Kudos to all of them. I believe that starting from now, people and even governments will begin to accord deserved respect to our artists, especially music performers. The days of thinking that they are loafers and unserious is over. Most of them are well educated and very articulate about national issues. They have succinctly demonstrated it with this EndSARS protest for all to see. I am proud of them. I cannot be prouder, honestly.
You said that this is the first time they are coming forcefully as a family to fight a cause; do you have any particular instance they let you down in terms of not showing enough concern for a cause?
Yes. I have instances, but I will elaborate on one.
Which one? Please go ahead.
Like in the case of Yahaya Sharif-Aminu, a Kano based Muslim musician sentenced to death for allegedly singing a song deemed blasphemous against the Islamic religion. In fact, in that case, it was not just the musicians alone, but also the Nigerian people. I was worried that Nigerians kept quiet when they should talk.
Could you please explain?
After the Governor of Kano State, Abdullahi Ganduje recently visited President Mohammed Buhari at the State House and briefed him about the case of the Kano musician sentenced to death for blasphemy; he fielded questions from journalists and advised Yahaya to go, even up to the Supreme Court, if he wants to save his life. I was surprised that Nigerians kept quiet over the matter when they should speak out. People, including journalists, decided to stay quiet. Maybe most people kept away out of fear. I don’t know why that should be the case.
So, why did you choose to lead the advocacy to save Sharif-Aminu?
I led the advocacy because Yahaya Sharif-Aminu is a Nigerian; and he is also a musician. I believe in justice for all. I do not think he should be killed on the account of that allegation. I don’t think people’s lives should just be taken like that. Someone, a Muslim friend – I’m not going to mention his name – said to me, but he is a Muslim, but the guy knows what he got into, once you are a Muslim if you do that, its death sentence. I said, what death sentence? What would you do on planet earth that would make God sentence you to death? He said noooooo, the way you are looking at it from that angle is not the way they are looking at it. The next day he sent a video recording of a disagreement between Daddy Freeze and one of the pastors to me to tweet. I said I’m not going to tweet or post that one. I don’t have any business with them and their issue. I’m not a religious fanatic, I’m not a pastor, I’m not a pressman, I’m a musician. I am more concerned about this one because the guy is a musician. As a Nigerian, I care for the life of another Nigerian. As PMAN president, I care for the life and welfare of every musician – be they Muslims or Christians. I will not like my image to be stained, while I am in this office.
At the time, nobody was ready to talk about it, not even journalists. Everybody appeared to be scared of talking about it, but I went ahead and invited the international community, put it on CNN, Aljazeera, BBC and got the international music bodies, and they wrote, ten countries wrote in one letter, and I had to forward the letter with the one I wrote because I had already sent a letter to the governor. Then I wrote the international community, and took the letter I wrote to the governor and put them together; then the international community reacted, that’s when Nigerian journalists, the media houses, everybody started talking about it. I still commend the media for wedging in thereafter.
But you sound very concerned and agitated about this case why?
Why I’m sounding like this is, sometimes out of fear, we leave what we are supposed to do as human beings. Sometimes out of fear, out of panic, we leave the life we are supposed to save. I’m not a party to that. And I made sure I followed up on the matter, even the comment you were referring to, I was still the one that tweeted it. If you go to my twitter handle, I tweeted it and I also tweeted at the international community when Governor Ganduje was having the meeting with the president, so I’ve been following the matter.
Now, the international community is aware of this case. There have been a whole lot of calls to the governor, to the Vice president, and even to the President, from the International community. These are the little things we can do for ourselves. Let’s not look at it from the angle that he is a Muslim. I have said to them can I have the song? I will give it to somebody to translate for me. I want to hear what the guy said or did. I also said can I have the evidence of what this guy did? The Kano state commissioner for youth said “So you want me to send it to you, so you’ll send it to your international counterparts.” But the fact is, they couldn’t deter me, but from there, you can see the responses. It came from just one person insisting
We are not going to let this go. I’m not saying this because I am the PMAN president. Although, if I wasn’t the PMAN president, I wouldn’t have had much of the voice to do this. But I would have still insisted that this is wrong. I only saw something that was wrong. If we can forgive the people that killed so many, how can we not forgive the person that said something that is wrong against the Prophet…or against our Saviour? Why don’t we look at it in another way? So, that is my own mentality. If the government can pardon Boko Haram people that have been slaughtering and killing people, how about a musician – who may have even churned the song out of frustration. I advocate that we insist on the right things to be done always. Even in this case of the EndSARS protest, it is the same. It will come from one person or some persons insisting that the right things should be done.
At this time what do you want Nigerians to do?
So, my advice to Nigeria and Nigerians as a whole is, when we start calling out evil, resisting people taking their authority to enslave us, I think we are going to get it right. I never thought of… I didn’t even know that people would join the campaign, I just went head-on, whatever wants to happen let it happen, and they said… I’m taking a risk, endangering my life. I said living in Nigeria is already a danger…so what else? Staying here is already a danger, so… what else? But I wanted to prove a point that, I’m not going to allow things to wrong until I leave this post. If I don’t have the power to do it, I won’t venture into it, but this one, I have the power to do. Like if I can’t get the government to revert it, if I can’t get the Federal government to reverse it, I can get the international community and the media to wedge in, and that’s basically what I did.
For the EndSARS protest, I advise that they should stay focused, they should not back down until the authorities strengthen out the country, the economy, and even the polity. There’s so much to be done. But, let them focus on critical issues. The ruling elite and their cronies have lived out their lives, and now they want to live out the lives of our youths. So, we all need to stay unified, vigilant, and focused on our goals. We have proven that we are not a wasted generation. So, the government needs to do our biddings now or they should leave the seat. Just imagine NLC, TUC, and the rest of the Unions backing out of their protests because the government allegedly stuffed their pockets with money. They did not consider the younger generation that has been creating jobs for themselves for over Four decades, suffering and striving without support. But, at least, at last, we will get it right.
So, what do you say to the leaders?
For the leaders, I think we have two choices here; the leadership or government can decide to work with this generation peacefully or work with this generation in conflict. So, it’s their choice. Let them apply wisdom. What pushed some of these youths to crime? The Yahoo boys that the SARS are killing indiscriminately, are they not products of this uncaring society? I am not making any excuses for the Yahoo boys, and I am not exonerating them, but I am saying that the society produced them when the government could neither provide jobs for the youth nor care for them. The fact is that we have bad leaders and bad government. So, what is happening now is a consequence of those things. The leaders must choose to change. They should think less of themselves and more of the people. Their major headache should be how to provide security for the people, and how to take care of the peoples’ welfare by providing those things that make life worth living. And this should be done in an equitable manner without any form of discrimination based on ethnicity, tongue, or religion. That’s what I think.
