By Francis Ewherido
Nigeria is a wonderful country. Some people call it a cruise; others call it a thriller movie. But as for me, “I love my country, I no go lie. Na inside am, I go live and die…,” a song composed and directed by the legendary Prof. Wole Soyinka. Kudos to all the greats who participated in this project. The lyrics of this song look so recent and tell a story of what should have been and what should not. It is largely ironic and metaphoric. But I borrowed the portion I quoted to show that I am a diehard Nigerian. Some people, including some Nigerian and other African YouTubers, are probably tired of me, but that’s who I am. I love my country and make no pretense about it. I defend Nigeria with vigour. It is my constitutionally guaranteed freedom. At the end of the day, where is that country whose anus is without sh*t? If you are fixated only on the harsh economy and so many wrong stuff in Nigeria, you will miss out on the fun and positives.
Nigeria is a formal and informal comedy and entertainment hub. I spend time soaking myself in Nigerian comedy and entertainment. Even churches and other sacred places are not immune from the comedy and entertainment. Last Sunday, I assume, the entertainment shifted to a small church in Benin City, Edo State. A hitherto anonymous man told a small congregation in the church that he is the biological father of Nigeria’s Grammy award-winning musician, Wizkid, real name Ayodeji Balogun. The video has since gone viral.
I don’t like validating mumu comments (senseless talks). I am only using it as a case study of people who come out of nowhere to lay claim to accomplished adults that they are their children. Meanwhile, they were never in the lives of these “their children.” They deliberately never acknowledged them from infancy, played a role in their upbringing, education, formation, etc. Their only claim is that I am the “biological father” or “biological mother.” Are you kidding me? A few days ago, I was celebrating our (my wife and I) impending end to daily school runs. For the past 24 years, we have been doing daily school runs, broken only during weekends and holidays. We even did school runs on some Saturdays!
Biological fatherhood is a gift God freely gives to mankind. You don’t flaunt God’s gift as if it is by your power. He gives it even when it is unmerited. That is why some agbayas (lousy men) are biological fathers today. But real fatherhood is not a gift. It is earned. It is a lot of hard work, dedication and sacrifice. It is a deliberate and intentional (the tautology is for emphasis) act. You work very hard to become a real father.
In one of my previous articles on the duties of a father to his children, I wrote: “Fatherhood goes beyond the ability to get a woman (wife) pregnant. Fatherhood goes with continuous and enormous responsibilities.” According to the impostor, who claims to be Wizkid’s “real father,” he allegedly impregnated Wizkid’s mum and ran away because he was not ready for fatherhood. In the part of the Western Region (now Edo State (also Delta State) where he was born, teenage pregnancy outside marriage was and is still common. Since the “culprits” are sometimes too young to parent, their parents take that responsibility. Saying that he impregnated a girl and abandoned her is a gross act of irresponsibility he should be ashamed to talk about publicly. Not much was mentioned about the life and times of this impostor, but what about the children he gave birth to subsequently? How come there is none to take care of him and all of a sudden, he remembered a “son” he abandoned while still in the womb?
In some cultures in Nigeria, you can’t claim to be the father of a child if you didn’t pay the mother’s bride price. In such cultures his case is hopeless because the woman is dead and gone. Getting a woman pregnant is not enough to claim that you are the father. The sperm of sperm donors (it is against my belief) can be used to give birth to children he doesn’t even know. So, there is hardly a possibility of proving he is the “biological father” of a son he never knew.
The impostor claims he is ready for a DNA test to prove his case. Who will dignity him with the sample to do that test? Does he have the resources to fund the DNA tests, or whose money is he relying on? He said his “son” is a billionaire, but has decided to abandon him to suffer in Benin. Which son? The one you witnessed his first cry, smile and first baby steps? The one you taught life’s lessons and mentored? The one you took to school and helped with school assignments? The one you bonded, built trust and friendship with? The one you provided for and protected? The one you showed so much love to his mother? The one whose children you have carried? What exactly is your definition of a father, impostor?
Since he made his “bombastic revelation” and at the time of writing, the family of Alhaji Muniru Olatunji Balogun, Wizkid’s dad and Wizkid have maintained a dignified silence. That to me is class. That is the best response to this impostor who wants to reap where he did not sow. I am not even happy talking about his matter in my column. That is why I deliberately refused to mention his name. I am pissed off. I have experienced some of such annoying cases in the past. A man who rejected a pregnancy he was responsible for came back many years later to “claim my son because I am the biological father.” The truth was that his marriage was blessed with only daughters and he is one of those obsessed male chauvinists who believe life is incomplete without a male child. In another case, his marriage was childless. He didn’t have another child after he rejected the one born outside marriage. In all the cases, I was pissed as I am pissed off now. My previous experiences, more than this man, motivated me to write this article. This imposter doesn’t deserve my precious time.
He is trying to use his mumu claim to put another family in the limelight for the wrong reasons. Some people say, there’s a resemblance between him and Wizkid. Nonsense. While I was in India, I met at least four dark-skinned Indians who were look-alike of Nigerians I knew. But for their hair, I would have said they are the Nigerians.
Why didn’t he show up when Wizkid’s mum was alive? After all, some people sarcastically say that only the mother can say the true father of her son. Whatever the truth is, I don’t care. This man should sit down in Benin. Wizkid’s father is Alhaji Muniru Olatunji Balogun. I am not interested in this “I am the biological father” is crap. Why am I even bothering myself? He went to the church to entertain them.
