•Pedro Obaseki stripped and kneeling in Benin city
There has been no official statement from the Oba of Benin’s Palace as reactions continue to rage following the attack and humiliation of Edo State and one of Nigeria’s foremost playwrights, movie producer and scriptwriter, Don Pedro Obaseki.
Obaseki was on Sunday swooped upon, stripped naked and forced to crawl on his knees by supporters of the Oba who abducted him at the Uwa Primary School field while he was playing football Don Pedro is accused of being a voice of dissent against the Edo monarchy.
The mob accused him of insulting the Oba, but all the Oba supporters have as proof of that accusation where Don Pedro Obaseki stopped short of saying “long live the king” and ins’ead said long live the Edo people during the “meet and greet” event organised for Godwin Obaseki in London recently to thank Edo people for their support for him.
Despite the fact that part of the attack took place in the palace grounds and in the name of the king, there has not been a statement as at free time from the office of the monarch on the matter.
Meanwhile, Don Pedro Obaseki decried the attack on him and touted his years of academic work promoting the Edo culture while maintaining his respect for cultural institutions.
Meanwhile, in the streets of Benin, opinions were divided, reflected the deep divisions between Edo people on the right to express dissent against the palace.
For some, it’s a cardinal sin to utter criticisms against the Oba, and the punishment for it is deemed to be no less than what Obaseki went through today. Some have celebrated the attack on Obaseki and have continued to warn and promise other supporters of Ex-Governor Godwin Obaseki, who have dared to publicly disagree with the king that they will meet even worse fates.
For others in Benin, in this modern world of growing enlightenment, expressions of dissent against the palace show should that people are finally shedding the slave mentality of being too afraid the air their views which are at variance with those of the palace.
Many have called on the Oba of Benin palace to publicly dissociate itself from the attack on Obaseki to prove that the palace does not support the action of his abductors.
