2Face takes peace campaign to the north

Over the past months, pop star, Tuface has shown astounding dedication of time and resources in the pursuit of peace in Nigeria.

In his most recent campaign on the  4th of October, the singer led an eight-man delegation to Sokoto on a two-day peace campaign.

In a campaign against religious intolerance, especially in northern Nigeria, 2Baba, who is himself a Christian, accompanied by Muslim long standing friend and colleague, Sound Sultan;  manager, Efe Omorogbe; Hypertek team member, Helen Abutu; his wife, Annie Idbia, among others, visited Sokoto State for a peace campaign organised by 2face Idibia Foundation (A Million Voices For Peace), in collaboration with Voices of Peace from the Sahara and the Justice, Development and Peace Commission (JDPC), Catholic Diocese of Sokoto.

This development, interestingly, is coming barely weeks after his announcement as the Peace Ambassador for the Ooni of Ife’s newest peace project.

The music icon was given a boisterous welcome at the airport by friends and members of the Idoma community in Sokoto State.

From the airport, the singer visited Vision FM for a brief chat with the media, also informing them of the purpose of his visit. He expressed his excitement to be back in Sokoto for the second time.

After his brief tete-a-tete with the media, 2baba and his delegation proceeded to visit the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto, Most Rev. Matthew Hassan Kukah. The excited Bishop Kukah, a renowned advocate of peace and religious tolerance, welcomed 2Baba warmly, appreciating his consistency and fight against violence in Nigeria.

The highlight of the events was the meet-and-greet session organised for the artiste to meet with both Christians and Muslims living in Sokoto.

2Baba spoke to the excited crowd that ranged from young people to the middle aged and the elderly, on the many virtues of maintaining peace in the state, especially through coexistence and religious tolerance. Citing his long standing relationship with friend and colleague, Sound Sultan, who is a Muslim and he, a Christian as the perfect example of religious tolerance, 2Baba emphasised that religion should not bring about violence but should be a tool to bind people together. The event came to an end with Bishop Kukah thanking the pop star and his team for bringing their message of peace to Sokoto.

In addition to his peace talks, 2Baba also promised to support the fight against polio in the state after being decorated by polio activist, Onyinye Ralp.

As of the time of filing this report, 2Baba also paid a courtesy visit to the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, on Wednesday 5th October, 2016, followed concurrently by a meeting with the youth at the town hall and  a gala night.