The Elegant Stallion, superstar musical artiste, Onyeka Onwenu says she rejected a marriage proposal from Afrobeat legend, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, because she was a possessive woman.
In her autobiography titled My Father’s Daughter, the veteran singer stated that the late Fela sent a mutual friend to fetch for her.
According to Onwenu, while she was flattered by the marriage proposal, she thought of the many women Fela had has wives, hence her repudiation.
“After Fela was released from prison he sent a mutual friend, the journalist Onuorah Udenwa who is now a US-based pastor, to bring me to his club. I thought that he probably wanted to thank me for speaking up for him, but that was not it. He never even mentioned the article I had written in solidarity with him. Fela wanted to marry me, and I was flattered.
“I reminded him of the first time we met at Falolu Street and his invitation to visit his club. I thanked him for the honour of wanting me to become his consort, but I turned him down all the same.
“While I wanted to see him, I had noticed that his Queens—the euphemism for his numerous dancer-wives—had been looking at me with scorn. They passed by often, whispering comments about me. They were downright hostile and quite obvious about it. I pointed this out to Fela and told him that I was a possessive lover and would not be able to cope as an appendage to his harem. Fela laughed. He seemed to enjoy the idea that the women were ‘fighting’ to keep his affection. He did not persist with the marriage proposal, however,” she wrote in the book.
