Anti-Igbo sentiment

Anti-Igbo sentiment (also known as Igbophobia) encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings towards the Igbo people. The Igbo people make up a majority of the population in South East, Nigeria and part of the populations of the South South and the Middle Belt zones. Igbophobia can be observed in critical and hostile behaviour such as political and religious discrimination as well as violence towards Igbo people.
Anti-Igbo sentiment was catalyzed by the introduction of Western education. During the early stages of British colonialism, the Yoruba people were the first major ethnic group of Nigeria to be introduced to Western education followed closely by the Igbo people. In contrast, the Northern authorities resisted the efforts of colonialists and Christian missionaries to educate their populace, leading to an imbalance in educational attainment. Consequently, their access to employment in colonial Nigeria was hindered because Western education was a prerequisite for positions in the British-controlled industrial, commercial, and governmental sectors. While not the first major ethnic group to accept Western education, the Igbo people swiftly embraced it for its benefits, leveraging it as a means to ascend the social hierarchy. This provided them with opportunities for employment in colonial Nigeria. This led to the Igbo peoples' dominance in critical sectors such as the military, clerical roles, and other skilled or semi-skilled positions within the postal services, banking institutions, and railway services, particularly in regions like northern Nigeria, where local populations had shunned the educational qualifications for colonial labor. As a result, the Igbo people came to be perceived as a favored ethnic group with affluence and multi-regional opportunities due to their employment by the colonial authorities and their prominence in the public sector. A 1966 publication by Northern Nigerians states that public services were 45% staffed by Igbo people and it was "threatening to reach 60% by 1968". The railways (62%), ports (70%), and foreign service (75%) were even more lopsided towards the Igbo, who made up approximately 17% of the country. This situation aroused the ire of others toward the Igbo.
The Igbo people's travel throughout the country also led to anti-Igbo sentiments in southern Cameroon. While other rivalries existed, anti-Igbo sentiments were notably evident in the elections of 1954, 1957, and 1959, driven by dissatisfaction with connections to Nigeria partly as a result of Cameroonian politicians amplifying ethnic stereotypes against Igbo people by spreading rumors and causing divisions. This animosity appears to have contributed slightly to the decision of southern Cameroon to merge with Cameroon rather than Nigeria in 1961. It doesn't appear to have been a significant issue for Cameroonians as demonstrated by rebels during the Bamiléké rebellion who were willing to go to Igbo officials for care and supplies at the Nigerian border.
Anti-Igbo sentiments were exacerbated by the January 1966 Nigerian coup d'état, which was led mainly by junior Igbo military officers that resulted in the deaths of several prominent non-Igbo Nigerian political figures, including Prime Minister Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Premier of the Northern Region Sir Ahmadu Bello, both prominent northern politicians, as well as Premier of the Western Region Samuel Akintola, and several military officers. A counter-coup in July, primarily led by Northerners, was followed by massacres of thousands of Igbo people and other people of southern Nigerian origin in a pogrom across the Northern region as revenge for the original failed coup. The massacres started in May 1966 and reached their peak in September 1966. During this time millions of Igbo people fled back to their homeland in Eastern Nigeria and ethnic relations rapidly deteriorated. In 1967, the separate Republic of Biafra was declared which led to the Biafran War. The 1966 massacres of southern Nigerians have been described as a holocaust by some authors, and by others as riots or genocide.
The coup as the focal point of hatred
The frequent theme of hatred and the lack of trust towards the Igbos by certain people in Nigeria has parts of its origins in the 1966 coup, led by a majority of Igbo military, under the command of officers Chukwuma Nzeogwu and Emmanuel Ifeajuna. The coup killed many prominent Hausa-Fulani and Yoruba political leaders, including Prime Minister Balewa, Ahmadu Bello, and Ladoke Akintola, and military leaders, including Brigadier Samuel Ademulegun and Brigadier Zakariya Maimalari, Col. Ralph Shodeinde, Col. Kur Mohammed, Lt. Col. Abogo Largema, and Lt. Col. James Pam. Though the coup might have originally been a plan to put Awolowo (a Yoruba) in power, people from different ethnic groups especially northern people viewed the result as an Igbo attempt to take control of Nigeria. The violence and killings that followed the coup was seen as justified retaliation which, when accomplished, would have eliminated the perceived Igbo influence.
