ICYMI: Bini, not Yoruba, are original owners of Lagos – Ajayi-Bembe

Published November 19, 2017

INTERVIEW

A former President of the Association of Lagos State Indigenes, Chief Layi Ajayi-Bembe, in this interview with BAYO AKINLOYE says the real owners of Lagos are the Bini, not the Yoruba

What is your lineage as a Lagosian?

My grandfather was Ajayi Bembe; the eighth Obanikoro of Lagos – my father was the last of his children. My mother was the first child of Gbajabiamila (of Olowogbowo fame) – of course, of Lagos. When it comes to the ownership of Lagos, it is sad when people talk about Lagos being no man’s land or Lagos being part of Yoruba land – I consider that position to be an abomination. Yes, because of the affinity or geographical location of Lagos, we’re nearer to the South-West (the Yoruba) than to other regions. It should be stated that Lagos has always been independent of the West. When I returned from England, (Chief Obafemi) Awolowo was in prison; before I came back to Nigeria, there had been agitations that Lagos wasn’t part of the West. No doubt that a lot of us speak Yoruba – in my family, we’re Bini. Oba of Lagos (Rilwan Akiolu) was completely right that the early settlers in Lagos were the Awori and the Bini. We’re talking about the Island of Lagos.

Extending it to the east of Lagos, you have Oshodi, the Tapa (from Niger State) were there. And, of course, we knew one another. I don’t understand why some of our brothers in the West think that we can be enslaved by them. In all my years, I have not seen what Afenifere has done for Lagos to inspire me because during the last constitutional conference, they were not talking about Lagos; they were talking about themselves. Don’t forget that the so-called Edo State was part of the West before. But to say Lagos is part of Yoruba land is not fair; it is not charitable. And when kabiyesi now said, Lagos is Bini, not only because we came from Benin, there are signs and relics of Benin all over Isale Eko. And obas (in Lagos) – we don’t call them ‘obas’, we call them ‘eleko’. My grandfather said in 1903 that when there was a dispute of which traditional rulers should wear crowns – my grandfather was at that meeting. Ooni of Ife had to come all the way from Ife to Lagos upon the invitation of Governor (John Hawley) Glover. And the question they asked him (Ooni) was, ‘Who are the obas that should wear crowns?’ He mentioned them – Lagos was not part of the list. We don’t wear crowns in Lagos. I remember, Pa Edegbele – that’s Prof. Edegbele’s father – when he said ‘oba’ is alien to Yoruba land that only the Bini use that title, there was a furore over that. But Edegbele was right. Note that politicians have done a lot of havoc in Yoruba land more than in other regions of the country. Nobody is going to doubt the hegemony of the Sultan of Sokoto in the North. But the Yoruba are fond of creating problems among themselves in Yoruba land. Permit me to digress: look at the recent installation of some kings in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital. A governor created 21 kings, for what? Is that what the people need at a time when the masses are hungry, civil servants are owed salaries and basic amenities are not available? It now appears there are more rulers than the ruled.

Are you saying Lagos belongs to the Bini people?

Lagos belongs to us – the Bini. When you get to Enuowa, they (the inhabitants) pay homage to Oba of Benin there. Enuowa is in Lagos; Idumota is like a Bini name; Iduntafa is Bini name; Idunmagbo is Bini name; Iduganran is Bini name; tell me, what further proof do you want (that the Bini own Lagos)? Why have some people tried hard to erode our identity and the labour of our ancestors? Today, if you go to the Lagos State Secretariat, you’ll hardly see the original indigenes of the state hold a prominent position. So, why are people crying about the quota system? You don’t ‘quotarise’ knowledge. Whatever is the case, I believe that the indigenes of Lagos – by the way, I was president of Association of Lagos Indigenes for almost 15 years – we know how our resources were plundered and carted away. Look at the fiasco called ‘Lagos @50’. The state government doesn’t recognise the true indigenes of Lagos State. Some of the indigenes work with them for the purpose of getting whatever they can get from the government. Some people are trying so hard to maintain the stupidity that Lagos doesn’t belong to anybody – that’s annoying.

What about Alhaji Femi Okunnu’s view of the Awori being the original owners of Lagos?

