Four days after he was remanded in Ibara Prisons in Abeokuta the
Ogun State capital, the 40-year-old trader, Joe Fortemose Chinakwe a.k.a
Joachin Iroko, who made major headlines throughout last week after
being arrested by the Police for naming his pet dog ‘Buhari’, finally regained his freedom after fulfilling his bail conditions.
Speaking
with newsmen shortly after he left the prison ward in Abeokuta on
Thursday, August 15, the father-of-two, described his experience as good
and educative.
“I am so happy. It is a joy to
me. I have missed my family; that was most painful. Prison is a place to
experienced in one’s life. It is like a rehabilitation home: you learn
many things there and there are many people you may not have the
opportunity to talk to.
“But in
prison, you will sit down with them and discuss. There are many things
you take for granted, but when you go to prison you know there is law.
The only thing I am regretting about my coming to prison is the
intimidation from the Hausa community. Going to prison is a golden
moment for me,” he said.
Speaking further on the reason why he named his dog Buhari, he said: “As
a matter of fact, they misunderstood me. I have three dogs: one bears
Obama, one bears Joe, an abbreviation of my name. The third is named
Buhari.
“I named these dogs
after my role models. My late dog was named after Nelson Mandela. I
don’t just give any name to my dogs. I give reputable names to my dogs.
It is love I have for Buhari; he is my role model.
“Buhari
is not the President of the North. He is the President of Nigeria. I
see no reason why Northerners should intimidate me: Nigeria is one. “I
see no reason why they will be intimidating me. It is my right to name
my dog any name.
“Thank God, I
have regained my freedom. The most painful thing is the way they treated
my dog. I am not happy that they killed my dog, while I was in
detention. It is my dog, it is my pet. I love my dogs. They have no
right to kill my dog.
“Nigerians
should know that there are other dogs in other areas that bear Jack as
name. Why is Buhari so special. It is a name that has been existing for
several years,” he concluded
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