THE HYPOCRISY OF GIVING IGBOS A BAD NAME OVER “OBI OF LAGOS” CONTROVERSY – FACT: Oba Yoruba of Kano Exists — So Why Not Obi of Lagos?

The internet has been on fire in recent days over reports that some Igbo community leaders in Lagos are planning to install an “Obi of Lagos.” Many Yoruba voices have called this a provocation, and some have even issued threats of retaliation.

But let us pause for a moment and look at ourselves honestly.

Is it really strange for an ethnic community outside its homeland to crown a cultural leader who represents its interests? Or is this something the Yoruba people themselves have been doing for decades in Hausa, Igbo, and even northern minority territories across Nigeria?

The truth is that Yoruba communities across Nigeria routinely install their own traditional heads, often called Oba Yoruba of [City] or Sarkin Yorubawa. These Obas represent the Yoruba community, settle disputes, and serve as cultural custodians — not sovereign rulers over indigenous people.

Let me give just a few examples of Yoruba Obas outside Yorubaland who are currently sitting on their thrones today:

• Oba Yoruba of Kano – HRM Dr. Murtala Alimi Otisese (Vice Chairman, Council of Yoruba Obas in Northern Nigeria)

• Oba of Yoruba in Enugu – Alhaji Abdulazeez Adebayo (installed August 2024)

• Oba of Yoruba in Awka, Anambra – Alhaji Abdul Olahan “Ezechinedu” (third Oba of Awka, coronated Nov 2022)

• Oba Yoruba of Sokoto – Alhaji Abdulfatai Olayiwola Coker

• Oba Yoruba of Zaria (Kaduna State) – Barr. Ishaq Bello

• Oba Yoruba of Funtua (Katsina State) – Alhaji Murtala Sani Adeleke (Chairman, Yoruba Obas Council, 19 Northern States + FCT)

• Oba of Yoruba in Abuja (FCT) – Oba Dr. Olusegun Salau (Chairman, Yoruba Traditional Council, FCT)

All these Yoruba Obas are fully recognized by their host states and their indigenous rulers. The Hausa have lived peacefully with them. The Igbo have lived peacefully with them. And life has gone on.

So why then do we suddenly cry betrayal and provocation when Igbos in Lagos — who have lived, traded, and paid taxes in Lagos for generations — decide to crown an “Obi of Lagos” as a cultural symbol of their community?

We cannot have it both ways. If it is legitimate for Yorubas in Kano, Enugu, Sokoto, Awka, Abuja, Funtua, and Zaria to have their own “Obas of Yoruba,” then it cannot be illegitimate for Igbos in Lagos to have their own “Obi of Lagos.”

The point is simple:
• These titles are symbolic, cultural, and community-based.

• They do not usurp the authority of the traditional ruler of the host land (whether Emir, Obi, or Oba).

• They serve to unify migrant communities, not divide Nigeria.

Let us be honest with ourselves: Lagos is cosmopolitan. It belongs to Yorubas historically, but it is also home to millions of Igbos, Hausas, and others who have built their lives here. Denying them the same cultural expression we enjoy elsewhere is pure hypocrisy.

Instead of fanning ethnic hostility, we should embrace this as part of our Nigerian reality: every group seeks cultural identity wherever they live.

So, before we call Igbos enemies for crowning an “Obi of Lagos,” let us remember the long list of Yoruba Obas we already have across Igbo and Hausa cities.

Peace begins with consistency. Justice begins with honesty.

— Dr. Ope Banwo