It is notable that Adewale Ademoyega, a Yoruba army major and one of the five revolutionary Nigerian Army majors who spearheaded the 1966 coup, asserted that the coup's motives were primarily national and idealistic, focused on redirecting the country's course rather than being ethnically motivated. However at the time of the coup, Nnamdi Azikiwe, Nigeria's ceremonial President and prominent Igbo politician, was abroad on an official trip to the Caribbean. His absence and survival held significant ramifications for Nigeria's political landscape and response to the unfolding events and the absence of Igbo casualties fueled further resentment toward the Igbo people.
The violence that followed the January 1966 coup led to the outbreak of the Nigerian Civil War in 1967. The war lasted for three years, after which the Biafra region was reabsorbed into the federation. The Hausa-Fulani and Yoruba-led Nigerian governments regained control of the country, but the conflict left a legacy of bitterness and resentment.
The Republic of Biafra was a secessionist state in eastern Nigeria that existed from 30 May 1967 to January 1970. It took its name from the Bight of Biafra in the Atlantic to the south. The inhabitants were mostly Igbo people who seceded after the 1966 Nigerian counter-coup by the northern military officers. Other minority ethnic groups that were part of the republic were the Efik, Ibibio, Annang, Ejagham, Eket, Ibeno and Ijaw, among others.
Anti-Igbo sentiments proliferated in Lagos during the Nigerian Civil War. Talk of killing the Igbo people was common: a Lagos policeman was quoted in the New York Review on 21 December 1967, stating "The Igbo must be considerably reduced in number". The Nigerian federal government also announced the authorization of identity cards for people who have Igbo origin:
Ethnic profiling was used to find out who was Igbo in order to kill them. In Lagos, for example, buses were often stopped and searched with passengers made to stand in a queue with the intention of collecting names and ethnic origins of the passengers. Any Igbo or person suspected of being Igbo found in buses was executed. This was the case for the Igbos who were publicly executed in Tinubu Square in June 1968.
Because of the mistreatment and brutality Igbos faced, Igbo people devised different ways of survival. Igbo women in Lagos dropped their traditional attire and adopted the Yoruba attire (iro and buba). Igbos also stopped having conversations in public in their native Igbo and Igbos who could speak other languages identified as other ethnic groups. During this time businesses made sure to take out Igbo-sounding names from advertisements and signs. Many Igbo individuals during the war changed their names, such as actress Stella Damasus. In a 2021 interview with Ebuka Obi-Uchendu, Stella whose surname "Damasus" often sparks discussions and internet memes, highlighted that her family felt compelled to change their Igbo name to safeguard against potential harm or violence.
Traditional Igbo rulers in Delta state would also claim not to be Igbo to avoid the killing of their people, claiming instead to be Bini to the federal troops, though this did not stop troops from killing their people. Igbo who remained in Nigeria during the war faced torment and brutality from police, soldiers, and civilians who were most often neighbors and friends, but at the same time they were often used by the Nigerian government as a token to showcase and prove that Igbo were welcomed in Nigeria. The severity of persecution and brutality the Igbo faced rose and fell depending on how the war was going. The severity also rose at the mere suspicion of military advancements by the Biafrian military.
During the war, Anioma people and other Igbo peoples who remained in Benin City faced what can be described as genocide. Before the federal army arrived in Benin City, the Urhobo and Isoko people attacked their Anioma and Ika neighbors. Law enforcement did not help the people who were being hunted. In some cases, the Anioma and Ika people were held by the rioters for the federal soldiers instead of being killed outright. Workers of Igbo origins who were not aware of the situation in the outskirts of Benin City were stoned or clubbed to death by the local youths of Edo and Urhobo and Isoko origin. Some Igbos who ran away were thrown into the Ikpoba river by rioters who intercepted them as they tried to escape.
