‘I don’t believe in God’ – Seun Kuti
He’s the youngest son of the late legendary Afrobeat pioneer, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti and in terms of being controversial, the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.
If he isn’t protesting against fuel hikes then he’s warning the Government not to put his grandmother’s face on the cover of a proposed new currency. It’s safe to say Seun Kuti is a man who doesn’t conceal his thoughts. He’s either making music or stirring up some controversy somewhere. This time, he’s talking about God.
When asked what God meant to him, Seun Kuti simply and clearly refused to acknowledge his existence and the existence of any other supernatural being.
‘I do not believe in God. I am not a believer of anything supernatural. I don’t believe in God, Jesus Christ, Mohammed, Ifa, Ogun, or whatever anybody uses as a reason to explain simple actions of nature. God, to me, is in existence’ he said.
Those who knew Fela will tell you grandfather and grandson share the same opinion. It is however hard to qualify them as atheists. Ironically, Fela has been likened by some to a demigod, as evidenced by his ‘mini-temple’ at the New Afrika Shrine in Ikeja.
Seun does believe in one thing for sure – Nature. While he says he doesn’t smoke cigarettes, he has admitted to smoking marijuana, which is actually a banned substance in Nigeria.
‘Yes, I do. But I don’t smoke cigarette… I don’t believe any human being has the right to tell nature what to do. Nature believes in the usefulness of marijuana. And I think mankind is pompous. You don’t say earthquake or Tsunami is illegal. So, why should marijuana, an equally natural thing, be illegal, even when earthquakes and Tsunami are killing people’
Seun, who is the band leader of Fela’s Egypt 80 band, is currently on tour in the UK.
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