Femi Fani-Kayode, Director of New Media, APC, PCC.
A group, known as Save Nigeria Democratic Movement, SNDM has called for the arrest of Femi Fani-Kayode, Director of New Media, All Progressive Congress, APC, Presidential Campaign Council for his recent inciting comments.
The former Aviation Minister recently threatened that the ruling party would make the country ungovernable if it discovered any attempt to undermine the will of the people following the 2023 presidential election.
“Let this serve as a timely warning. We cannot be a punching bag for the opposition forever and soon we will react. Trust me when I tell you that if there is any foul play in this matter or any conspiracy to thwart the people’s will, we will make this nation ungovernable,” Fani Kayode said in a statement.
Reacting to the remarks, SNDM called on the Inspector General of Police and relevant security agencies to rein in Fani- Kayode before he plunged the country into anarchy.
At a press conference jointly addressed by SNDM President, Danjuma Garba and Secretary, Olubankole Peters Adeniyi, the group blamed Fani-Kayode for the unprecedented attacks on non-Yoruba voters in Lagos during the March 18, 2023 governorship election.
SNDM also condemned F and Kayode's
recent "derogatory remarks" and outbursts against a British envoy who raised his concerns about the security implications of Fani- Kayode's inciting comments.
The group described the APC, PCC Director of New media as a known "rabble-rouser," who is only good at making noise and causing disaffection and urged the APC to distance itself from his utterances or be held liable for any untoward events resulting therefrom.
The group said, “The Save Nigeria Democratic Movement is disturbed by the recent inciting comments by a former Aviation Minister and Director of New Media, All Progressive Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council, Femi Fani-Kayode.
“Recently, the media has been awash with reports of Fani-Kayode’s inciting rhetoric targeted at causing ethnic disharmony and widespread violence across the nation. We can no longer continue to ignore his excesses as they pose a grave danger to our democracy, unity, and security.
“Recall that his ethnic profiling and inciting statements fuelled unprecedented violence against non-Yoruba voters in Lagos State at the just-concluded governorship poll.
"We find unacceptable, his recent threat to make the country ungovernable should Bola Ahmed Tinubu not be sworn in. This is a threat to national peace and security and should not be ignored by all relevant security agencies.
“Already, his rancorous and misguided outbursts had attracted the attention of the international community. A British envoy addressed him and pointed out the dangers of his inciting statements.
“However, instead of retracting his statements, he went wild against the envoy with derogatory remarks and tirades unbefitting of a supposed statesman.
“Femi Fani-Kayode is infamous in Nigeria for his opportunistic political misadventures. He is a rabble-rouser whose only political value is the noise he makes and the ripples of disaffection it causes.
“He has never contested, won, or lost an election. His is to parasitically attach himself to the winning side and look for any available financial opportunity to sustain his extravagant and drug-ridden lifestyle.
“The incompetent junkie once blamed witches for the plane crashes that happened under his watch as the aviation minister.
“We, therefore, call on the ruling party to amend their initial mistake of appointing Femi Fani-Kayode into their campaign council by distancing themselves from his inciting and bigoted comments.
“We would be forced to believe that Femi Fani-Kayode is doing the bidding of the ruling party to destroy Nigeria if drastic punitive actions are not taken against him.
“Finally, we call on the Inspector General of Police, and the Directorate of State Security (DSS) to arrest, within 48 hours, Femi Fani-Kayode for posing a grave threat to national security with his ceaseless inciting statements and ethnic profiling. This is to serve as a deterrent to other tribal bigots, and overzealous politicians,” they added.
British envoy's remarks.
Femi Fani-Kayode had asked the British Government to recall its Deputy High Commissioner, Benedict Llewellyn-Jones, from Nigeria, following the envoy's criticisms of Fani-Kayode's "derogatory" comments during the 2023 elections.
Ben Llewellyn-Jones, in an interview with Nigeria Info FM, noted that it was wrong for the APC not to have distanced itself from Fani- Kayode's remarks or call him to order.
“Yes, let’s be specific, there were some people, like Femi Fani-Kayode. What is he saying and why is he saying it?
I don’t understand.
"It is wrong from my perspective that he will speak on behalf of a party and that party does not distance itself from him and say stop doing that. It is wrong to say that,” Llewellyn-Jones said.
He further disclosed that the UK government would issue a visa ban on people undermining democracy in Nigeria, and added that about 10 persons were already on their watchlist.
“We have a list. We are working through our list but we don’t publish those names. I know people say we should, but we have laws, and the law prevents us from doing that.
“At the moment the list is between 5 and 10 and it is growing,” said the British Deputy High Commissioner to Nigeria, Benedict Llewellyn-Jones.
Fani-Kayode's reaction.
However, in a swift reaction, Femi Fani- Kayode told the British Deputy envoy to “keep his dirty nose out of our internal affairs,” saying that Nigeria was no longer a British colony and needed no lessons on how to run its affairs from a man who represents " a nation that has committed more atrocities than perhaps any other in the history of humanity."
The APC presidential Council director also accused Llewellyn-Jones of wanting to force " humanist and libertarian" values as well as same-sex marriage on Nigeria, and insisted that "we will never allow a sodomite to be our President."
Defending his comments, Femi Kayode wrote on Twitter, "These are my personal views and I am constrained to express them given the fact that one @benllewellynjo1, a misguided, mischievous and unlettered Englander who does not know his place, threw away all caution and mentioned my name in his inglorious commentary and despatches.
"I would advise this Ben, who I am told is the Deputy High Commissioner of the UK to Nigeria, to keep his dirty nose out of our internal affairs.
"Nigeria stopped being a British colony 63 years ago and we need no lessons from him on how to run our affairs or conduct our politics.
"I know that his preferred candidate did not win the presidential election but that does not mean he should cross the line and take liberties with us here. I wonder who the hell he thinks he is.
"I am not one of those Nigerians that bows, shakes, shivers, and trembles before the Brits or indeed any other foreigner.
"And unlike most, I do not need any validation or endorsement of good behavior from him or his ilk, and neither can I be intimidated by his veiled threats of a visa ban.
"Frankly I could not care less.
"I would however take this opportunity to assure him that regardless of his views and desire to compel us to accept their godless so-called "humanist" and "libertarian" values and introduce evil policies such as same-sex marriage in our country this will never be the case.
"My aversion for sodomites remains as constant as the northern star and whether he likes it or not we will never allow a sodomite to be our President.
"Neither will we accept lessons in decency, etiquette, what to say or how to speak from a fading British civil servant and a man that represents a nation that has committed more atrocities than perhaps any other in the history of humanity.
"I advise this little Englander to respect himself and remain a silent observer when it comes to the politics of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
"As a nation, we are not a poodle of the British and we came of age 63 years ago.
"He should be more concerned about the shrinking fortunes of a once "great" Britain and the systemic racism, inherent injustice, and insufferable arrogance that is entrenched in the British establishment and society than in the intra-party politics of Nigeria."
"He should also be more concerned with the efforts of his nation to bring us one step closer to WW3 given the unfolding events in Ukraine.”
Analysts say it is still not clear who Fani-Kayode referred to as " a sodomite President."
In a later reaction, Fani-Kayode described the British envoy as “ a bull in a China shop", “bullish, uncouth, dangerously incompetent and painfully inconsiderate”.
Shortly before the general elections, the Department of State Services (DSS), had questioned Fani-Kayode for alleging that Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), held a meeting with some top Army generals.
Politics and Opinion.
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