Nigerian singer Brymo has publicly called out Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, former President Olusegun Obasanjo and Aare Ona Kakanfo of Yorubaland, Gani Adams, over what he describes as their roles in the history and spread of secret cults in Nigerian universities. In a series of social media posts, he wrote that he will not forgive how the three “killed our boys.” He challenged Soyinka in particular to explain why the first student confraternities were formed, and said he would keep speaking until the men answer. He also pointed to Fela Kuti as an example of someone who protected young people. One outlet noted that his statement did not, by itself, establish direct responsibility for any deaths.
From a Student Club to Killer Gangs: What the Record Says About How Campus Cults Began (The Origins of Student Confraternities)
The record supports part of Brymo’s starting point. Reports trace Nigeria’s campus cults back to 1952, when Wole Soyinka and a group of friends at the University of Ibadan formed the Pyrates Confraternity. Studies describe the original group as non-violent. Its seven founders, known as the “Magnificent Seven,” offered membership to promising men without discrimination of race, colour or tribe. A Guardian report says it was formed to fight tribalism and the gap between rich and poor students at the University College, Ibadan.
The violence came later, and the sources attribute it to splits. The Pyrates was the only confraternity on Nigerian campuses from 1953 to 1972. Then a member broke away to form the Buccaneers, copying many of its symbols and its strict structure. The Black Axe and the Eiye followed. By the 1980s, new groups multiplied across more than 300 institutions, with more intense violent rivalry. In 1984, Soyinka initiated the abolition of the Pyrates in tertiary institutions, but by then the violent cults had, in the report’s words, “developed a life of its own.”
Soyinka and the group’s members reject the “cult” label. The National Association of Seadogs, as the Pyrates is now called, has said it “is not a secret cult” and never has been. A research paper notes that Soyinka has explained that confraternities are not cults. That is their position, and readers should weigh it with the history above.
What Each Named Figure’s Record Shows, and What It Does Not: A Closer Look at the Claims (Fact-Checking the Allegations)
On Soyinka, the documented fact is that he co-founded the original confraternity in 1952. Whether that makes him responsible for the killings that came decades later is the question Brymo raises, and it is a matter of opinion. In 1999, after the killing of five student leaders at Obafemi Awolowo University, Soyinka said the cult problem reflected “structural decay” in universities. He also blamed some military and police officers for supplying weapons to their children, and said some vice-chancellors recruited cult members as bodyguards to use against radical lecturers. Those are his claims, not findings of fact.
On Obasanjo, the record shows him acting against cults. In July 1999, shortly after taking office, he ordered heads of universities to flush out cultism within three months, and more than 500 students at the University of Benin renounced their membership. The New Humanitarian reported that he launched the campaign after a violent attack at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ife, in which student union officials were killed. We did not find sources linking him to the spread of cults, and Brymo has not, in the reports we saw, said how.
On Gani Adams, we found no source linking him to campus cults. We will update this section if Brymo or others explain their claim.
The Cost in Young Lives: Past Cases of Campus Cult Violence (Deadly Attacks on Students)
The violence Brymo mourns is well documented. A report on a shooting at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, described armed young men who jumped out of three cars, ran into an auditorium and opened fire on students preparing for exams, leaving 14 dead. The same report noted that students also died in cult shootouts at other institutions. In July 1999, five student leaders at Obafemi Awolowo University were killed, and the government suspended the vice-chancellor and ordered security services to investigate cults on almost all of the country’s 34 universities at the time.
A Canadian refugee board summary lists a report titled “Campus Cult Violence Claims 115 Lives” from 2003, and notes that in the years from 1993 to 2003, as many as 665 students faced disciplinary action for suspected cult activities. The same summary says most victims were members of rival cults. This is old data, but the pain is current. In October 2026, Edo State announced that more than 500 former cult members had renounced membership and taken an oath of dissociation.
Why the Violence Kept Growing: Weapons, Patrons and Weak Justice (Causes of Persistent Cultism)
Researchers point to several drivers beyond the first confraternity. One is patronage: violent cult groups reportedly get weapons from wealthy patrons, politicians and chiefs who hire them for specific purposes. Another is weak prosecution. A Guardian report argued that politicians and ineffective prosecution thwart the fight against cultism.
A third is the state of the universities. Soyinka himself argued in 1999 that cults thrive where the system is decaying, including where students think they can get any degree by cornering lecturers. A fourth is the long record of splinter groups and rivalry, which keeps fuelling revenge attacks.
A Fair Hearing for Both Sides of the Argument: The Case for and Against Brymo’s Challenge (Balanced View)
There is a case for Brymo’s challenge. It is a documented fact that the first campus confraternity was founded by Soyinka and others, and that the groups that followed copied its symbols and structure. People who lost relatives and friends to cult violence may reasonably want public figures to explain the history and say whether they believe it left a responsibility. Brymo asked for an interview with Soyinka, which is a fair request to make of any public figure.
There is also a case against holding the three men responsible for killings. The sources describe the original group as non-violent, and violence as the result of later splits and groups. Those who carry out the killings, and the patrons who arm and shield them, bear responsibility that the record places directly on them. And the strong words in Brymo’s post go further than the evidence we found. As one outlet noted, they do not by themselves establish direct responsibility for deaths. A claim that someone “killed” others is serious, and it should be supported with facts.
Moving From Blame to Protection: What Can Actually Save Students (Possible Solutions)
First, accountability for those who commit and fund violence. The Guardian report points to weak prosecution as a reason the problem survives. Arrests mean little if cases collapse in court.
Second, a better understanding of the history. If Soyinka, Obasanjo or anyone else has useful knowledge about how and why the groups grew, a public conversation would help students and parents. An honest discussion is more useful than a shouting match.
Third, campus safety and renunciation programmes. In 1999, the University of Benin set up a Cult Renunciation Committee that offered counselling to students who wanted out. The IPS report noted that those who renounced faced fears of reprisal, so protection and reintegration (help returning to normal life) were needed.
Fourth, parents, teachers, religious groups and students all have a role in lowering the pull of these groups, as the 1999 report argued.
Grief Deserves an Answer, and So Does the Truth: Our Closing Reflection (Responsibility, Evidence and Healing)
We understand Brymo’s anger. Many Nigerian families have buried young people killed by cult violence, and their pain deserves respect. When a public figure speaks for them, it is a reminder that these deaths are not statistics.
But accusations must rest on evidence. The record we reviewed shows who founded the first confraternity and who ordered action against cults. It does not show that any of the three men caused the killings. If Brymo has information, he should share it, and if the men named have answers, they should give them.
We urge all sides to move from blame to action. Prosecute the killers and their sponsors, protect students, and tell the full history openly. We will update this story if Soyinka, Obasanjo, Gani Adams or others respond.
Published by Ejoh Caleb