When federal soldiers liberated the Midwestern city of Benin from Biafran forces, it was celebrated with chaos and violence. The crowds, with the army's help, went to institutions such as NIFOR, hospitals, and prisons in the city, and killed the Igbo people there. Anyone with Igbo origins was robbed, assaulted, or killed; gender, origin, and occupation (even senior doctors were killed in the hospitals) were not considered during the rampage. This violence aimed to wipe out Anioma, Ika people, and other Igbos. Many who were killed believed that their good relationships with their non-Igbo friends would protect them. In Lagos, the Igbos recounted one of their greatest discomforts was being taunted by Yoruba individuals, who urged them to leave Lagos and return to Igboland. It was during this period that the Igbo word Okoro became derogatory. Yoruba individuals would publicly address an Igbo acquaintance using the term Okoro, an Igbo name meaning "young man", especially within earshot of authorities. Such provocations often led to brutality towards the Igbo individual being addressed. Mr. Nzeribe, the husband of Flora Nwapa was a victim of this, enduring physical assault and imprisonment due to his Igbo identity during this period.
Discrimination and the Post-war era
After the end of the Nigerian Civil War in 1970, the Igbo people faced various forms of discrimination and marginalization as a result of their role in attempting to secede from Nigeria and their actions during the war. In the post-war period, unemployment among the Igbo population was high. Out of over one million unemployed individuals, only 34,000 Igbos were reintegrated into the civil service. Additionally, the civil war had devastated Igboland’s infrastructure and landscape, halting economic and social activities. Before the war, Igboland was a hub of development; home to Nigeria's first independent university (now the University of Nigeria, Nsukka), a thriving coal industry, agricultural ventures, and a functioning healthcare system. However, the conflict left the region in ruins. Even wartime technological innovations like locally built petroleum refineries, Uli Airport, and the Ogbunigwe armored car were destroyed and never improved upon by the Nigerian government.
Many Igbo people believed that the post-war policies were designed to further marginalize them within Nigeria. For example, the Public Officers (Special Provisions Decree No. 46 of 1970) resulted in the dismissal or forced retirement of many Igbo officers who had fought for Biafra, despite assurances of reinstatement. The Banking Obligation (Eastern States Decree) further marginalized Igbo account holders by limiting compensation to 20 pounds, regardless of pre-war deposits. People who had evidence of bank deposits on the eve prior to the war got their money back after the war from the Central Bank of Nigeria. The Indigenisation Decree of 1972, intended to empower Nigerians economically, alienated the Igbo, who were unprepared due to the war’s devastation. The Abandoned Property Policy in Rivers State, which confiscated properties left by Igbos who fled during the conflict, was seen as an economic blow. Finally, despite being one of Nigeria’s original regions, Igboland ended up with the fewest states among the six geopolitical zones, deepening the sense of marginalization.
In August 2019, a Yoruba supremacist and secessionist who immigrated to the United Kingdom from Nigeria was arrested by British police for making YouTube videos that contained violent hate speech towards the Igbo people. In March 2022, he was sentenced to four and a half years in prison on eight counts of inciting racial hatred.
Igbophobia on the Internet manifests as a form of prejudice and discriminatory rhetoric targeting individuals of Igbo descent, often characterized by hateful speech, stereotypes, and attitudes. This prejudice can surface in various ways, such as derogatory comments, social media posts, Internet memes, and other hateful images that seek the marginalization of Igbo culture and people. Anti-Igbo sentiments can be seen on different social media platforms and forums such as Nairaland (a Nigerian forum), Twitter, Facebook, news articles, and blogs.
During the 2023 general and gubernatorial election period, a surge in anti-Igbo sentiment surfaced on social media. Given Nigeria's historical ethnic complexities, political circles often harbor such sentiments. However the use of Igbophobia in a campaign advertisement on Nairaland was unprecedented. Netizens strongly opposed the act, calling for the ad's removal due to the potential risk to people's lives. Eventually, the ad was taken down, and the site's founder Seun Osewa issued an apology. Nonetheless, some social media users remained skeptical, questioning the timing and sincerity of Osewa's apology.
Following the transition of power from the PDP to the APC in Nigeria in 2015, noticeable cases of Igbophobia emerged within the Nigerian government. While instances of institutional discrimination against Igbos were already observed in employment and housing opportunities, discrimination against Igbos took on a more systemic nature under the APC's governance. There was an increase in discrimination and dissemination of hateful rhetoric by government officials, prompting discussions about biases and Igbophobia within the APC-led Nigerian government. Allegations of marginalization and inadequate representation of the Igbo people in political and decision-making roles have amplified concerns about potential bias and discriminatory practices within the administration.
