The Internet went Frenzy when the news surfaced online that
a man was arrested in Ogun state because he named his dog "Buhari".
The average newsreader not knowing the full story went on rampage firing
President Buhari from all cylinder saying "Tyrant this, dictator
that". The Buhari apologist also as always defended the action using
different words, quoting section this and that of the constitution. The accused
man was eventually charged to court and bail conditions were set and met. The
latest news is that about one hundred Barristers would defend him free of
charge. An indebt look into the issue would provide clearer perception to the
average Nigerians.
The first keypoint is that the accused said he named his Dog
after President Muhammad Buhari because PMB is his hero. This isn't unlawful
infact it's a common practice to name Dog after important personality or
things, Neymar's son named his two dogs after his dad and his Barcelona
teammate Lionel Messi. The popular comedian Alibaba came out to say he named
his pet after past Nigerian Leaders in the past, I personally named my Cat "Gandoki"
(one of my favourite fictional characters ).I've seen pets named shanon,
Naruto, Jimmy, Obama and the most popular "Lucky". There is no crime
in naming your pet after your favourite person, character or things. Yoruba
people summed it up with an adage "the name given to a dog by it's owner
would be what everyone calls it".
The second keypoint is the Hausa neighbour that reported the
accused to the police. The neighbour whose nickname is Buhari, thought it was
an insult directed at him by the accused. This sentiment is understandable,
because the Man being Hausa and a Muslim. In Islam, a Dog is an unclean
creature and a haram (Forbidden), so, associating a Muslim with a Dog is
considered an insult. That explains why he reported to the police instead of
taking matters into his hands which would be more catastrophic.
The third keypoint is that the accused was said to have
painted boldly the name "Buhari" on both sides of the dog and took
the Dog to an hausa community, thus creating a scene which would have caused
another "Mile 12 Fiasco" which is still fresh in the mind. Nigeria is
in a volatile state owing to the Economic recession and the last election wound
that is not completely healed. Saying wrong things in a wrong place may get you
injured or killed. This act purported by the accused may be seen as an act
which may trigger public disorderliness and violence. Had the Accused been
battered or killed by the enraged people, we would have had another Kano
massacre on our hands. So we (All Nigerians) need to be careful.
Lastly, the Nigeria police Force (NPF) who are the enforcer
of law and the hausa neighbour are the one pressing charges not President Muhammadu
Buhari. The NPF being the chief prosecutor may or may not be right in this
matter, it is for the court to decide and if the case is as frivolous and
baseless as we are made to believe, it would have been thrown out of order
since the first day of hearing. If the Accused is found not guilty of all
charges, he would be set free, I'm happy he has the best legal representatives
the land could offer. I wish him best of luck.
Abiodun Kayode writes from
Suleja and can be contacted on Twitter @Abiodunsays
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