I am not a lawyer but Femi Okunnu is a lawyer – a Senior Advocate of Nigeria for that matter. On the issue of the original owners of Lagos, my attention was drawn to an article focused on the Idunganran celebration. Mr. Femi Okunnu happened to be my mentor; he was an inspiration to me particularly when I returned from England. He was not only elder ‘brother’ to me because we lived close together. They were living at No. 1 Ido Olowu Street and I was living at No. 7 Ido Olowu Street. I have known him for a long time. I remember when he came back from England as a young and vibrant lawyer. When Femi Okunnu himself was the Federal Commissioner for Works during the military regime, he was the one who actually acquired the area where you have the National Theatre, Iganmu. From whom did he acquire it? He got it from the indigenes; my grandfather had a place there. We must have a good perspective of history. People should learn not to mutilate history. The owners of Lagos are not the Yoruba; they are the Bini. We are Bini; there’s no ambiguity about that. To prove it further, the obas or the elekos, when they died, their bodies were taken to Benin for burial for a time. Tell me, who owns the land then?

Who are the Awori?

The Awori and the Bini are the same. If an Awori spoke to me when I was young, I understood him. My parents spoke Awori. The Awori are partly from Dahomey and partly from Benin. My forebears came from the riverine area through the Bight of Benin and settled in Badagry for a long time before moving down to Lagos. And when they moved down to Lagos where did they go? They went to Idunsagbe – a place famed for Bini culture and tradition. I am an Awori. Tell me, which state did they create for the Awori now? If you say the indigenous people of Lagos State are the Awori, then the Awori are the Bini. We must put history in its right perspective. The right perspective is that Lagos does not belong to the Yoruba; it belongs to the Bini. According to the Lyttleton Constitution, the West was created; the North was created and Lagos was made a colony and it later regained its independence.

Some may argue that the original Lagosians didn’t protect their legacy, allowing every Tom, Dick and Harry to hold sway politically and economically.


It is true that Lagos is open to everybody that could bring ideas. But when it comes to certain elements within the political spectrum in Nigeria… Look at it this way, will it surprise you that a representative of Lagos who calls himself a Lagosian representing the state in the National Assembly went to Kogi State to vie for the governorship? Isn’t that insulting? Some are even saying once (Osun State Governor, Rauf) Aregbesola has completed his tenure in Osun, he will come back to Lagos to contest a senatorial seat. We called Bola Tinubu, sat him down and told him how we accepted him and he let us down. I know the role I played when Bola Tinubu was coming in; when I gave him my second cousin, (Musiliu) Obanikoro to go along with him (I don’t talk to that one (Obanikoro) again after he had his hand in something embarrassing; because you don’t disgrace your family). I am not looking for anything from them. It is very wrong that people should trivialise the affairs of Lagos. For example, we kicked against (Prof. Wole) Soyinka being made the chairman of the Lagos @50 celebration. But nobody listened to us. Look at the fiasco; was it a success? Who bothered about it? People who will not celebrate the living are celebrating the dead – it doesn’t go beyond that. You acquire land from me for a public purpose and the next thing you did was to share it with your siblings, friends and other loved ones. It is really sad for people to proclaim Lagos as no man’s land. Lagos is so accommodating; it is only here you see an Igbo man being made a commissioner. Even the Yoruba that are shouting, how many Lagosians are in their cabinets? They all live in Lagos; we know them. Some of them benefitted from the liberty Lagos offers. But ask them: what have they done for their host communities? Can you imagine Orji Kalu, who bought land here, saying Lagos belongs to nobody? They just talk.


Don’t you think Prof. Wole Soyinka deserved to have been the chairman of the Lagos @50 celebration?

I am not used to Soyinka and I don’t want to be acquainted with him. It is unfortunate that because he was made the chairman of Lagos @50, he began to insult people, claiming that his father had a land in Lagos. We traced the land – one plot of land – and discovered that the land was bought from my grandfather. People like him go around insulting others. Has he not insulted Femi Okunnu before? Tell me who Wole Soyinka has never insulted? He is part of the Tinubu group. Is he not an Ogun man? I don’t think he has a right to say that Lagos is no man’s land. Who is he to say that? I think Okunnu knew better; I don’t think he meant what he said the way the press reported him. What he said is that Lagos is ‘part’ of Yoruba land; he didn’t say it was owned by the Yoruba. We need to be discreet in our definition. Geographically, we’re in the West and culturally, we speak Yoruba. If an Igbo man speaks Yoruba fluently, does that make him a Yoruba? Go to Lagos State House of Assembly and count how many of them are truly Lagos indigenes. Again, Okunnu was an active participant in the creation of Lagos State together with (Philip) Asiodu and Alison Ayida. They facilitated the creation of the state; there was a western state then. If Okunnu had advocated the merger of Lagos with the western region then, one would have thought otherwise. Wole Soyinka didn’t want Lagos to be created at that time. Soyinka used to be very radical but having got into the group of Bola Tinubu’s scientific imposition, he has been mellowing down. Soyinka would be the one that would stand for the truth when people were accused of certificate forgery and other ills. He was always at the forefront; he has become a turncoat. What happened to him? I respected him; he may not know me and he doesn’t need to know me.


