In today’s social media age and uncoordinated rush for social relevance, social media influencers have found a way of using the significant number of followers they have, as fall men for their fancies, having riotous, wild imaginative orgies with people who they control through their so called celebrity status.
Today’s celebrity/influencer gets swept into a quagmire of self worship which makes them feel like gods with some kind of immunity. This false security in self adulation gives them wings to cross all lines, malign people and tell outright lies while basking in the ovation they get from their audience many of who, gubble up their gibberish without sifting it through rational reasoning .
Unfortunately, in our country, the very dark side of influencer culture has emerged, where some individuals are cajoled into spreading falsehoods and misinformation to the glee of an ever ready lynch mob who they call followers. This unscrupulous yearning for social media relevance is why a misguided Seun Kuti would confidently sit in his house and promote the most dastardly act of spreading deceitful narratives, conspiracy theories from the pit of hell, and display ignorance of gargantuan magnitude with the aim of ridiculing and bringing to public odium, a legal luminary.
One wonders if the substance he smokes has shrunk his brain to a level of near non existent.
In a country where many do not ask questions, Seun may get away with his rancid grandstanding but not here. We will take our time to put the records straight.
Watching his so called Instagram Live on the P&ID arbitration which was won by Nigeria a few days ago, was like sitting down to listen to a mad man on rampage. An intelligent viewer would realise that the weed smoking junkie had no grasp of the issues, could not assimilate the process but brazenly made heavy allegations against Chief Bolaji Ayorinde (SAN) with intent to destroy a name built over the years. He piled on accusation after accusation without substantially proving anything but made sure to drop names to shroud his unintelligent, marijuana aided, incoherent vituperations.
Seun Kuti obviously wanted blood without thinking about consequences. In the edited copy of the video which boldly displayed a photograph of Chief Ayorinde (SAN), labelling him, ‘Traitor”, Seun had no regards for the laws of the land and perhaps never even heard of the Cyber Crimes Act and other such existing libel laws.
It is to be assumed that the brash Kuti who once slapped a Nigerian police officer and posted the video of the fact on social media, is truly as dumb as he looks. A serial offender who is so stupid as to continually incriminate himself with evidence tendered on social media should elicit nothing but pity, were his actions not so damaging to society.
Now, for the benefit of those who get swept by the tidal waves of social media sensationalism, the facts of the first judgement are hereby published for public knowledge. (See copies)
- Chief Ayorinde (SAN) defended Nigeria at th arbitration panel in the case between the Federal Republic of Nigeria vs Process and Industrial Development Limited from the premise that the company had no right to claim norminal damages let alone quantum damages. Chief Ayorinde (SAN), as you can see from the judgement put up a very strong case based on that premise. He submitted and established that there was no breach of contract. Please read documents presented herein and the truth will set you free.
- Chief Ayorinde, (SAN) did not at anytime betray his country by working with the ‘enemy’ as sensationally broadcast by Seun Kuti in his Instagram rant and neither was he reprimanded by the judge at any given time.
It is very alarming that the same Seun Kuti in a follow up broadcast made a feeble and glib attempt to present the fact that his accusations against Chief Ayorinde (SAN) were false and misleading. Seun Kuti admitted that his earlier information was wrong. He admitted that the so called alleged theft of documents purportedly presented to the ‘enemy’ were actually allegedly from the office of his proclaimed ‘hero’, Mr Olasupo Sashore (SAN). In the same breath, Seun Kuti in his drug induced dazed haze still arrogantly blamed Chief Ayorinde (SAN) for collecting fees for a job he himself, Seun Kuti, later admitted was properly done. What manner of evil disturbs such a mind?
It is very unfortunate that many Nigerians listen to such a vacuous rabble rouser speaking on an issue clearly out of his intellectual range, with many of our youths swallowing such bile as the truth.
Seun Kuti has displayed crassness, intellectual laziness, lack of self control and sensationalism with intent to cause harm. This is another very sad example of what we see on social media today. Peddling of lies with staggering audacity.
I am aware that Chief Bolaji Ayorinde (SAN) and his firm, BALaw LLP, are considering legal actions against this social miscreant and well so too. This nonsense where people sit in their homes and conjure false accusations to spread to millions of people must stop.
Dare Adeleke writes from Ibadan, Oyo State.