The End SARS movement in 2020, which was a movement to call to end of police brutality in Nigeria, was used as an opportunity by some to spread anti-Igbo sentiments. It was discovered that some Igbo people were involved in the violent aftermath of the Lekki massacre, coupled with a broadcast by Nnamdi Kanu where he gave orders to his followers in IPOB, a separatist organization strongly associated with Igbos, to “burn down Lagos”, inciting violence against the police and military targets. Igbo people were therefore blamed for the violence that occurred during End SARS. This theory often did not differentiate between IPOB, the organization, and the Igbo people, and cited this incident as a reason to exclude Igbo people from government positions during the 2023 Nigerian general and gubernatorial elections.
2015 elections
Leading up to the 2015 Lagos gubernatorial elections, the Oba of Lagos stated that Igbos who do not vote for Akinwunmi Ambode will perish in the lagoon within seven days. In response to the recording circulating, numerous Nollywood actors, politicians, commentators, and celebrities spoke out. Don Jazzy, a popular music mogul, was challenged by a fan over the statement. He went on to state "I am a Nigerian first and an Igbo man second...As a wise/civilized/respectful Igbo man, I will not desecrate the stool of royalty, even tho [sic] I totally frown at that recording. But I will tell you for free that we all have the freedom to choose whom to vote for & no one can force you or me to vote as he/she pleases."
2019 elections
Anti-Igbo sentiment was also present in the 2019 gubernatorial elections. Senator Oluremi Tinubu, wife of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, said "We will invoke all the deities of Lagos to chase Igbo people out. Igbos who refuse to learn our language. Igbos who didn't marry Yoruba, we will inherit them."
Jimi Agbaje, who has no relation to Igbo people and does not speak Igbo, was accused of being Igbo. Correspondingly, anti-Igbo sentiment was used against him during the election cycle. The name "Jimichukwu" was used to mock him in an ethnically charged manner. The name is a blending of Jimi's name and the Igbo word "Chukwu", which is often used in Igbo names. This word was used to indicate that Agbaje is not a true Yoruba, but a foreigner, and as such should not be the governor of the west.
2023 elections
Peter Obi's emergence as the Labour party candidate prompted Igbophobic sentiments and hatred against the Igbo people. Even after several interviews and debates, which is uncommon for popular presidential candidates in recent years, his candidacy was at times dismissed as Igbo people yearning for an Igbo presidency.
As a result of Obi's candidacy, singer Brymo made hateful comments against the Igbo people, insinuating that the Igbo people are not ready for the presidency and that Peter Obi should stick to organizing the eastern region from which he came. Following this comment, he released another Igbophobic comment while replying to a now-deleted tweet saying "Fuck The Ndi Igbo!!". This prompted an online petition on Change.org to the All Africa Music Awards against his nomination for Song Writer of the Year. He released an apology, but continued to leave similar comments on his social media accounts. These comments by Brymo were supported by ethnic nationalists and supporters of the APC. After the conclusion of the election, Brymo rescinded his apology in a tweet. Anti-Igbo sentiment during the 2023 Nigerian elections was seen through the disenfranchisement of Igbo people during the PVC collections and an alleged bigoted statement against Igbo people by the State Resident Electoral Commissioner, Olusegun Agbaje. The violence stretched into the reoccurring burning and attacks of Igbo businesses in Lagos during elections as well as blockades and threats against Igbo people attempting to access businesses they owned.
In the weeks leading up to the 2023 gubernatorial elections, candidate Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour who is part Yoruba (from his father's side) and part Igbo (from his mother's side) had anti-Igbo attacks directed at him. Though he has two ethnic backgrounds he was repeatedly questioned based on his Igbo ancestry and his wife's Igbo identity. These attacks extended to the broader Igbo community in Lagos, with ethnic nationalists questioning the legitimacy of any Igbo seeking political authority in Yorubaland. Three days before the election APC loyalist MC Oluomo made threats against Igbo people, telling Igbos to stay home if they would not vote for APC candidates. Labour party supporters called on the Nigerian government to apprehend MC Oluomo for voter intimidation while APC supporters and ethnic nationalists spoke out in his favor. In response to public pressure, the Nigerian police called the comment "a joke", downplaying the threats.
On the day of the election, Igbo people, and non-Igbo people who were presumed to be Igbo, were threatened and beaten to prevent them from voting.