So, you think Okunnu is on the same page with you when he talked about the early settlers of Lagos?

I believe Okunnu was actually agitating for the indigenes. He was president of Lagos State indigenes before me – we have Isale Eko Descendants Union, which we all belong to. All I am saying is this: Lagos is not part of Yoruba. The settlers are Bini. Wasn’t Benin part of the West before until the Mid-West was created? The Bini agitated for that, insisting that we’re not part of the Yoruba. Why can’t the Yoruba leave us alone for God’s sake? My grandfather went to court in 1889 to claim all the lands that belonged to him. He got a judgment. Then some people said, these lands were too much for one family – the place now called Ikorodu Road, they acquired it – for how much? For £27,000! My grandfather wasn’t around; he’s dead. But they forgot that this man gave them a land to build the first police barracks in Lagos. How could Bola Tinubu come all the way from wherever he came from (Kafaru brought him to me, turn Lagos into a place for Osun people in the secretariat). They’re radicalising the owners of Lagos with the way they’re acting. By the time they stand up you’ll be shocked. What are the people asking for? Give them what they deserve. Show them some respect. Okunnu did a lot for Lagos State; most parts of Victoria Island were sand-filled by the Federal Government. He and his colleagues at King’s College were able to excise Victoria Island and gave it to Lagos. In fact, Okunnu has done more for Lagos than any governor. Okunnu had his roots in Isale Eko.


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The truth will always be bitter!

Love should prevail.

Edo people should take it easy.

Let the Yorubas handed over what belongs to the Benins to them too.

this is hilarious

This man knows lagos very well

Sour grape alert

We already knew this from Adam

Go and say this rubbish inside Lagos, the way dem go beat you ehn

THE REAL HISTORY OF LAGOS.(who can lay claim to the land).
source: wikipedia.
Researched by Ejike Michael

According to the oral history of Lagos, at some point around 1300-1400 CE, the Oba (King) of the Benin Empire - who used to send trade expeditions to Ghana, where spices were traded - heard from one of his traders complaints about the way she was being treated by the Awori who lived in the area of current day Lagos. The Oba of Benin then sent a trade expedition by sea to engage with the Awori people, who nonetheless declined to engage and attacked the mission sent by Benin.

Upon hearing this as the mission returned to Benin City, the Oba of Benin commanded the assembling of a war expedition, led by Ado, a Benin Prince, which headed to the settlement of the Awori (current-day Lagos; then called Eko by the Benin people) and demanded an explanation.

On getting there, Ado and his army were more than well received - the Awori from Lagos asked Benin Prince Ado to stay there and become their leader. Ado agreed, on the condition that they surrendered their sovereignty to the Oba of Benin, to which the Awori people of Lagos agreed.

Upon hearing this, the Oba of Benin gave his permission for Prince Ado and the expedition to remain in Eko with the Awori. The Oba of Benin later sent some of his chiefs, including the Eletu Odibo, Obanikoro and others, to assist Ado in the running of Eko.
From the crowning of Ado as its first Oba, Lagos (then called Eko) served as a major center for slave-trade, from which then Oba of Benin Ado and all of his successors for over four centuries benefitted - until 1841, when Oba Akitoye ascended to the throne of Lagos and tried to ban slave-trading.

Local merchants s
trongly opposed the intended move, and deposed and exiled the king, and installed Akitoye's brother Kosoko as Oba. At exile in Europe, Akitoye met with British authorities, who had banned slave-trading in 1807, and who therefore decided to support the deposed Oba to regain his throne. With the success of the British intervention, in 1851 was reinstalled as Oba of Lagos. In practical terms, however, British influence over the kingdom had become absolute, and ten years later, in 1861, Lagos was formally annexed as a British colony.
Eko was the land area now known as Lagos Island where the king's palace was built. The palace is called Iga Idunganran, meaning "palace built on the pepper farm". Oba Ado and the warriors from Benin, as well as some of the indigenous people who sought safety, settled down in the southern part of Eko called "Isale Eko", Isale literally meaning bottom, but must have been used to indicate downtown (as in Downtown Lagos).
The first king of Lagos, Oba Ado, apart from having two sons also had a daughter Erelu Kuti, who begat Ologun Kutere, who later became king. Shokun his brother, who was more aggressive and whom the Erelu suspected could plan a palace coup, was given a chieftaincy title, "Onile-gbale", and a palace just behind the king's palace. This was the first time that a Chief
would be appointed and installed at the same time as a King's coronation.
Oba Akitoye who ceded Lagos to the British was oba Kosoko's uncle. Oba Akitoye was the first Oba not to be buried in a Bini. Prior to this, all the Kings of lagos were buried in Bini. They passed on taxes to the Oba of Bini until the British came and explained that there was no need to send taxes to Bini anymore especially as the Binis themselves were paying taxes to Britain. It was during his reign that the direct influence of the Binis on Lagos ended.

