How Nigerian Entertainers Are Reacting To Their National Honour Award

SarahMay 30, 2023

2 minutes read

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Seven months after Nigerian music stars Burna Boy, 2Baba, and Teni were conferred national honour as Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR), a new set of entertainers – Davido, Kunle Afolayan, Charles Okpaleke, and Ayodeji Makun, have been honoured with the Officer of the Order of the Niger (OON) National Honour.

Davido, Kunle Afolayan, Ayodeji Makun and Charles Okpaleke, honoured with National Honours

These national honours were conferred as a parting gift by Nigeria’s former president, Muhammadu Buhari, who had approved 340 Nigerians for the various categories, with these honours conferred for their service to the benefit of the nation.

Davido, who is currently topping charts across the globe with his latest album ‘Timeless’ and has been one of the pioneers of the Nigerian pop-to-the-world movement with his philanthropy and musical contributions for decades, took to his Instagram page to share his gratitude for the honour with multiple posts captioned ‘The OON walk different.’

In a lengthy post celebrating the national honour Nollywood filmmaker Charles Okpaleke behind some of Nollywood’s iconic remakes like Glamour Girls, Nneka The Pretty Serpent, Aki and Pawpaw, and Living In Bondage, highlighted some of his greatest achievements as he thanked Nigeria for recognising his efforts.

‘Three active years as a lecturer (UNN), three active years as a Biomedical Scientist, four active years as a Health Economist, 15 active years in Nightlife, Entertainment & Hospitality (active till date), four active years as a Filmmaker (active till date), two active years in Automobile Design (active till date), seven active months in Agriculture (Agro Processing, active till date), two active months in Game Publishing (active till date), and so on.

‘While at it, active Philanthropy and Mentorship. Thank you, Nigeria, for recognising my effort. Thank you Jesus for crowning my hustle.’ he said in a post on Instagram.

Kunle Afolayan, a renowned Nigerian filmmaker, also thanked the Federal Government for the honour as he also announced that the sequel series to his highly acclaimed film Anikulapo’s ended during the time he received the national award.

“It is a double celebration. Yesterday, we finally rolled the camera on Anikulapo: Rise of the Scepter, the series. Thank you to the Federal Government for honouring me with the OON award. I’m a Nigerian, and I believe so much in the country. God bless Nigeria,” he said in a video on his Instagram page.

Although it was a moment of pride for the recipients, they’ve also come under criticisms from some Nigerians who accused them of not standing in solidarity with the youths by rejecting the National Award, considering how the Buhari administration had treated young Nigerians and the affairs of the state.

In his recent post, AY addressed Nigerians who had shamed him for accepting the award. He mentioned that the national award is a recognition of his contribution to the nation and is bigger than the president and the political party.

“Those of you shaming or asking me to reject ‘A National Honour’ is clearly missing a vital point. Our country is bigger and more important than any president or political party awarding it. A national honour is the highest recognition anyone can get for his or her contributions to nation-building. So my allegiance is to a country where I have contributed my own quota, and I am more than happy to be rewarded by the same nation,” he said in a Twitter post.

Although prominent Nigerians like Chimamanda Adichie, Professor Chinua Achebe, Chief Gani Fawehinmi, and more have rejected the honour due to their opinion on the government who chose to award them, it is not a yardstick for how honourable or loyal to Nigerians these icons are but more of their personal convictions.