Maverick singer, Seun Kuti, has claimed that his father, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, did not restrict his wives from having relationships with other men.
Speaking during a recent Instagram livestream, Seun said the Afrobeat legend believed in mutual freedom in his relationships, allowing his wives to see other partners as long as such activities did not occur in his home.
He, however, described the decision as one of Fela’s major mistakes, alleging that some of the women later contracted HIV from other partners and passed it on to the late singer.
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Seun also dismissed widespread claims that Fela infected his partners, insisting instead that the music icon was the victim.
“Fela made many mistakes. One of the mistakes he made — one day, I saw a video of a lady online saying why are people praising Fela’s legacy despite him giving women HIV and dying of AIDS.
“I said, ‘Oh, Fela you see yourself?’ If Fela was a traditional man, he would still be alive. I will tell you something about him that you might not have known, Fela’s women all had other men.
“Fela did not keep his women to himself. He believed that as he is free to sleep with all the women, the women are also free to meet other men. His law was that they shouldn’t bring the men to his house.
“My father doesn’t leave his house to sleep with other women outside, so it was his women who brought HIV home to him. Nobody is perfect. Everybody make mistakes. But Fela is a man that is on the side of humanity,” he said.
Recall that Fela made headlines in 1978 when he married 27 women in a single traditional ceremony held in Lagos.