Oba Kosoko believed in the slave trade and was at loggerheads with the British, hence his dethronement and flight, first to Badagry and later to Epe, Nigeria where he founded kingdoms that still exist today.

Past Obas (Kings)Edit
Main article: Oba of Lagos
Ashipa (1600–1630) died on the way back to Benin
King Ado (1630–1669) first King of Lagos
King Gabaro (1669–1704)
King Akinsemoyin (1704–1749)
Eletu Kekere (1749)
King Ologun Kutere (1749–1775)
Adele Ajosun (1775-1780 & 1832-1834)
Eshilokun (1780–1819)
Oba Idewu Ojulari (1819–1832)
King Oluwole (1836–1841)
King Akintoye (1841-1845 & 1851-1853)
Oba Kosoko (1845–1851)
King Dosunmu [Docemo] (1853–1885)
Oba Oyekan (1885–1900)
Oba Esugbayi Eleko (1901-1925 & 1932)
Oba Ibikunle Akitoye (1925–1928)
Oba Sanusi Olusi (1928–1931)
Oba Falolu (1932–1949)
Oba Adeniji Adele (1949–1964)
Oba Adeyinka Oyekan II (1965–2003)
Oba Rilwan Akiolu (2003–present)

Modern-day Lagos was founded by the Bini in the sixteenth century. It was later called Eko. The Portuguese explorer Ruy de Sequeira who visited the area in 1472, named the area around the city Lago de Curamo; the present name is Portuguese for "lakes". An alternate explanation is that Lagos was named for Lagos, Portugal - a maritime town which at the time was the main center of the Portuguese expeditions down the African coast and whose own name is derived from the Celtic word Lacobriga.
When the Colony and Protectorate of Nigeria was established in 1914 Lagos was declared its capital. Lagos experienced rapid growth throughout the 1960s and 1970s as a result of Nigeria's economic boom prior to the Biafran War. This continued through the 1980s and 1990s up to the present date.

Lagos was the capital of Nigeria from 1914 - 1991 when the capital was moved to Abuja. Abuja is a capital like Washington, DC in USA and Brasilia in Brazil in that it was built from scratch specifically to be a capital.

Maybe Benin people should move the stool of their Oba to Lagos and lay claim to it since they owned it.

They should also depose all the government ruling in Lagos and install Obaseki as the supreme ruler of Lagos.

They should also make sure that Bini language is used in the Lagos house of assembly and seize all the crown of all the Yoruba Obas in Lagos.

If they can’t do none of this, then they should keep SHUT and stop saying rubbish!!

I always know for a fact that Edo owned Lagos.

We shall match there and put our son as Governor soon

LegendHero:
Maybe Benin people should move the stool of their Oba to Lagos and lay claim to it since they owned it.

They should also depose all the government ruling in Lagos and install Obaseki as the supreme ruler of Lagos.

They should also make sure that Bini language is used in the Lagos house of assembly and seize all the crown of all the Yoruba Obas in Lagos.

If they can’t do none of this, then they should keep SHUT and stop saying rubbish!!

Are Benin people laying claim to Lagos? the writer is a Lagosian.

ZKOSOSO:
I always know for a fact that Edo owned Lagos.

We shall match there and put our son as Governor soon

lol after over 150 years.
Lagos is now Yoruba land, blame the Britts.

EastGold:
Go and say this rubbish inside Lagos, the way dem go beat you ehn

Where do you think he's saying it from inside Eko of cause
Go and beat him now
Thief man

Why are Igbos so obsessed with this silly and meaningless rubbish?

You've been recycling this particular article and meaningless story since 2017.

Do you ibos have a time table where you share this story and decide who is going to post and recycle it on NL everyday and every week?


Jobless ipob villager.

That is history



Every place has its history


Lagos is Yoruba land as at today, it might become part of Biafra land in the future....

tomakint:
ICYMI: Bini, not Yoruba, are original owners of Lagos – Ajayi-Bembe

Published November 19, 2017

INTERVIEW

A former President of the Association of Lagos State Indigenes, Chief Layi Ajayi-Bembe, in this interview with BAYO AKINLOYE says the real owners of Lagos are the Bini, not the Yoruba

What is your lineage as a Lagosian?

