It’s the inauguration of your country’s newly-elected President, and you’re a sharp, enterprising young female journalist covering the event. One of the guests at the ceremony turns out to be Robert Mugabe, that African paragon of democratic virtue. This is what you do as a consequence – if you’re Nigeran satirist Adeola Fayehun at least – as revealed in a YouTube clip that’s already scored over 270,000 views since it was first broacast following the 29 May inauguration ceremony for the country’s newly-elected president Muhammadu Buhari:
Fayehun has been beavering away at this kind of thing for some years: since it was launched in November 2011, her weekly nearly 30 minute satirical news show on Sahara TV – launched in 2006 to promote media coverage of corruption and mismanagement in Nigeria – Keeping It Real has clocked up over 150 episodes. While she has an established fan base spread far across the continent it’s thanks to her recent intrepid ambush of Robert Mugabe that Fayehun has taken a step towards the international limelight.
Watching her, it’s tempting to fall into comparisons with US frontliners such Jon Snow’s The Daily Show. But I’d suggest you leave all that aside for now, and check Fayehun rapping on the state of Nigerian politics in her own inimitable mix of pidgin and English. Here’s a tasty sample – you may find yourself hungry for more!