23rd August, 2024
By Oluwapelumi Oluwayemi
Nigerian singer Damini Ogulu, better known as Burna Boy, has shared a stark assessment of his homeland, describing it as “collateral damage” in a recent interview with Tidal.
The Grammy-winning artiste used his platform to address Nigeria’s socio-political challenges and cultural diversity, which he believes have hindered the nation’s progress.
In the interview, aired on Friday, Burna Boy expressed deep concern over Nigeria’s current state, attributing many of its issues to poor governance and external influences.
He argued that the country’s complex cultural makeup, once seen as a strength, has now become a barrier to growth.
He described the formation of the country as the result of a “bad business enterprise” orchestrated by the British.
He noted that Nigeria as a country was never meant to exist and it is “nothing but the result of a bad business enterprise entered into by the British”, nothing “but the collateral damage of a business deal gone south.”
He explained that the area now known as Nigeria was initially the Niger Area before being acquired by the Royal Niger Company, which subsequently amalgamated the North and South regions without regard for the people living there.
“The area called Nigeria was first known as the Niger Area before the Royal Niger Company acquired it.
“After it was acquired, the Royal Niger Company decided to amalgamate the North and South as against running them as separate entities, and it was at this point that the country Nigeria was birthed”.
According to Burna Boy, this decision led to Nigeria being “nothing but the collateral damage of a business deal gone south.”
“When the amalgamation was going to happen, the Niger Company and the British who sold Nigeria didn’t take into consideration those living in the region.
“The two entities that sold and bought the Niger Area, the people living there were nothing but collateral damage.”
