Leader of the UK’s Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has continued attacking Nigeria, claiming some policemen in the black most populous nation on earth stole her brother’s shoe.
Born Kemi Adegoke, the politician, who changed her last name after marrying a Scottish banker, has been saying uncomplimentary things about Nigeria since her emergence as leader of UK’s main opposition party.
In an interview with The Free Press, a US media outfit, Badenoch said officers of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) stole her brother’s watch and shoe.
“My experience with the Nigerian police was very negative. However, my experience with the British Police was very positive when I came to the UK.”
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“The police in Nigeria will rob us. When people say I have this bad experience with the police because I’m black, I say well… I remember the police stole my brother’s shoe and his watch.
“It’s a very poor country. People do all sorts of things. So, giving people a gun is just a licence to intimidate. But that’s not just the problem.
“That is not the bar we should use for the British police. When I was burgled, for example, the police were there. They were helpful before they eventually caught the person. This was in 2004… that was 20 years ago.”
Meanwhile, Nigerians have continued to dig into her past, including how her father who died in 2021 declared support for self-acclaimed Yoruba Nation activist, Sunday Igboho.
Also among the things found was how she used her Nigerian heritage to climb the ladder in UK Politics.
In a message to her Nigerian supporters while campaigning 14 years ago, Badenoch had said, “I need your help. I’m running for parliament in the 2010 UK general elections. The race is very tight. Last year, a survey was carried out in this constituency by the News of the World and the forecast was that I would win. This year, things are a lot tougher as the party has dropped nationally in the polls. I need your help.
“In a recent BBC interview, a caller insulted me because I’m Yoruba. I was very disappointed that a Nigerian woman who claimed to have lived in London for 45 years had issues with me being Yoruba than with my political views and shamefully made her comments on national radio.
“We really need to get out of this mindset where we are fighting one another and try and support each other instead. Regardless of party allegiance, a Nigerian in parliament winning purely on merit and not because of her relatives or by buying the election will be amazing.”
She lamented that her generation had suffered enough from the mistakes of the past and it was time to retell the story.
“So I am asking for your help now to support a Nigerian who is trying to improve our national image and do something great here.”
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