Nigerian singer Peter Okoye, one-half of the former P-Square music duo, has accused his brother, Paul Rudeboy Okoye, of trying to destroy his public image for questioning the value of Nigerian languages.
It would be recalled that Peter was heavily criticised on Monday after posting on X that he was considering buying a house in Paris, France, after revealing that his children speak French fluently.
Trouble started after the singer reacted to a fan question, saying, “Who Naija language help?”
... drew sharp criticism from social media users, who interpreted his remarks as dismissive of indigenous Nigerian languages and argued that such languages are essential to preserving the nation’s cultural heritage.
However, the whole situation escalated after his twin brother shared a video of himself performing in Igbo, accompanied by a cryptic caption: “I’m a ‘nobody’ I repeat!! a nobody!! without the culture, native, language, the pride, of a Nigerian 100% proudly Nigerian .100% proudly Igbo .”
In a response posted on Wednesday, the 44-year-old singer apologised for his earlier comments, stressing that his original tweet had been misunderstood. He clarified that his comment was never intended as an attack on the Igbo language or culture, while accepting responsibility for how his words were received.
“If my response to ‘Who Naija language help?’ upset some people, I apologise and take full responsibility for my words. That doesn’t mean I hate Nigerian languages or our culture,” he wrote.
“It all started from an innocent tweet where I said my kids speak French, and it made me think maybe I should buy a house in Paris.
“Somehow, that turned into something completely different. At no point did I say I hate the Igbo language or Igbo culture. I said ‘Naija language,’ referring to the different languages in Nigeria, but some people twisted it to make it seem like I was specifically referring to Igbo. I didn’t.”
Peter also accused his twin brother of exploiting the situation to damage his reputation.
“But again, bro, you’re at it again, using this moment as another opportunity to pull me down. Just like I wrote in my open letter two years ago, doing everything possible to make people hate me will never work,” he wrote.
“Yes, people are dragging me over my statement, and that’s okay. We all have moments where our words can be misunderstood or where we could have expressed ourselves better. I accept that. But deliberately twisting my words and using petty tactics to damage my reputation says a lot.
“I don’t know why you look for every opportunity to make derisive comments or jump on the bandwagon whenever I’m being attacked. The other time, you threw shades at me and even age-shamed me for still dancing at my age.
“Now it’s this again. At this point, I think it’s only fair I start giving the same energy I receive. No more Mr. Nice Guy. It’s aura for aura, Egusi for Egusi, Oha for Oha.”