Man Breaks Silence after His Name Was Mentioned in Tribute of Deceased Kingsley
- A Nigerian man, whose name was specifically mentioned in the tribute of the late Kingsley Aneke, has broken his silence
- Kingsley Aneke had reportedly written his own tribute before his demise, mentioning Olugbenga Adekunte Akapo and others
- In his Facebook post, Olugbenga reacted to being mentioned in the viral post, stating that it had caused him to receive insults from Nigerians
A Nigerian man, Olugbenga Adekunte Akapo, has shared a long statement after his name appeared in the viral tribute linked to the late Kingsley Aneke.
In his post shared via his official Facebook account, he addressed the backlash that followed the viral post.
Source: Facebook
Olugbenga Adekunte Akapo speaks about Kingsley
In a Facebook update, Olugbenga explained that being named in the circulating tribute turned him into a target of online hostility.
He stated that the mention led to a flood of criticism, insults and hostile messages from Nigerians on different social media platforms, despite his grief over the loss of a friend.
He described Kingsley Aneke as someone he met through Facebook and grew close to over time, adding that the death affected him greatly.
According to him, the situation became painful when the post announcing Aneke’s death and burial arrangements mentioned his name in a way that sparked political attacks.
He said many reactions framed his political preferences as wrongdoing, with some commenters resorting to abuse, spiritual condemnation and even death wishes.
Akapo lamented that a personal loss was dragged into political and tribal debates.
He stressed that Nigeria’s long-standing difficulties did not begin in recent years or with any single administration or political party.
Source: Facebook
He also rejected claims that his political stance stemmed from ethnic bias, noting that such interpretations unfairly misrepresented him.
Akapo further disclosed that the controversy resulted in a surge of attention to his social media accounts, including repeated page views, calls and private messages.
He said screenshots of posts from blogs, groups and individuals were constantly sent to him, while some people actively searched for his other social media profiles for reasons he found troubling.
The man expressed doubts about whether the viral tribute truly originated from Aneke or whether someone else with access to his phone shared it after his passing.
Despite the pressure, Akapo said he chose not to respond with disrespect towards a deceased friend.
He reaffirmed his commitment to honouring Aneke’s memory, extended sympathy to the bereaved family and expressed hope for Nigeria’s future.
In his words:
"Kingsley Aneke is dead and gone, it a painful and crazy loss. This is a friend I met on this same Facebook and his death hit me so bad! My name was specifically featured in the post announcing the death and burial arrangement of a friend as if it is a crime to support a candidate or political party. The said post is trending with some people abusing and hurling insults at me and the other person mentioned in the said post. Some said I should go for deliverance, some said I should be ashamed, some are wishing bad things happen to me and some even went as far as wishing me death.
"Nigeria's challenges didn't start in 2023, it didn't start with President Tinubu nor the APC. It is painful a friend's loss is being politicised with my support being attributed to tribal sentiments. My phone has been ringing and messages have been coming in with screenshots from blogs, pages, groups and individual accounts across different social media platforms. Checking my dashboard to see the number of times my page has been checked/viewed today alone is alarming (screenshot is attached). Some are even asking for my Twitter and Instagram handle for reasons best known to them. When did supporting a candidate become a crime?
"It's quite unfortunate this is happening and the fact that I can't tell if Kingsley truly left a note to be shared after he is gone or someone who has access to his phone chose to do this (which is most likely the case). A death that should be mourned has been turned into a tribal and political remarks to throw his friends under the bus. I made a post announce to his death when I got to know of his death as it was hurting to me. I made another post earlier in the day to wish him well when I read the post and I am adding this as people around me are worried that my name is featuring and trending for the reasons.
"From my end, I won't let anyone push or gaslight me to disrespect a man and a friend who died at such a young age. I will respect my friendship with him in death and leave those who are looking for my social media handle on IG and X (formerly Twitter) continue to look for it. I wish his Family the best once again and pray that they find the fortitude to bear the loss. Rest in Peace Kingsley. May Nigeria Succeed."
Reactions as Olugbenga Adekunte Akapo breaks silence
Nigerians had different things to say in the comments section.
Lawal Leke said:
"Wo, I understand why you can’t talk exactly how you should but that is where we friends come in. Anywhere there are mentioning your name, just point me to the post make I dey curse dem aura for aura. Na you get relationship with the dead not me. The first person who decided to disrespect the dead was the person who made that post to set you up for dragging. If they don’t want their brother to rest as he should by causing avoidable controversy after his death, we will help them with it."
Ralph Abiodun said:
"Baba your conscience alone is enough. They said worse things about the current President. You did nothing wrong and owe nobody explanation why you supported who you supported. Rest in peace to the Kingsley once again."
Olasunkanmi reacted:
"God bless Nigeria no matter what we face in it. Tita riro la n ko la, to ba de le, a di oge (The process of positive transformation is painful, but at the end, it ends in beauty)."
Oluwatosin added:
"On a serious note, Mentioning names on the post doesn't make sense at all, And for those dragging instead of mourning won ni sense. Nothing anybody wan do you coz no be crime to support a political party even me and u dey always drag and for dm over this lekankan. Make person wey dye rest well."
See the post below:
Man mourns good friend who died
Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that a Nigerian man shared a heartbreaking post mourning his friend who recently lost his life to the cold hands of death.
The grieving friend posted his last WhatsApp conversation with his late friend and expressed pain over his demise.
Source: Legit.ng
