by Alexander O. Onukwue

It is funny that the Evans, the notorious billionaire kidnapper whose arrest has been celebrated by the majority of Nigerians, has managed to draw some sympathisers.

In the woke world of 2017 Nigerian Twitter, a #FreeEvans campaign is not exactly an anomaly, so we are not going to claim we are shocked by it. It is not so much about a desire by the advocates to stop the “media trial” of Evans and allow the courts to determine his future, but a show of what can only be described as solidarity.

One of the few ways to interpret this is that Evans still means something to some people, and we are not talking about his wife who, it should be allowed, has to still be by his side. Supposing the kidnapper, who has himself confessed to not a few notorious acts, what would he have gone on to become in this society of ours if he had not been apprehended?

1. A Church Elder and Patron

We have his wife’s word that Evans reads Psalm 23 – the most popularly recited Chapter of the Bible – every night. She goes on to call him a Christian. It does not bode well for those who have had to defend the meaning of that word in the context of the #HallelujahChallenge, but even they cannot deny that Evans probably has made huge contributions to the physical Church where they will be sharing their testimonies from the Challenge tomorrow. To borrow a line from Adekunle Gold, Evans could have been grinding from Monday to Saturday, go to give thanks on Sunday, and still not mind. Maybe Evans was on his way to being given a front row sofa in his Church soon, who knows.

2. Honourable or Distinguished

The number of houses, the expensive wrist watches and the N5m worth of phones, all trappings we can easily associate with a good number of the political class in Nigeria. That politicians in Nigeria go into the game for the money is common knowledge, and they like to show it off too, bullet-proof cars and all. Would Evans be able to get into the Senate given that he may not be well educated and refined in knowledge? And since when did that become the criteria to take a seat in the National Assembly?

3. Political Godfather or Party Stalwart

But Evans may not have joined politics. His instincts would have nagged him that he would be too crude and easily found out. Of course it has nothing to do with actually having to raise a motion – there are many who have sat in those chambers and never raised a finger. Evans is from Nnewi which is a political melting pot in Anambra state. Why suffer to go to Abuja, when he can work from home and use his ridiculous money to influence the communities to elect his people? Some political parties and intending ones could have done with his largesse, in exchange for a place behind-the-scenes to anoint and approve nominations.