Former Presidential candidate, Rev Chris Okotie, has urged the Inspector General of Police, Alkali Baba Usman, to show mercy upon Afrobeat star, Seun Kuti, over his case with the Police.
The outspoken musician is in detention for slapping a police man during an encounter in traffic recently. The matter has raised an uproar across the country.
In a statement in Lagos yesterday, and signed by his media adviser, Ladi Ayodeji, Rev Okotie made a case for amnesty for the embattled music star.
Below is the full statement:
“I would like to urge the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to demonstrate a paternal clemency towards Seun Kuti in his transgression against an authorised myrmidon of the law. “Anti-establishment is not acceptable under any guise, however, a humane superintendence is a mark of a great leadership.
“The youth have been under tremendous pressure to establish a new Nigerian social order and Seun’s abrasive conduct is a tangent from that trajectory.
“I plead earnestly with the IGP to temper justice with mercy and exculpate Seun of all charges. Femi and Seun Kuti are artistic souvenirs bestowed upon us by the legendary Fela Anikulapo-Kuti and we truly appreciate the creative artistry demonstrated in their musical genre.
“Please find sufficient grace in your heart to anesthesize the gravity of this provocation.
“May the blessing of the God of heaven be vouchsafed to you in the plenitude of His Grace.”
Okotie’s message came in the wake of the court’s extension of Seun’s detention by four days.
