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Kemi Badenoch has made many statements about Nigeria since she became the leader of the Conservative Party in the UK.
Many Nigerians have commented on the things that Kemi says in meetings, whose parents are all Nigerians.
She made such statements in meetings, radio and television.
She usually talks about her childhood life, where she explained that she grew up in fear because of the lack of security in the country, which she says is rife with corruption.
Already the vice president of Nigeria, Kashim Shettima said “she can remove Kemi from her name” if she is not proud of her “country of origin”.
Badenoch left Nigeria 28 years ago to return to the UK, the country of her birth.
She returned to the UK when she was 16 years old, where she lived with a friend of her mother’s to continue her studies.
After marrying her husband, Hamish Badenoch, a Scottish banker, she began using his name.
Here are the four times that Kemi Badenoch has commented on Nigeria since she was elected as the leader of the opposition party Conservatives in the UK.
‘Living in fear’
Kemi Badenoch has made many statements against Nigeria in the past, so it is not certain that any of the things she said hurt the Vice President Kashim Shettima to the point that he responded that “she can remove Kemi from her name.
She previously explained that she grew up in her childhood living in fear and corruption in the country.
At this year’s Conservative Party conference, Badenoch pointed out the difference in freedom between her life in the UK and the situation she faced when she lived in Lagos where she said “everyone is always scared”.
She said that she can remember when she was living in Lagos “you will hear how your neighbors are being robbed, then you will be afraid that your house will be raided when your neighbors are done with.”
“I am not a Nigerian girl”
Kemi Badenoch has defended the words that attacked Nigeria in the past.
After the criticism of the Vice President of Nigeria, Kashim Shettima, she was contacted to hear her response.
Then her spokesperson said: “she is on her side about what she said” and “I am not a promoter of Nigeria”.
‘I’m a Arab’
The leader of the Conservatives party caused a controversy on the issue of her identity after she declared herself as Arab and distanced herself from any relationship with the people of Northern Nigeria.
She made this statement recently when she talked to the press in the UK.
Kemi said she has no connection with Northern Nigeria, an area she says is home to Islamic extremists and Boko Haram.
“It surprises me how everyone describes me as a Nigerian. I am more related to myself and my tribe (Yoruba) than Nigeria,” she said.
“There is nothing that connects me with the people who come from the north of the country, where Boko Haram, where the Islamic extremists are.
“When I was a child, someone once told me that my name is the name of the warrior sparrows. They protect the kingdom, and that’s what I look up to myself.
“I am here in this country to protect. I can die to protect this country because I know what is happening in other places.”
‘The police robbed us’
On December 12, 2024, Kemi Badenoch revealed her encounter with the Nigerian police in an interview titled ‘Honestly With Bari Weiss’.
“What I experienced from the Nigerian police was not pleasant, but when I came to the UK, the way the British police did their work was commendable.
“You know that the police robbed us in Nigeria, that’s why I am surprised when people say that if something happens to me and the police here, it happened because I am black.
“I remember when the police stole my brother’s shoes and watch.
“It’s a poor country so people do what they want and if you give someone a gun it’s like they’re given a license to abuse people – that’s not the standard we should be holding the British police to, it should be said they are much better than that,” said Kemi.
