By Olumide Adesida
Nigerian-American singer, Jidenna Theodore Mobisson has said he had to bring in a lot of AK47s and employ military commandos when he came to Nigeria for his father’s burial.
In an interview with VladTV, Jidenna said light skinned people in Nigeria are more likely to be kidnapped than dark skinned people as they are seen as more valuable.
Speaking about the scenario in the said interview, he said: ‘I am Nigerian-American and more specifically I am Igbo American, Igbo being the ethnic group where I am from and that means you are in the South East of Nigeria.
‘You are way from the city so it means when you go to your village you are the only person or one of the few people that look like you. In my case, our family is light.
‘Therefore when we go to our village, when I actually buried my father I had to bring in a lot of AK47, I had to employ military commandos because when you are light skinned, you are a heavier target for being kidnapped because you are seen as more valuable.
‘So for me being light-skinned in Nigeria, in our family, it was difficult. We have been hounded. We have been robbed. Our family has been assaulted.’