My grandfather was Ajayi Bembe; the eighth Obanikoro of Lagos – my father was the last of his children. My mother was the first child of Gbajabiamila (of Olowogbowo fame) – of course, of Lagos. When it comes to the ownership of Lagos, it is sad when people talk about Lagos being no man’s land or Lagos being part of Yoruba land – I consider that position to be an abomination. Yes, because of the affinity or geographical location of Lagos, we’re nearer to the South-West (the Yoruba) than to other regions. It should be stated that Lagos has always been independent of the West. When I returned from England, (Chief Obafemi) Awolowo was in prison; before I came back to Nigeria, there had been agitations that Lagos wasn’t part of the West. No doubt that a lot of us speak Yoruba – in my family, we’re Bini. Oba of Lagos (Rilwan Akiolu) was completely right that the early settlers in Lagos were the Awori and the Bini. We’re talking about the Island of Lagos.

Extending it to the east of Lagos, you have Oshodi, the Tapa (from Niger State) were there. And, of course, we knew one another. I don’t understand why some of our brothers in the West think that we can be enslaved by them. In all my years, I have not seen what Afenifere has done for Lagos to inspire me because during the last constitutional conference, they were not talking about Lagos; they were talking about themselves. Don’t forget that the so-called Edo State was part of the West before. But to say Lagos is part of Yoruba land is not fair; it is not charitable. And when kabiyesi now said, Lagos is Bini, not only because we came from Benin, there are signs and relics of Benin all over Isale Eko. And obas (in Lagos) – we don’t call them ‘obas’, we call them ‘eleko’. My grandfather said in 1903 that when there was a dispute of which traditional rulers should wear crowns – my grandfather was at that meeting. Ooni of Ife had to come all the way from Ife to Lagos upon the invitation of Governor (John Hawley) Glover. And the question they asked him (Ooni) was, ‘Who are the obas that should wear crowns?’ He mentioned them – Lagos was not part of the list. We don’t wear crowns in Lagos. I remember, Pa Edegbele – that’s Prof. Edegbele’s father – when he said ‘oba’ is alien to Yoruba land that only the Bini use that title, there was a furore over that. But Edegbele was right. Note that politicians have done a lot of havoc in Yoruba land more than in other regions of the country. Nobody is going to doubt the hegemony of the Sultan of Sokoto in the North. But the Yoruba are fond of creating problems among themselves in Yoruba land. Permit me to digress: look at the recent installation of some kings in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital. A governor created 21 kings, for what? Is that what the people need at a time when the masses are hungry, civil servants are owed salaries and basic amenities are not available? It now appears there are more rulers than the ruled.

Are you saying Lagos belongs to the Bini people?

Lagos belongs to us – the Bini. When you get to Enuowa, they (the inhabitants) pay homage to Oba of Benin there. Enuowa is in Lagos; Idumota is like a Bini name; Iduntafa is Bini name; Idunmagbo is Bini name; Iduganran is Bini name; tell me, what further proof do you want (that the Bini own Lagos)? Why have some people tried hard to erode our identity and the labour of our ancestors? Today, if you go to the Lagos State Secretariat, you’ll hardly see the original indigenes of the state hold a prominent position. So, why are people crying about the quota system? You don’t ‘quotarise’ knowledge. Whatever is the case, I believe that the indigenes of Lagos – by the way, I was president of Association of Lagos Indigenes for almost 15 years – we know how our resources were plundered and carted away. Look at the fiasco called ‘Lagos @50’. The state government doesn’t recognise the true indigenes of Lagos State. Some of the indigenes work with them for the purpose of getting whatever they can get from the government. Some people are trying so hard to maintain the stupidity that Lagos doesn’t belong to anybody – that’s annoying.

What about Alhaji Femi Okunnu’s view of the Awori being the original owners of Lagos?

I am not a lawyer but Femi Okunnu is a lawyer – a Senior Advocate of Nigeria for that matter. On the issue of the original owners of Lagos, my attention was drawn to an article focused on the Idunganran celebration. Mr. Femi Okunnu happened to be my mentor; he was an inspiration to me particularly when I returned from England. He was not only elder ‘brother’ to me because we lived close together. They were living at No. 1 Ido Olowu Street and I was living at No. 7 Ido Olowu Street. I have known him for a long time. I remember when he came back from England as a young and vibrant lawyer. When Femi Okunnu himself was the Federal Commissioner for Works during the military regime, he was the one who actually acquired the area where you have the National Theatre, Iganmu. From whom did he acquire it? He got it from the indigenes; my grandfather had a place there. We must have a good perspective of history. People should learn not to mutilate history. The owners of Lagos are not the Yoruba; they are the Bini. We are Bini; there’s no ambiguity about that. To prove it further, the obas or the elekos, when they died, their bodies were taken to Benin for burial for a time. Tell me, who owns the land then?

