Nigerian creative artist and filmmaker who once dominated the West African fashion scene for years as a fashion stylist, Ifan Michael, has recounted how he was sexually abused by his guardian at age 10.
During an interview with Chude Jideonwo, Ifan disclosed how he was made to leave Port Harcourt where his parents resided at age 10 after they separated.
He said he first left for Enugu before proceeding to Lagos after a movie marketer promised him an opportunity.
Ifan said he was left with nowhere to stay when the said marketer became unreachable on his arrival in Lagos.
He said this led to him squatting at a brothel with a call girl named Chidinma who had offered to take him under her wings at her place in Surulere.
“It was in Babajide, a call centre for runs girls. She took me in because I was Igbo. I explained my situation and she felt she could take me under her wings. Yes, I grew up in a brothel. She does her job in the morning and afternoon.
“Most times, I slept late at night because she’s busy doing her stuff. She was good to me and had others she was also helping. I was with her for almost a year. Trying to find a home, I stayed with a man who sexually abused me.”
He said he later moved in with a barber, identified as Bros Ubi, who took him in but started abusing him sexually.
“He began to abuse me sexually. This was 2001 or 2002. I couldn’t go back to my parents. They didn’t even know if I existed. How I left Bros Ubi was him accommodating a young girl, 17 or 18,” he added.
“I couldn’t have known it was assault. I thought of him as a saving grace at the time but I did tell the girl to stop sleeping with him. She reported to him and I got chased out of the house at 12 am.
“That was how I met OPC guys who flogged me thinking I was a thief. I had a scar on my back.”
Ifan started out as a celebrity stylist and brand consultant before moving on as a movie producer
In 2016, he forayed into filmmaking and produced Lotanna and received an AMVCA 2018 nomination for it in the ‘Best Film West Africa’ category.
In 2019, he co-wrote, produced, and directed Foreigners God.
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