THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO SUGABELLY

Photo:Sugarbellyrocks.com

I first heard about this story from a colleague over lunch on Friday and we just talked about it casually and went about our normal duties. It was only on Saturday evening when the wife of my very good friend mentioned it again that I decided to pay more attention to the story. I can understand why most women empathize with Lotanna Odunze a.k.a Sugabelly and believe she was savagely raped by Mustapha Audu and his brigade of rapists as she alleged but there are a lot of inconsistencies with her Super-story.

According to Wikipedia, rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration perpetrated against a person without that person's consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority or against a person who is incapable of valid consent, such as one who is unconscious, incapacitated, or below the legal age of consent.
I strongly believe she was raped. At 17, and desperately seeking for love, she fell into the wrong company and made very wrong decisions like most teenagers and she is now living with the consequences. Never underestimate the power of love as you can never know what you are capable of doing for love. So I understand how helpless she must have been.

More than anything else, I think her story should be a lesson for most young girls who in a bid to explore, get themselves involved in unimaginable things with men who in the guise of love turn their lives upside down. The heart of a man is desperately wicked and no one can tell what he is capable of doing if you let him have his way. As we are campaigning to bring these men to justice, we should also sensitize our young ladies on the impending danger of becoming wild and free. For every sexual predator, there is a willing victim who is ready to be bought at any price.

Having said that, I think my biggest challenge with this story is the way Sugabelly went about it? Why do you start a campaign to expose a rapist by first celebrating the death of his father and hoping for death to come quickly upon the rest of his family? Attention! Like she said “Right now there are thousands of people running wild with their “opinions”, talking authoritatively about what Mustapha, Abdul, Tunji, and their band of friends and brothers did to me, as if they were there”. Wasn’t that your plan from the start, for thousands of people to run wild with their opinions so that you can trend? For your information, twitter was not your only option.

If twitter was the only avenue in her judgement that will better convey her gospel to the millions that she is trying to stand in the gap for, she should have resorted to the part of heroism instead of popularity. Hero's pay more attention to their cause and less on themselves. Why was Sugabelly trending instead of rape?

According to her “Every time I see a white Nissan Altima, my palms go sweaty, and my knees get weak. It’s an involuntary reaction born of so many nights being driven around Asokoro pinned to the floor of Tunji’s white Nissan Altima, barely able to breathe, the stench of weed stinging my eyes while I choked on the penis of whomever it pleased Mustapha to force me to pleasure that day. I can’t have music playing while driving around in a car…especially not Maroon 5…or you will make it hard for me to breathe.” She claimed.

I find it interesting that she is somehow roping Nissan Altima and Maroon 5 into her story, perhaps to give it more flavour; unless there is of course a psychological explanation or she is been fictitious. And how was she getting into the car every other day, aggressively or coerced? If she was almost going to choke to death, why did she go back again and again? Could she have defiled them and damned the consequences? What would they have done that will be more deadly? Questions begging for answers.

Another thing I found interesting is the fact that she didn't admit that Mustapha Audu deflowered ‎her. So before Mustapha there were men? Who were they and what did they do to her? She probably chose not to talk about that so that her story will be sweet enough for her reputation. Maybe that will come in part 2 of this story, which to me is beginning to look like a movie script. I am not trying to make light of what she went through but her motive doesn’t add up in my big head.

As for ANGEL Zahra Audu, I like the way you stood by your husband. But like the rest of us, you know your darling husband is not the perfect gentleman you are trying to paint. I also think you went a little too far but like Sugabelly, ‎you were ready to do anything for the man you love; I understand. But don’t forget that you have three innocent daughters, as you seem to believe so much in Karma.

Mustapha Audu and Co, stop adding fuel to the fire by releasing emails and granting interviews. You should all bury your head in shame and wait for Oby Ezekwesili and the law of the land. If you need further help on how to remain calm in the face of overwhelming allegations, you can contact Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo of COZA. He did just fine.

Sugabelly, you might after all be a rape victim and activist but you are definitely not a decent girl or a role model. Yes, you were taken advantage of by possibly the first person who claimed to love you and gave you all the attention you craved. But you made your bed so you must lie on it and give us a break. Because the ocean never swallows a person with whose legs it does not come in contact. Crying victim all your life will not justify your complicity. You got involved in bad things and it ended badly for you. Now that you have trended on twitter, go and sin no more.