Who are the Awori?

The Awori and the Bini are the same. If an Awori spoke to me when I was young, I understood him. My parents spoke Awori. The Awori are partly from Dahomey and partly from Benin. My forebears came from the riverine area through the Bight of Benin and settled in Badagry for a long time before moving down to Lagos. And when they moved down to Lagos where did they go? They went to Idunsagbe – a place famed for Bini culture and tradition. I am an Awori. Tell me, which state did they create for the Awori now? If you say the indigenous people of Lagos State are the Awori, then the Awori are the Bini. We must put history in its right perspective. The right perspective is that Lagos does not belong to the Yoruba; it belongs to the Bini. According to the Lyttleton Constitution, the West was created; the North was created and Lagos was made a colony and it later regained its independence.

Some may argue that the original Lagosians didn’t protect their legacy, allowing every Tom, Dick and Harry to hold sway politically and economically.


It is true that Lagos is open to everybody that could bring ideas. But when it comes to certain elements within the political spectrum in Nigeria… Look at it this way, will it surprise you that a representative of Lagos who calls himself a Lagosian representing the state in the National Assembly went to Kogi State to vie for the governorship? Isn’t that insulting? Some are even saying once (Osun State Governor, Rauf) Aregbesola has completed his tenure in Osun, he will come back to Lagos to contest a senatorial seat. We called Bola Tinubu, sat him down and told him how we accepted him and he let us down. I know the role I played when Bola Tinubu was coming in; when I gave him my second cousin, (Musiliu) Obanikoro to go along with him (I don’t talk to that one (Obanikoro) again after he had his hand in something embarrassing; because you don’t disgrace your family). I am not looking for anything from them. It is very wrong that people should trivialise the affairs of Lagos. For example, we kicked against (Prof. Wole) Soyinka being made the chairman of the Lagos @50 celebration. But nobody listened to us. Look at the fiasco; was it a success? Who bothered about it? People who will not celebrate the living are celebrating the dead – it doesn’t go beyond that. You acquire land from me for a public purpose and the next thing you did was to share it with your siblings, friends and other loved ones. It is really sad for people to proclaim Lagos as no man’s land. Lagos is so accommodating; it is only here you see an Igbo man being made a commissioner. Even the Yoruba that are shouting, how many Lagosians are in their cabinets? They all live in Lagos; we know them. Some of them benefitted from the liberty Lagos offers. But ask them: what have they done for their host communities? Can you imagine Orji Kalu, who bought land here, saying Lagos belongs to nobody? They just talk.


Don’t you think Prof. Wole Soyinka deserved to have been the chairman of the Lagos @50 celebration?

I am not used to Soyinka and I don’t want to be acquainted with him. It is unfortunate that because he was made the chairman of Lagos @50, he began to insult people, claiming that his father had a land in Lagos. We traced the land – one plot of land – and discovered that the land was bought from my grandfather. People like him go around insulting others. Has he not insulted Femi Okunnu before? Tell me who Wole Soyinka has never insulted? He is part of the Tinubu group. Is he not an Ogun man? I don’t think he has a right to say that Lagos is no man’s land. Who is he to say that? I think Okunnu knew better; I don’t think he meant what he said the way the press reported him. What he said is that Lagos is ‘part’ of Yoruba land; he didn’t say it was owned by the Yoruba. We need to be discreet in our definition. Geographically, we’re in the West and culturally, we speak Yoruba. If an Igbo man speaks Yoruba fluently, does that make him a Yoruba? Go to Lagos State House of Assembly and count how many of them are truly Lagos indigenes. Again, Okunnu was an active participant in the creation of Lagos State together with (Philip) Asiodu and Alison Ayida. They facilitated the creation of the state; there was a western state then. If Okunnu had advocated the merger of Lagos with the western region then, one would have thought otherwise. Wole Soyinka didn’t want Lagos to be created at that time. Soyinka used to be very radical but having got into the group of Bola Tinubu’s scientific imposition, he has been mellowing down. Soyinka would be the one that would stand for the truth when people were accused of certificate forgery and other ills. He was always at the forefront; he has become a turncoat. What happened to him? I respected him; he may not know me and he doesn’t need to know me.


So, you think Okunnu is on the same page with you when he talked about the early settlers of Lagos?

