Aisha Yesufu statue causes stir on social media

A statue of the co-convener of Bring Back Our Girls movement Aisha Yesufu has caused a stir on social media.

An undergraduate of the University of Benin, Ekehuan campus, Emmanuel Omoregie, shared photos of the statue which he made.

Omoregie stated in a tweet that the sculpture was part of the requirements for the award of bachelor of arts in fine and applied arts.

He said he made the sculpture in Yesufu’s form to appreciate her roles towards contemporary activism in Nigeria.

“I thank the Lord, for this. I am Omoregie Emmanuel. As part of the requirements for the award of B.A Fine and Applied Arts, I made a stylised figure of Aisha Yesufu to appreciate her roles towards contemporary activism in Nigeria,” he captioned the photos.

The art was inspired by an iconic photo of Yesufu which was taken during the #EndSARS protest of October 2020.

Youths had stormed the streets across Nigeria demanding an end to police brutality. Their protest led to the disbanding of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad.

The epicentre of the protest was at the Lekki toll gate in Lagos.

Several Twitter users have called for the sculpture to be placed at the Lekki toll gate, the infamous site where protesters were shot by the Nigerian military.