The Igbo issue in Lagos

The provocative claim by some Nigerians, of Igbo origin, that Lagos is a no man's land annoys the Yoruba, who are the original settlers of Lagos. Some Igbo, probably in retaliation for the hostility shown against them by their Yoruba compatriots, during the presidential election which has just ended, made rather violent remarks in return.

The Yoruba became even more anxious when Labor Party presidential candidate Peter Obi beat Lagos' political godfather Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, who won the presidency by a hair's breadth.

Lagos was won for Obi by Igbo, Lagos natives disgruntled with Tinubu's party machine, urban Pentecostal Christians and youth, angered by the way the unrest #EndSARS has been managed by the Lagos State Government.

The bold claim of no man's land may have reached Nollywood actor Yul Edochie, son of Nollywood veteran Pete Edochie, one of the most talented, skilled and urban comedians of Nigeria.

Yul said: "This rumor that Lagos is no man's land is false. Lagos is a Yoruba state in Yorubaland… You cannot walk into someone's country and tell them it's a no man's land. No, you're in trouble."

And said, "No one can deny the fact that the Igbo have contributed immensely to the development of Lagos. Other tribes also contributed in their own way. And the Yoruba have also been largely accommodating. That shouldn't take away the fact that Lagos is Yorubaland. We don't drag the property."

Yul tried to explain the sense of insult the Yoruba may have felt by saying that Lagos is no man's land: "Imagine someone saying that Anambra is no man's land. This is shit. Anambra is Igboland."

Lagos State's first governor, Brigadier General Mobolaji Johnson, once said that "Lagos (which was both the federal capital and the seat of state government of Lagos), is not a no man's land."

Relevant Igbo stakeholders say, "We unequivocally declare that Lagos is neither an Igbo state nor a no man's land...It belongs entirely to the Yoruba." Additionally, World Igbo Congress, Inc. describes itself as "the global network of all Nigerian Igbo people in the Diaspora".

Even Section 147(4) of the Constitution, which recognizes that certain persons are native to a state, requires: "The President shall appoint at least one minister from each state, who shall be a native of such state."

Lagos State Labor Party gubernatorial candidate Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, who describes himself as a Southern Nigerian, because his father is Yoruba and his mother is Igbo, states: "I categorically disagree with the idea that Lagos is a no man's land. It is extremely disrespectful…Lagos has (founders).”

Some have even rightly argued that you shouldn't become so cosmopolitan and accommodating to the extent that you give up your space to others. And they just might have an argument.

But that is no excuse to stop the Igbo from voting in Lagos, burning their property, maiming or killing them because they hold a political opinion contrary to that of their host communities.

Prince Olofin, son of Oduduwa, ancestor of the Yoruba, founded Eko, which Portuguese explorers and traders in the 15th century renamed Lagos because its coastline resembled that of a port city in the Portugal.

The adventurers set out from Ife, using a plate as a magical compass that would lead them to a place where they could settle without challenge or hard feelings. Eventually, the plaque buried itself at Idumota on Lagos Island. When Olofin, who brought the plaque to the island, returned to Iddo's camp, without the plaque, his followers asked him what had happened.

He said to them, "Awo ti ri", the plate had sunk into the ground. It was a sign that the adventurers had finally arrived in the Promised Land. They then took the pseudonym "Awori", by which they are identified today.

Settlers spread across Lagos Island, with their Oba Palace at Iga Idunganran, an ancient pepper garden. Others stayed in Iddo, Otto, Ijora, Oyingbo, Ebute Metta, Iganmu. Still others crossed Victoria Island and the Lekki Peninsula.

It is the settlers who own the land, not the Oba of Lagos, a descendant of the conqueror of Lagos, King Ado, a Beninese prince. The lands of Lagos are vested in the Idejo chiefs or white caps, descendants of the first settlers, some of whom, like Ojora of Ijora, Elegushi of Ikate and Oniru of Iru, became kings.

Amodu Tijani, Oluwa of Lagos and direct descendant of Olofin, explained to colonial masters in 1900 that land in Yorubaland is held in trust by those who are alive, on behalf of deceased ancestors and unborn children.