Chidera Jedidiah, a Nigerian based in Ireland, has narrated his ordeal in the hands of his mother.
The young man in a social media post said he hates his family, disclosing that he has cut ties with them.
“The family is dead to me”, Chidera declared.
On Wednesday, a video of him destroying items in the kitchen of their home went viral.
Initially, social media users believed it was another story of a spoiled child.
Several respondents condemned him, with some threatening to deal with him for disrespecting his mum.
In his reaction, Chidera opened up to the events that led to his actions.
He noted that despite provocation at different times, he never hit his mother.
Chidera chronicled how Tusla, Ireland’s child and family agency, and Gardaí (Guards), the national police service, intervened in the situation.
On his Twitter handle (@chxdeks), Chidera expressed sadness about him being portrayed as a bad person.
He conveyed regrets that the narrative “was twisted and changed to portray me as a bad guy. My actions as seen in this video wasn’t because of “disagreement” or a “passport” issue as my mum describes in the video. My mum is a very abusive, aggressive and violent person and she has been all my life.”
Chidera described the mum as “aggressive and violent”, and that he endured plates, knives thrown at him.
He recalled putting the mattress up to the door fearing she would do something to him in his sleep as she “frequently threatened to”.
“I have kept all of this very private, not even my friends and good friends knew. So I was in shock to find this video circulating the internet. I have tried talking to her about it but she is too deep in her “Nigerian culture” to ever listen and ends up having aggressive fits”.
Chidera detailed how the mother kicked him out of the house over a month ago and that was how social workers and Gardaí were brought in.
He disclosed moving to numerous places and feared going back home due to abuse, until a conversation with the man and the woman in the video.
Thereafter, he went back home with his social worker present but the peace didn’t last long.
“The day of this altercation, I had indeed asked for my passport to fill out college applications. But my mum wasn’t at all cooperative. In fact, at this point, she had been ignoring me in the house and refusing to feed me. I was cycling to my friends’ house daily to eat.”
Chidera recounted that to avoid another violent outbreak, he went to look for the passport himself but couldn’t find it.
As he asked her for it again, “she tried to physically lift and remove me from the room…slapping and punching me. I will not fight my own mother back so I told her to stop or I would begin to break things. That was the only way I saw for me to get her to stop without being violent back to her. I broke a few things like hairdryers (we were still upstairs at this point) and my little brother called the guards.”
They warned both to stay away from each other and made their way downstairs.
He accompanied them to make himself food and the mum, still present, didn’t object.
“The guards told me to make my food and go straight to my room. The guards left and I was downstairs making food when my mum came rushing downstairs hysterical, telling me I had no right to touch her food, fair.”
Chidera recollected asking her why she didn’t make the pronouncement when he told the guards he was going to make food.
Unfazed, the mother turned off the burner and slapped the cold leftover he took out from the fridge out of his hand.
“What she did next was what provoked the actions you see in this video. She took powdered pepper and threw it in my face and while I was still disoriented, she grabbed a mopping stick and repeatedly beat me with it. She then grabbed me and bit me. Still, I didn’t retaliate or fight back.”
After the attack, Chidera continued, the mother invited the adults in the footage.
He quoted her as saying “You better get here before I kill Chidera”.
“I had to take off my t-shirt, soak it and put it on my face to cool the pepper. I just sheer rage and instead of getting physical or aggressive with my mum. I decided to trash the kitchen as you see in this video. Looking back at it, it might not have been the best solution but I didn’t know what else to do.”
Again, the guards were called thirty minutes after they left. Chidera was detained and put into emergency care.
Chidera, currently in foster, since that day last week. I feel nothing towards this family other than pure disgust and hatred for the way they all treated me (my brothers and fathers included). And I don’t think I can ever bring myself to ever reconcile with them. I have changed my number and deleted all contact with them.”
Chidera explained that he kept the matter private to protect the family from the negative impact.
He Chidera stated that “as of now, the family is dead to me.”
Chidera thanked everyone who knew the truth and supported him, adding that his focus was on college and the future.
