ON BUKOLA DAKOLO’S CASE: AWARENESS IS A BRAND OF VICTORY.

I still do not get why people are celebrating and congratulating Pastor Fatoyinbo on the dramatic tossing out of the rape case against him and his wandering body parts.

Or maybe I do. Maybe I do understand that we live in a part of the world (infinitesimal part of the world) where rape jokes are funny and earn laughs, and where people believe that talking about a rape case years after it happened means that someone is being paid to ruin another person’s life.

I talked about this with a close friend who firmly believed that it was a political fight between churches and influencers, fought by puppeteer hands behind the curtain. I feel this way too, just not in the way he sees it. I see it as the case of another sensitive topic that got hijacked and turned into something else. The too-much talk and arguments steal the spotlight and redirect the attention. A woman got raped twice, by a man most people welcome into their homes freely, and someone whom you entrust your eternal redemption to. We have moved so far away from this issue of rape and abuse of trust and power to the point of bickering if a good man is being brought down by detractors or not.

Shame on all of us!

I stand with Bukola, away from all the madness. I stand with her because I understand trauma, I understand sexual abuse and the need for closure. When I listened to her interview, I felt drawn into her space and her story. I saw a woman trying to shut a door to an ugly past that wouldn’t stay shut. She wasn’t seeking reparation or forgiveness, it was something she owed herself, that release. This was totally about her, and not your vainglorious crusades and litigation campaigns. This is more than a hashtag fight or a caption fight, it is learning to breathe normally again. I use closure to sum everything because it is a term most people jerking off on this issue would not understand, probably because they are the toxicity other people consciously run away from.

Then the cabal happened. Cabal from both sides. Personalities got exposed; rape apologists, sycophants, celebrities who fight dirty, current rapists, potential rapists, and people who cry more than the bereaved. We always do this, I mean making a rape victim think twice about opening up about her ugly experience. We are so adept at shutting these victims up that we need not open our mouths to negate her story. Our actions do everything. We play on sentiments. You even hear ridiculous comments like telling the victim to “take the abuse for the team” and get over it.

I believe our biggest problem is religion, along with stupidity and more condensed stupidity.

On the other hand, people calling this a victory should totally be cancelled. This same judiciary that ruled that President Buhari is eligible to contest elections in 2019 based on an affidavit, is kicking a rape case of this magnitude to the curb. So much for priorities. It really has so much to say for a country of passionate foul-mouthed people.

I staunchly stand with Bukola Dakolo. I stand with rape victims who would not be swayed in telling their stories. Peace of mind is everything. Set yourself free, even if the perpetrator is getting off on political correctness. This is the first victory. More victories will come from dragging their asses to court and getting justice.

A leopard never changes its spots, their restless hands will continue to expose them and we will be alive to drag them to filth.