In Shanty Town, Chief Fernandez is a powerful man who seeks to become the governor of Lagos state in the upcoming elections. His cruelty turns his most loyal man against him. He is played by Richard Mofe-Damijo.
In Shanty Town, Scar is involved in a number of illegal activities, including prostitution and drug cartels. However, even though Scar looks like he is the boss, the real power lies in the hands of Chief Fernandez, who allows Scar to run his illegal businesses on his behalf.
Scar, a man who threatens to kill people for questioning him, has to greet Chief Fernandez on his knees. He is the only man who can treat Scar the way he treats his employees.
The cruelty of Chief Fernandez
Chief Fernandez talks in stories and old phrases. He narrates the stories of the great deeds of his ancestors, and he assumes he derives wisdom from them. In a conversation, these old sayings and stories precede the point that he intends to make.
This makes his character look like a typical politician, who puts too much value on every word that leaves his mouth. Although he owns one-tenth of all the land that comprises Lagos, he is not satisfied with that, so he seeks political power.
He intends to become the next governor of the city, and for that, he needs his record clean. He orders Scar to shut down most of his businesses, not caring how it might affect him. He efficiently stifles his protests with violence.
The extent of Chief Fernandez’s cruelty is revealed in his treatment of women, who are nothing more than disposable objects to him. He harasses Shalewa, the woman his son brings home, under the pretense of checking if she has stolen something from their house.
Amanda, a DSS agent who is pretending to be her dead twin sister, Inem, gets picked by him from among Scar’s courtesans. He physically and sexually assaults her, something that he does to every woman he picks. His brutal assault leaves her incapable of standing on her own feet.
The downfall of Chief Fernandez
Scar is Chief Fernandez’s illegitimate son. He, along with his mother, was abandoned by Chief Fernandez when his legitimate son, Femi, was born. When he no longer had a use for him, he discarded his own son without a second thought.
As Chief Fernandez orders him to shut down his businesses, Scar joins hands with Dame Dabota, Chief Fernandez’s political rival. She knows that he does not care for either of his sons, so Scar offers to bring her Chief Fernandez’s precious ring that makes him invincible.
Chief Fernandez punishes Scar for his insolence by cutting off his finger, and an angry Scar uses a bewitching necklace to get Femi to bring him his father’s ring. Using Femi and the ring, Scar and Dame get Chief Fernandez to come to them unarmed.
Chief Fernandez has another weapon in his armor. He shows up wearing a necklace made of magical beads that protects him from physical harm; he escapes without a scratch, leaving his men to take care of Scar and Dame’s men.
This is not the end of Chief Fernandez’s troubles. Amanda manages to get all the information about his illegal businesses, but she needs evidence to back it up.
She tells Femi everything about his father’s illegal activities. He even gets the slums attacked just to get the contract to reconstruct them.
He helps the suffering slum dwellers to make people believe that he is a philanthropist when in reality he is the one responsible for their suffering.
Femi needs to give her access to his father’s computers to prove that he is not complicit in his crimes. Amanda gets the evidence that she needs and arrests Chief Fernandez at his election party.
She exposes his crimes by playing the video of him assaulting her in front of his most esteemed guests. However, Chief Fernandez is certain that this would not affect him much.
He gets sentenced to life imprisonment for raping an officer of the law in a newly constructed maximum security prison. His lawyers are still appealing this verdict, while his trusted accountant is managing his business.
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