Nigerian rapper, Ruggedman, has
said he was doing fine after being attacked at a restaurant in London,
according to him and a series of social media posts.
Ruggedman was said to be dinning
at 805 Restaurant, said to be popular amongst Nigerians in the English capital,
when a hoodlum charged violently at him. It was not immediately clear the
specific time the incident occurred, but Ruggedman first posted it online
around 1:00 a.m. Saturday.
A video posted on Ruggedman’s
social media handle showed how the violence unfolded. Some persons were seen
carrying the restaurant’s furniture and slamming them on Ruggedman.
A voice in the background
repeatedly urged the attackers, said to be four, to “leave him,” but this did
not appear to have much impact throughout the less than one-minute video.
Ruggedman later posted a video
saying he was doing fine and commending the police for swift intervention. He
did not appear hospitalised in the video.
Although details of the confrontation were still sketchy, netizens had already linked it to Naira Marley fans. Naira Marley, a Nigerian hip-hop artiste, was arrested last month in Lagos by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The EFCC said in court filings
that Naira Marley was involved in Internet fraud, and presented laptops and
order tools allegedly seized from the musician.
He strongly denied all
allegations, saying he had borrowed the laptop from a friend shortly before he
was arrested with it. The Federal High Court in Lagos granted him bail, and he
only met the conditions and was released on Friday.
Ruggedman had condemned Naira
Marley shortly after the younger artiste released a music video that many said
glorified Internet fraudsters — Yahoo Boys. Ruggeddman said Naira Marley should
channel his talent towards reining in the excesses of politicians who have been
stealing public funds, rather than encouraging the youth to take the inglorious
road of online fraud.
The rapper later apologised to
Naira Marley after the musician was arrested and charged, saying he was only
warning him as a junior colleague and did not know the matter would escalate so
quickly and seriously.
Why Ruggedman was attacked on the
night that Naira Marley was released was yet unclear, and Naira Marley did not
appear to have issued comments about the matter, which had spread to Nigerian
social media overnight.
Ruggedman was amongst Nigerian
musicians famous for advancing local hip-hop genre in the 2000s, but he had
spent his recent months campaigning against police brutality of citizens.
this is sad and not the way to go Nigerians.. let's attack the crime not the activist
ReplyDeleteIf this is the generation of youths Nigeria is raising, youths who assault you for speaking against crime. We’re doomed
ReplyDelete