Why Fela’s Family Called Off ‘Anti-Govt’ Meeting

By Chuks Ekpeneru

Threats by the Lagos State Police Command have forced children of the late Afrobeat king, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti to back down on hosting a meeting to evaluate lessons garnered from the recent #EndSARS protests that rocked the nation last month.

Afrobeat singer, Seun Kuti, the son of legendary creator of the music genre, Fela Anikulapo Kuti disclosed this on his Instagram page.

He said the police sent a letter to his family warning to close down Afrika Shrine if proposed meeting holds as scheduled for Tuesday, November 17.

In the letter, the police insisted that the programme was illegal and was not welcomed in the state as it was a “deliberate act of sabotaging peace in the state.”

Citing the violence that arose as a result of the #EndSARS protests as the reason behind the order, the letter from the police reads in part:

“It is on this premise that I write that such a gathering or meeting planned to be hosted at your venue is not welcome at this perilous time when the security of the nation is trying to find her feet to stabilize all threat to life and properties.

“You are hereby warned to suspend such gathering as any infraction that may emerge from this gathering will be tagged a deliberate action to sabotage the transition and restoration of the peace in Lagos State by the Lagos State Government and the Nigeria Police Force.”

According to Seun ”So yesterday, the government called my eldest sister, @yeniakuti, and threatened to close the shrine if I hold my event there tomorrow and also sent a letter to back it up. I respect my family’s decision not to hold the event but I will still go ahead with all the other organizations to launch ‘THE MOVEMENT OF THE PEOPLE’ tomorrow and start our political resistance to the tyranny of this oppressive regime.

“This is a meeting, just a meeting of organizations and they are basically banning the right of association. Why are they afraid of the people organising?

“What is democratic about this act? The last time we tried to launch, the government quickly called curfew and this time, they have used threats but you can’t stop the will of the people. #getthesax #liberationgeneration #wenodoagain #endoppression.”’

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