"...He also moved to silence critics of his administration, passing decrees curbing press freedoms and allowing for opponents to be detained up to three months without formal charges. He also banned strikes and lockouts by workers and founded Nigeria's first secret police force, the National Security Organization. His government sentenced popular musician and political critic Fela Kuti to ten years in prison on charges that Amnesty International denounced as fabricated and politically motivated; Kuti was later pardoned and released by Buhari's successor."

talktimi:
For smoking ganja ?

Beaf:
[size=14pt]Beasts Of No Nation[/size]

Beasts of No Nation: Beast of No Nation is the first song Fela wrote in 1986, after he was liberated from prison—serving two years from a five year prison sentence for trumped-up foreign currency violation charges. Everywhere he went after his release, people were asking him what he was going to sing about: ‘Fela wetin you go sing about? Them go worry me!”. People wanted to hear him sing about his prison experience, like he had done with the songs like: Alagbon Close, Kalakuta Show, and Expensive poo. Finally, he decided to sing about the world we live in—with particular reference to Nigeria. He said when he was in prison he called it ‘Inside World’, out of prison he called it ‘Outside World’. But for him it is actually ‘Craze World’.

[size=14pt]Otherwise, what name can one give a world with: police brutality, army oppression, courts without justice, magistrates who are supposed to uphold the law, obviously seen bending the law to please some special interest. As further proof of the craze world, he sings about the judge who sent him to jail for five years on a trumped up charge, only for the same judge to visit Fela in a prison hospital two years after. The judge apologized, claiming he was under pressure from the government to convict. This could only happen in a Craze World, Fela reasons.[/size]

It can only be in a craze world that people sit and watch governments shoot down protesting students with impunity, like in Soweto(South Africa), Zaria and Ife(Nigeria). Bearing in mind that Nigeria like all craze world countries, condemn the apartheid regime in South Africa, yet committing crimes against humanity in their respective countries. Turning to another aspect of craze world policy of the Nigerian government. In 1983, the Buhari/Idigabon military regime launched a public campaign dubbed ‘War Against Indiscipline’. This was the regime’s solution to corruption inherent in the Nigerian society. To justify this campaign, [size=14pt]the Nigerian head of state, General Buhari and his deputy General Idiagbon publicly used words like: ‘…my people are useless! My people are senseless! My people are indisciplined!’[/size] to describe Nigerian People.

For Fela, only in a craze world can such remarks be made. Moreover, such statements could only have come from an ‘animal in human skin’. How could these two animals use such words to qualify a people who feed them? This being so, other leaders from other countries must either be animals themselves to associate with, or accept to co-habit under such an umbrella as the United Nations with a head of state that considers his people useless.

Turning to the United Nations, Fela saw it as a majorly unhealthy organization that suffers major inadequacy in its organizational principles. It is absurd to organize the UN principle bodies; the Security Council and the General Assembly, in such an undemocratic manner as one member’s cote can veto the decision of the majority. Is this Democracy? “What is United about the UN?” Fela asked. Thatcher went to war with Argentina over Falkland—yet both counties are members of the world body. Reagan and Libya were at war. Israel versus Lebanon. Iran versus Iraq. East-West cold war. It looks more like a group of disunited nations, so how can such a body work to promote and encourage respect for human rights? For Fela, that is another kind of animal talk. How can people talk about ‘individual’ rights? No one has the right to deprive someone else of what belongs to the individual—only an animal would try to take away another person’s legitimate rights. People who hear Fela say things like this reminded him that he was sent to prison for having such opinions of government. He, in his defense, said it was not him who called members of the UN animals. It was Pik Botha, the former South Africa President at the peak of the anti-apartheid struggle, in reaction to the persistent riots against the racist regime. He came out with a statement that his regime would act more brutally if the riots did not stop: “…this uprising will bring out the beast in us”. Fela’s reminded us that President Reagan advocated: “, constructive engagement with the apartheid regime” among member nations of the UN. The same policy as Mrs. Thatcher – an indication that they were sharing the same friendship and animal characteristics as Botha. If this is so the UN can only be an assembly of Beasts of No Nation.

- Mabinuori Kayode Idowu

http://www.fela.net/discography/beasts-of-no-nation

[img]http://1.bp..com/_MgRHpnroYGU/TRsHcU6PPHI/AAAAAAAABQs/ZVqYGJ9q7Qk/s1600/BeastsOfNoNation.jpg[/img]

Firefire:
Let us wait for GMB defender’s response...

anonimi:


Oga hope sey you nor go mind make I stand behind you for that waiting line because as I see am that queue go long die

barcanista:
Typing...

calaway:


APC is just full of LIES!! Buhari was witch hunting FELA for exposing and writing a song about the 2.8 billion dollars that got stolen while buhari petroleum minister in 1978.

This is the TRUTH:- On 4 September last year (1984), minutes before leaving the country for an extensive tour of the US, Fela Anikulapo Kuti was arrested at the airport of Lagos. Fela was supposed to have carried 1600 English pounds with him instead of the maximum amount of 50 that one person is allowed to take out of the country. An accusation that Fela’s defense did not deny but explained by pointing to the 45 people in the retinue of the musician. And 1600 divided by 45 is nowhere near 50pounds

Firefire:


My friend,... how far ee don don?

HonourablePomk:
i

barcanista:
When General Muhammadu Buhari came to power, there was wide corruption in the Second Republic. A decree was passed that nobody take out or bring in foreign currency into the country. Offenders are liable to 10years in Jail. This decree was to curb money laundering by politicians and corrupt businessmen.

FELA KUTI
Fela had performed abroad, he was paid in foreign currency in cash and had it on him on his return to Lagos. He was subsequently arrested for breaking the law and was prosecuted, found guilty and jailed.

PLEA:
There was a plea by human right groups to Head of State Buhari to "pardon" Fela, he refused because he believe that the law be served to the letter.

THE OFFENSE, GMB AND FELA:
First, there was an existing law/decree.

Secondly, Fela bringing in cash means it contradicts the law/decree, however, the money is from hard work.
Morally, he's justified! Legally, he is not.

Buhari had refused to grant pardon, because the law was broken. If he grants pardon, some section of politicians will accuse him of preferential treatment. He didn't because he believes in absolute discipline.
By law, he is justified. Morally, he is not, considering that it was Fela's sweat(my opinion). The law does not work with emotion unfortunately.

MY OPINION:
GMB should have pardoned Fela. The law should have made for exception. Buhari should have tampered justice with mercy

kilokeys:
hehehe.. with femi kuti, afrikaan shrine and fans in diaspora... buhari's situation just got worse..


how d guy wan pay im bank loan wey im use buy form na?

chai... see bad belle op

berem:
On-going research indeed. You're so jobless that you now research on Buhari and his arrest of Fela which happened decades ago. Why don't you channel your research on Boko Haram and suggest possible ways of ending the insurgency as a saTANist and tell us what JonaTAN has to offer in 2015.

Yeye dey smell!