A Response To Sam Amadi: The High Cost Of Cheap Ethnic Rhetoric

By Olabode opeseitan

Opening Salvo:
There is a peculiar madness in the way some Nigerians weaponize memory—remembering every perceived slight, yet forgetting every act of goodwill. Sam Amadi’s recent broadside against Lagos and the Yoruba people is a masterclass in this selective amnesia. It is a sermon of division draped in the robes of grievance, where half-truths masquerade as analysis and hyperbole substitutes for fact. But Nigeria’s fragile unity cannot survive on a diet of such intellectual dishonesty. Let us dissect this spectacle with the scalpel of reason—before the wounds it infects become fatal.

The Voting Disenfranchisement Myth: A Lie Taken Too Far
Amadi’s claim that “Igbos and those who looked like them were debarred from voting” in Lagos during the 2023 governorship election is not just exaggerated—it is not supported by available evidence.

Fact Check:

• Yiaga Africa’s 2023 Election Report documented logistical issues (such as late starts). It noted voter intimidation and violence in some polling stations but found no evidence of systematic ethnic exclusion.
• Igbo-dominated areas, such as Amuwo-Odofin and Ojo, recorded high turnout. If there was ethnic suppression, why were polling units in these areas some of the busiest?
• INEC’s data shows no statistically significant drop in Igbo voter participation compared to previous elections.

The Bigger Picture:
Lagos has had Igbo lawmakers, key political appointees, and business leaders. If the state were as hostile as claimed, how did Ben Akabueze—an Igbo technocrat—serve as Commissioner for Economic Planning (2007–2015) under Governor Babatunde Fashola?

Charly Boy Bus Stop: Rewriting History to Fit a Grudge
Amadi frames the renaming of Charly Boy Bus Stop as an anti-Igbo move. Let’s correct the record.

• Original Name: Second Pedro Bus Stop.
• Controversy: The switch to “Charly Boy” was done without due process—no community consultation or legislative approval.

Why It Matters:

• If an Igbo-majority city like Onitsha renamed a landmark previously named after Shina Peters without input, would that be “Igbo oppression of Yoruba”? Or simply local governance realignment?
• The Lagos State Government has no policy against honoring non-Yoruba individuals. For instance, there are streets named after prominent South East and South-South figures and landmarks, such as:
  • Sir Ezekiel Ainabe Road, Apapa
  • Mathias Okonkwo Street, Ilasamaja
  • Okonkwo Obiefuna Street, Ikotun
  • Onitsha Ado Street, Ikotun
  • Solomon Okonkwo Street, Isheri Olofin

Peter Obi’s Abacha Problem: When Accountability Equals “Tribalism”
Amadi dismisses scrutiny of Peter Obi’s shifting stories about General Sani Abacha as ethnic bias. That’s gaslighting.

The Contradiction:

• In 2022 (Arise TV), Obi stated: “I never met Abacha.”
• In July 2025 (Channels TV), Obi admitted meeting Abacha and being co-opted into a port decongestion task force under his regime.

Logical Question:
If any leading Yoruba politician made such inconsistent claims and was called out by South East commentators, would Amadi label the criticism “Yoruba oppression”?

The Unspoken Reality: Igbo Success in Lagos
Amadi’s narrative erases the visible and influential presence of the Igbo community in Lagos’s politics and economy.

Political Representation:

• Chief Joe Igbokwe: Served as Lagos APC Spokesman and later as Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
• Ben Akabueze: Served as Commissioner for Economic Planning (2007–2015).

Economic Power:

• Alaba International Market and Ladipo Auto Parts Hub are Igbo-dominated and have thrived under successive Lagos State administrations.

Social Benefits:

• Igbo students in Lagos enjoy equal access to state education benefits, including WAEC and NECO fee subsidies.
• Igbo civil servants work seamlessly within Lagos’s civil service, enjoying equal rights and protections alongside other ethnic groups.

The Real Incendiary Rhetoric: Nnamdi Kanu’s 2020 Call for Arson

Fact Check:

• During the #EndSARS protests in 2020, Nnamdi Kanu instructed IPOB supporters to “burn down Lagos” and target Yoruba businesses.
• Evidence: Archived Radio Biafra broadcasts, cited in DSS reports and court proceedings, documented these calls. While Kanu’s lawyers disputed the tapes’ authenticity, the rhetoric exists and was widely circulated.

Double Standard:
Where was Amadi’s outrage when Kanu—a self-proclaimed Igbo leader—openly incited violence? Why is only one side’s rhetoric considered “dangerous,” while the other escapes scrutiny?

Conclusion: The Folly of Perpetual Victimhood
Amadi’s article is a case study in ethnic demagoguery. It:

1. Ignores facts (voter data, Igbo political appointments),
2. Twists history (e.g., Charly Boy Bus Stop’s origins),
3. Equates scrutiny with bigotry (Peter Obi’s contradictions), and
4. Silences extremist rhetoric from his own camp (Kanu’s Lagos arson threats).

Nigeria deserves better than this zero-sum tribalism. The Igbo community’s resilience in Lagos—from commerce to governance—proves that opportunity exists where grievance is discarded.

Let us not be prisoners of the past when the future demands our collaboration.