Charly Boy, the singer, says he still struggles with paranoia tied to Nigeria’s civil war of the 70s.
The Nigerian Civil War was fought between Nigeria and the Republic of Biafra, a now-defunct secessionist state.
It began in 1967 and lasted for well over two years after Nigeria’s eastern region declared itself independent.
A number of major issues led to the war, including conflict, ethnic division, military misrule, and economic factors.
In a series of tweets on Thursday, Charly Boy said he witnessed key events in Nigerian history including the war.
He said his years of activism and being vocal against misrule caused him to be “brutalised and imprisoned”.
The singer stated that he still struggles with paranoia, seeing events that caused the war similarly play out today.
“As an individual, I can say that I have seen it all. I was young when the Union Jack was lowered into oblivion. I saw hope perish in 1966 and the wanton destruction that followed in 1967,” Charly Boy’s tweet reads in part.
“My youth was scandalised by the Biafran civil war. Right now, I am suffering from either paranoia or having a déjavu knowing the contributing factors that led to that war.
“I saw subsidy rise from the ashes of misrule since the 1970s. I watched my beloved father clear a path to national healing in 1999.
“I have been brutalised, teargassed, locked up for months, rendered poor by our nonsensical security force.
“So, while most of my peers looked away from street life and the hard life of sincere advocacy, I chose to bury my fist in the fight for a New Nigeria. I sought an army of her future, the exceptional young people of Nigeria.”
Charly Boy, born Charles Oputa, has been a singer-songwriter, television presenter, publisher, and producer.
He is best known for his alternative lifestyle, political views, and media productions, notably The Charly Boy Show.
The singer, now aged 72, has served as president of the Performing Musicians Association of Nigeria (PMAN).
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