I believe Okunnu was actually agitating for the indigenes. He was president of Lagos State indigenes before me – we have Isale Eko Descendants Union, which we all belong to. All I am saying is this: Lagos is not part of Yoruba. The settlers are Bini. Wasn’t Benin part of the West before until the Mid-West was created? The Bini agitated for that, insisting that we’re not part of the Yoruba. Why can’t the Yoruba leave us alone for God’s sake? My grandfather went to court in 1889 to claim all the lands that belonged to him. He got a judgment. Then some people said, these lands were too much for one family – the place now called Ikorodu Road, they acquired it – for how much? For £27,000! My grandfather wasn’t around; he’s dead. But they forgot that this man gave them a land to build the first police barracks in Lagos. How could Bola Tinubu come all the way from wherever he came from (Kafaru brought him to me, turn Lagos into a place for Osun people in the secretariat). They’re radicalising the owners of Lagos with the way they’re acting. By the time they stand up you’ll be shocked. What are the people asking for? Give them what they deserve. Show them some respect. Okunnu did a lot for Lagos State; most parts of Victoria Island were sand-filled by the Federal Government. He and his colleagues at King’s College were able to excise Victoria Island and gave it to Lagos. In fact, Okunnu has done more for Lagos than any governor. Okunnu had his roots in Isale Eko.


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https://punchng.com/bini-not-yoruba-are-original-owners-of-lagos-ajayi-bembe/

The truth will always be bitter!

YOU THIS IGBO BOY! We don't care as long as Lagos is not Igbo's. Just go back to Ebonyi.

Lagos state is not eko (Lagos island). Lagos state is both Dahomey , part of the old ijebu kingdom(Ikorodu/epe) and Ikeja division plus the Lagos island. So because of binin connection with Lagos island they own Lagos state?
Lol go to the ijebu people or egun People and tell them binin own their land

Modified. I'm surprised that Lagos root are not actually from Yoruba's. I use to think only aworis came from ife now I know their from Benin. Why all this previous lies in history?


Egun and some other tribe may have different root. But Lagos is yorubas. We identity as Yoruba and we all kick against impostors
The Yoruba People suppress history to put them under control.
I've always watch carefully and noticed Yoruba's don't regard we natives in Lagos , they just go about screaming it belongs to Yoruba's. How many egun indigene are in sanwo-olu's cabinet?
The epe/ ikorodu and Lagos island are struggling to become someone in their state.
Our sons don't go about claiming Lagos like these Yoruba immigrant does in Lagos. We have otedola folorunsho alakija and many prominent Lagos natives.
They would never call on them to give them tangible post in their land. Instead they give it to kwara/ osun/ kogi etc.
I'm displeased with our closest brother Ogun state who has taken this oportunity to hold top political post in Lagos while our son jimi agbaje struggles to be governor of his state.

I've always see Mr tinubu has am impostor in Lagos but Yoruba immigrant called me ipob. I've been to several youth meeting of Lagos natives. We know ourselves and this present day we are all Yoruba's that why I call the other Yoruba's immigrant.
There are many minority ethnic group in Lagos also. The only one I won't accept is ilaje claiming anywhere in epe division. History had it that war with the British and ijebus chase the ijebus down to the inner part of epe and made Epe a lagos province. I've been to many Lagos native student meeting and I know the indigenes are not happy and their powerless. Those that want to fight for us always get bribed by the migrant


2modification: the aworis are different from the benis , aworis are yorubas from ile ife. Why while some number of eko People are from Benin

Every right thinking Nigeria knew that Lagos does not belong to the Yorubas

illicit:
That is history



Every place has its history


Lagos is Yoruba land as at today, it might become part of Biafra land in the future....

I just read the history and I'll edit my comment up there. Yoruba's are the enemies of Lagos . they've destroyed the sweat if our ancestor. I never knew aworis has more connection to Benin than ile ife.
Ijebus are obviously not descendant of Yoruba's. They're from Nile of Egypt. Egun are from Benin. So why do Yoruba's chased the whole native of Lagos away from the seat of power ?
We bet to be someone in our own land!
I've always against tinubu and tell people Yoruba migrant are the our problem in Lagos.

Who was arguing otherwise?

NGpatriot:
Why are Igbos so obsessed with this silly and meaningless rubbish?

You've been recycling this particular article and meaningless story since 2017.

Do you ibos have a time table where you share this story and decide who is going to post and recycle it on NL everyday and every week?


Jobless ipob villager.

Why leave the message and attack the messenger ?

LegendHero:
Maybe Benin people should move the stool of their Oba to Lagos and lay claim to it since they owned it.

They should also depose all the government ruling in Lagos and install Obaseki as the supreme ruler of Lagos.

They should also make sure that Bini language is used in the Lagos house of assembly and seize all the crown of all the Yoruba Obas in Lagos.