Sisi Yemmie a popular Nigerian YouTuber and her husband, both of Yoruba origin, were also victims of this ethnic profiling as they were prevented from voting as a result of their appearance which was deemed "Igbo". During the presidential elections, the Igbos at polling units were also told not to vote at all.
Anti-Igbo sentiment was present in comments and advertisements across social media platforms during the gubernatorial election. The next day, Igbos were attacked at Abule ado in Lagos state.
Individuals propagating hateful sentiments during the 2023 elections offered various reasons behind their hatred towards the Igbo people. The justification varied, but included:
During the election period, this controversial statement ignited debates over the identity of Lagos itself. The phrase is originally attributed to Jaja Wachuku in 1947. Wachuku believed that since Lagos was then the Federal Capital Territory, it belonged to all Nigerians. He emphasized Lagos' role as a shared space for citizens from diverse backgrounds. Lateef Jakande later used the phrase in his inaugural address as governor in 1979.
During the 2023 election, some individuals used this phrase to justify hate against Igbos. Individuals such as media personalities, rallied behind this phrase, alleging that the Igbo were attempting to assert dominance over Lagos and Nigeria through the 2023 elections. However, this belief is a conspiracy theory.
Following the 2023 elections Mudashiru Obasa, Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, emphasized the need for laws to safeguard the interests of the indigenous people of Lagos. Obasa, who was re-elected as a speaker for a third consecutive term, stated that Lagos is Yoruba land and "[t]herefore, part of our legislative agenda is to ensure the translation of laws passed by this House to the Yoruba language." The legislative agenda also included new property and business laws which favour the indigenous people of the states.
Despite not being widely employed by Igbo individuals as a rallying cry during the elections, the extensive dissemination of the phrase, which was used as purported evidence of Igbo domination in Lagos, prompted various prominent Igbo figures and Igbo cultural organizations to publicly disavow it. However, their efforts did little to alter the perception of Igbo people.
People who justified the attacks on Igbo people during the elections also often linked the Labour Party candidate Peter Obi's Obi-dient movement to the IPOB. A prevailing belief emerged among individuals propagating anti-Igbo sentiments within both ruling and opposition parties that Peter Obi, by virtue of his ethnicity, was deliberately avoiding reference to IPOB. Certain users on social media platforms urged the Labour Party candidate to address IPOB-related matters with some critics even going as far as to classify him as a biafran agitator and not a loyal candidate for the Nigerian presidential office. These critics often overlooked the Nigerian government's responsibility for addressing concerns in the country, instead directing their inquiries solely at Peter Obi for commentary on IPOB activities. Although IPOB has denied any links between their organization and Peter Obi, critics still accuse them of working together. Notably, other prominent presidential contenders, such as Bola Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar, hailing from diverse regions with secessionist groups, were not subjected to similar demands to account for the actions of secessionist groups from their respective regions. Aside from the associations with the IPOB, other justifications against Igbo people includes the narrative that the Obidient movement is an Igbo-driven initiative, with non-Igbo supporters being urged to disassociate themselves. Responding to these frequent accusations, Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, emphasized that "... the movement is not about my tribe or my religion, and it is not an Igbo agenda or in any way, to Christianize Nigeria. No one should ascribe ethnic or religious colouration to the OBIdient Movement. Nigeria is one and my ambition is to become the President of a United and Indivisible Nigeria."
The 2023 elections worsened intra-ethnic and inter-Igbo relations within the country:
There was no effort to improve ethnic relations and there were no repercussions from the Nigerian government on most people who expressed hateful sentiments which pushed the attacks and discrimination that Igbos faced during the elections. The aftermath of the 2023 elections resulted in the reclusiveness of different ethnic groups that were heavily involved in the elections. The Igbos called on their fellow Igbo men and women to move their properties to the east these calls persisted throughout the aftermath and came mostly after the destruction of properties that they owned in Lagos. The Yorubas on the other hand through the Lagos government now publish information in the Yoruba language on its social media this act received pushback from people on social media who claimed that Lagos is a diverse and a cosmopolitan part of Nigeria as a result should consider others who live in it. There were also Yoruba cultural groups who called on companies that have locations within the southwestern part of the country to allocate 90% of their job opportunities to Yoruba people.