Veteran comedian Okey Bakassi has reacted to the call for comedians to stop making jokes about Christianity.
In a chat with Saturday Beats, Okey Bakassi said the call which comes mostly from pastors is coming from a point of ignorance.
He said, “I think sometimes people talk out of ignorance . With due respect to what people believe in ; when some of these pastors talk, you see a lot of ignorance . If you do not understand some aspects of a business , you either keep quiet or ask questions.
“You can also do your research. We do not talk so much about Islam simply because most comedians are Christians and we understand our own religion more than other religions , so we try to stay away from subjects we know nothing about .
“Do you want us to talk about a religion we know nothing about and stand the risk of misinforming the public as opposed to talking about what we know and understand ? Even the pastors , do they talk about Islam on the pulpits? Is it not Christianity they talk about and don ’ t they make light of some things in the Bible just to get their message across?
“So why is it that some people just like to pick on comedians as if we are the only problem they have ? I think it is ignorance . ”
Okey Bakassi, who recently marked his 17th wedding anniversary, went on to speak on why it would not be easy for anyone to be married to an entertainer .
“For me , marriage has been an amazing experience . It has been challenging for my wife . I doff my hat for anybody who is married to an entertainer , especially when they are not in the same business as it can be emotionally challenging to have a partner who is always out there all the time , mingling with all manner of people .
“If you have a partner who has been with you for 17 years , they must trust you a lot . Trust me , in those years , there must have been a lot of tolerance . Half the time you are not even at home as you are away entertaining lots of people .
“My wife has been my backbone and everything I accomplish today , I give my wife the credit because if she did not hold the home front together and allow me do what I had to do, this job would not be easy for me . My job is to make people happy and if the home front is not good, then my job would be difficult . She has done an amazing job and I am very grateful for that , ” the humour merchant said
