The year 2020, to say the very obvious, was a very traumatic year, not only for Nigerians, but for the entire human race. The COVID-19 pandemic and its attendant harvests of deaths was such that nobody wishes it happens again. Those of us, who through the grace of God, survived the scourge, have every reason to thank God. Imagine the pandemic had hit us the way it brought European countries, America and other advanced nations to their knees, what would have been our lots? Here we are with virtually nothing! Our emptiness as a nation is personified in the emptiness of the Aso Rock clinic, which our dear Mrs. Aisha Buhari once said had no common paracetamol.
And just when the year of the pandemic was about coming to an end and Nigerians were heaving a sigh of relief, another man made virus emanated from the Crocodile State of Kaduna, where it was announced via an invitation circulated on virtually all the social media platforms, that some deranged elements would be hosting a sex party. Yes, sex party with all the attendant orgies. The “organisers”, suspected to be mostly youths, had slated the party for December 27, 2220. The expected guests, boys and girls, were asked to come to the party in their birthday dresses as no clothes would be allowed. Time was given to be 8.00pm and would last “till mama calls”! The would be attendees, who might desired to have raw intercourse would have all the time in the world to do so. The tone of the invitation showed that the organisers must have been super event planners. Even the gate fees of N2,000, N3,000 and N5,000 for regular, VIP and VVIP sides in that order, spoke very well of the minds of the organisers who were determined to have an appreciable crowd. As expected, the public rose in massive condemnation of the sex party slated for a popular eatery, The Asher Kings and Queens Restaurant, Sabon Tasha, area of Kaduna. I served in Kaduna and in those days, Sabon Tasha, Banawa, Kachia Rad and the suburbs were notorious for the existence of men and women of easy virtue. I was therefore least surprised when the venue was the same old Sabon Tasha. With the Sharia law in Kaduna and in some other Northern states, I cannot put a bet that Sabon Tasha retains its old notorious self.
Some two days after the IV for the party of the century was released into the media space, information flittered in that the Kaduna State govt had ordered for the arrest of those behind the sex party. Good for them, all men of moral conscience yelped. Even those our leaders who are regular customers in sex toy shops, strippers clubs and those who in the secret of their hidden guest houses engage in foursome and other weird sexual escapades, hailed the arrest of the “bad boys” who planned to cause the nation to sin. Never mind if Nigeria swims daily in the ocean of sins and perfidies. Once in a while, we need to be sanctimonious, especially when we have some fall guys as the organisers of the sex party. Kaduna State Police Command’s Police Public Relations Officer, Muhammad Jalige, who gleefully confirmed the arrest of the organisers, promised that investigation was underway and that details would be made known. “We are investigating those behind the sex party and will soon give details of our finding”, the Kaduna Police spokesman said. We clapped. At least for once, the government and its agencies appeared to be law abiding. Since we never read that anybody was “shot during the exchange of gun duel with the Police”, the usual catchphrase whenever someone is killed extra judicially, we thought sanity was gradually coming back to the nation. Alas! We were wrong and badly wrong. What followed was something that nobody in any sane clime would ever imagine.
Precisely on December 31, the Kaduna state govt ordered that the building which was to host the aborted sex party be demolished. Pronto, the agents of the state destruction rolled in the bulldozers and the building and its contents were brought to ruins. Shocked? A few Nigerians who have followed the erratic behaviour in Kaduna, especially when it comes to destroying another man’s property would not be shocked. In February 2018, at the heat of the political crisis in the state and when the second term bid of El-Rufai was badly threatened, the governor equally rolled out the bulldozers. The victim then was Senator Suleiman Hunkuyi, a member of the same All Progressive Congress, APC, as El-Rufai. Hunkuyi, who had the audacity to join others to suspend the governor, had his building pulled down. So in like manner, the government sent the bulldozers after Asher Kings and Queens Restaurant and brought it to rumbles. No notice. No warning. No panel report and no court judgement. Sad.
What worsened the situation was the response of Aisha Mercy Yakubu, owner of the restaurant. She speaks: “Asher Kings and Queens Restaurant is 34 sitting-capacity- at -a -time restaurant, located at #75 Kachia Road,Sabon Tasha,Kaduna State, registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission, with the registration number BN2463851on 5th December,2016, under the COMPANIES AND ALLIED MATTERS ACT 1990 Food Production and Processing Services.
The restaurant is a one-storey building structure, with a VIP Lounge section, where premium customers relax to watch football league games in a cozy environment, with all the comfort; air conditioners and light music” Mrs. Yakub added that she knew nothing about the sex party and that when the organisers were arrested, the main suspect did not claim to have known her from Adam. Hear her again after she was arrested: “I denied knowledge of that event as there was nothing of that sort taking place at the restaurant and I wouldn’t stoop so low to entertain such illicit activity at my place,but the Police refused to believe me and had my friend and two of my staff detained for one night, one day, until the customer that had earlier hired the place for usage on that fateful day was also arrested the next day”. And when eventually the principal suspect was arrested, she said: “Marvellous Akpan was arrested the next day. He was interrogated and he obliged to owning the phone number on the poster and printing of the poster which was posted on Social Media, assisted by a friend of his named Noah and one other guy. On further interrogation, Mr Marvellous Akpan confessed to the Police that he doesn’t know me and has never been to my restaurant nor have any knowledge of its address”. So if we may ask, on which basis was the order to demolish the building given?
Agreed that it was bad that anybody would contemplate a sex party in Nigeria. Morally we are saying such was and is bad! But is it not worse off that government would take the laws into its own hand? Demolishing that building without any proper court judgement is incurably bad. It amounted to the case of a child defecating in the community mortal and the elders using rag to clean it. That is a movement from one dirt to another dirt (ati egbin de egbin). El-Rufai or the Kaduna State Government cannot be the accuser, the judge and the executor at the same time. Such trinity does not belong to mere mortals. And guess what? The Federal Government, in case of flies supporting the man with an everlasting sore, through the Council for Arts and Culture, headed by Segun Runsewe, just threw its weight behind the illegal demolition! That same Runsewe that could not reign in Bobrisky, the cross-dresser?
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