I ran out of Nigeria to Italy to save my life — Individual cries out

An alleged homosexual, Anthony Adeyemi has disclosed that the reason he decided to travel out of Nigeria to Italy was to save his life from the societal pressures he was being subjected to in Nigeria.

Adeyemi, who spoke with journalists in Akure, the Ondo state capital, after he had been rescued by some good samaritans after being beaten blue-black when caught with his partner, said he took the decision in order to forestall any further violence, stigmatisation, persecution and hostility against him.

According to him, his parents are devoted Christians who have zero tolerance for indiscipline and immorality under any guise.

He said, “Over the years my parents ensured that we, the children, regularly attend church services and programmes essentially to improve and grow our spiritual lives.

“While I was in the secondary school I was in the boarding house, and in the course of my secondary education, I discovered that there were male students who were having sexual relationships with the same sex. The fact that homosexuality in my school was shrouded in secrecy did not prevent me from discovering the existence of these relationships.

“In an inexplicable manner, I started getting curious and fascinated about these homosexual relationships to the extent that I later got sexually involved with a male student named Jeremiah Isaac, whom I found attractive and he became my partner. My love, affection and passion for him grew considerably by the day to the extent that we started having sexual intercourse frequently. This was the situation till I graduated from secondary school.

“This was indeed the beginning of my homosexuality journey and upon graduation I still relish the indelible and momentous sexual experience I had with him. It is also noteworthy that my sexual preference or orientation in my secondary expectedly generated stigmatisation, backlash, resentment and hostility from other students who had an aversion for homosexuality.

“When I graduated from secondary school, I lost contact with my partner who went back to Port Harcourt upon his graduation. However, shortly after graduation, I met another guy who was a fresh secondary graduate like me. And who was also not living too far from my parent’s house.

“We became attracted to each other and we started having a sexual relationship. He was often coming to our house whenever my parents went to work and my siblings were not at home. It got to a point that when one of our female co-tenants who had been seeing him visit me at home became suspicious of our relationship and eventually notified my partner’s elder brother who I later got to know was a dreaded thug.

“I never had the inkling that the information as regards my sexual relationship with him had been divulged by my co-tenant to his elder brother so I was still receiving him in our house as usual. At this time I started noticing some strange faces of fierce looking guys in my neighbourhood whenever I go out and these guys conduct themselves in a manner suggesting they were carrying out surveillance but I dismissed this as a mere coincidence.

“On this fateful day being the July 26, 2009 at about 11am my partner was in our house and we were having good time together when suddenly I heard a loud bang on the entrance door and before I knew it, my partner’s brother who was in the company of about five fierce looking guys broke into our house meeting us stark naked. They allowed my partner to put on his clothes while for obvious reasons I was brought out of the house into the compound and they started pouring water on me slapping and punching me to the consternation of other co-tenants and neighbours.

“My partner’s brother seemingly warned me to dissociate with my partner because, according to him, I was the one influencing him. He threatened to make life difficult and unbearable for me and my family. My parents later got to know what happened and they were disappointed in me for involving myself in an act which was perceived as shameful, condemnable and ungodly despite the good Christian upbringing they gave me. I could not stand the humiliation, embarrassment, ridicule and shame subjected and exposed to and the exposure of my sexual inclination. So, I relocated to my uncle’s house in Sapele Delta State. I could not dare report my ordeal to the police because I know the law, government and the society frowns at homosexuality.

“It was from my uncle’s house that I gained admission to Delta State University, where I continued my sexual exploration and I joined the LGBTQ community. At that I have become so neck deep and immersed with homosexuality. I met a guy called Vincent Osaro who introduced me to some other active members and I was so fulfilled at that point that I finally found my peace and other people whom we share the same sexual orientation. Despite different criticisms from various quarters I was undeterred expressing my sexuality. We had constant hang outs and parties.

“Thereafter I met one Solomon Uti and we started dating and got so engrossed with each other that we fell in love. Most people started noticing us on campus and it culminated into outage and criticism but we stuck together. I was still living in the hostel until one fateful day when my partner came to visit me in the hostel where other students started hauling abusive words at us and started throwing stones at us. It was that moment I made up my mind that I was going to get a house off campus. I continued my life and I enjoyed it to the fullest because at this point I had my privacy to the brim.

“I graduated from the school sometime in 2015 and I relocated to Akure where I met one Damola Johnson. At that time I had parted ways with my erstwhile partner due to irreconcilable differences. Damola Johnson was from a wealthy and influential family although I got to know this fact during the course of our relationship. Our homosexual relationship was going on smoothly until sometime in February 11, 2022 when some group of people suddenly stopped me on the road one day and abducted me in a bus. I was blindfolded and taken to an unknown destination.

“The message of my abductors was very clear to the effect that they were sent by Damola Johnson’s mother. They informed me that Johnson’s parents knew about his homosexuality but he was already quitting until I showed up and messed up their plans for their son. They threatened to terminate my life if they ever see me with him again.

“I was beaten to a pulp as a sign of warning. I was thereafter dumped at the junction of my house and it took the efforts of passersby who rescued me and took me to the State Hospital in Akure, Ondo State for treatment because I suffered injury on my head and a dislocated arm.

“Meanwhile, it is pertinent to note that ever since I graduated from school and started working, my parents and relatives have been pressuring me to get married. Although I have never found anybody of the opposite sex attractive, however, in an effort to yield to these numerous demands and also to avoid unnecessary prying eyes over my sexuality, I confided in a friend who is also an homosexual and married to a lady. This friend introduced me to a lady called Ozohura Kekere. We got married on the 12th of March, 2022, after a very short courtship and due to my desperation to use the marriage as a decoy to my homosexuality.

“Despite my marriage, I still continued my homosexuality but the prying eyes of intrusive family members and friends who have until December 19, 2023. After I was caught with my partner who is a corps member in his apartment, I was beaten to pulp and my family are now after me, after all this aversion for homosexuality has continued to scare me so I decided to travel to Italy as a safe haven.”