Yoruba people are hypocrite. Even our Ogun state brothers knows the difference. Ogun state is the only state that has similarities with Lagos

If they can’t do none of this, then they should keep SHUT and stop saying rubbish!!

The present obas in Lagos have no Yoruba root. Only the Yoruba immigrant like tinubu causing confusion for us.
I've been saying this for long. Very soon these people will start imposing bales who has no root in Lagos as rulers.
Whenever we confront the Yoruba immigrant about our right in Lagos they'll say Lagos is no mans land. That statement is mostly used by Yoruba's to Lagos natives. Because igbos will never tell us to our face that we don't own our land like Yoruba's are doing.
Lagos belong to lagos natives not Yoruba nation.

Lol

His own problem, every is trying to twist history for selfish interest

:I always know for a actuality that Edo owned Lagos. We shall match there and put our father as Governor soonlol after over 150 decades. Lagos is now Yoruba farmland, blame the Britts.

NGpatriot:
Why are Igbos so obsessed with this silly and meaningless rubbish?

You've been recycling this particular article and meaningless story since 2017.

Do you ibos have a time table where you share this story and decide who is going to post and recycle it on NL everyday and every week?


Jobless ipob villager.

Because they are obsessed with making inroads into the political leadership of Lagos, all the way up to Governor, and feel the Yorubas stand in the way of that.

They think Yorubas lead and will continue to lead Lagos politically because the State is viewed a Yoruba State.

If they can therefore create doubt about Lagos being a Yoruba State then the Yorubas become less poweful politically thus giving Igbos a chance to take advantage and become more politically relevant. That is the crude thinking of IPOBians.

From all indication he has beef against Tinubu but instead to Ajayi to attack Tinubu personally he was trying to cause another problem in the southwest.

People that lacking historical facts trying to masturbating on history. Some of us that know the history of Lagos not even based on oral history but our findings also include archaeology that is enough evidence to back up our claims .

This is why I don't have respect for some prominent Nigerian newspapers granting press conferences to a stupid fellow is what Keep wondering me.

Bini people has always claiming seniority to other tribes and little wonder bini kingdom is not the most powerful kingdom in Nigeria.

tollyboy5:

The present obas in Lagos have no Yoruba root. Only the Yoruba immigrant like tinubu causing confusion for us.
I've been saying this for long. Very soon these people will start imposing bales who has no root in Lagos as rulers.
Whenever we confront the Yoruba immigrant about our right in Lagos they'll say Lagos is no mans land. That statement is mostly used by Yoruba's to Lagos natives. Because igbos will never tell us to our face that we don't own our land like Yoruba's are doing.
Lagos belong to lagos natives not Yoruba nation.

U know most of lagos mainland ikorodu badagry epe agege and ikeja were part of western nigeria only lagos island was the capital. And had it been lagos failed when it stopped being the capital u people wont be spending time on dis nonsense

This is one of the ironies of life and a very loud statement about what Igbos are i.e usurpers and very covetuous souls.

I am a Lagosian who has dealt with other Lagosians from all parts of Nigeria for decades.

I dont know many Edos, Aworis, Ijebu or any other continuously shouting they own Lagos yet the Igbos continue to do this on their behalf divisively so as to instigate those people against Yorubas in the hope they can profit from any ensuing discord.

It is always Igbos obsessed with showing online that Lagos belongs to all others, even alien from Mars, but Yorubas. Why they do this can only remain unseen to fools.

Make Binis come carry Lagos go Edo nah. Nonsense talk

Hahaha But Binis don't want to accept the fact they're of Yoruba extraction from Ile-Ife as a direct descendants of Oduduwa? But they want us to quickly accept their claim as the first dwellers and original owners of Lagoon of Eko? Yes, no doubt they are right. But the reality is that Binis are two-faced and spewing superior trash in other to gain back their lost relevance!

-Binis are Yorubas too and Yorubas owns Lagos. But to understand the matter further, there are three (3) first settlers and originators of Lagoon of Eko which are; Aworis, Binis, and Ijebus.

Ijebuites played an important roles in business trade, economy, festival activities like Eyo, Egungun Masquerade, trado practices like awo and ifa, etc. Therefore, Binis can't claim Lagoon of Eko alone.

Aworis also migrated from Ota, Ogun state. Ota indigenes are the original Aworis who played important roles in fishing, water transports, animal rearing, etc.

QUE: WHAT ROLE DID BINIS PLAYED IN LAGOS THAT WE CAN SEE TODAY?

Chest beaters, stay off..

Tunde835:
U know most of lagos mainland ikorodu badagry epe agege and ikeja were part of western nigeria only lagos island was the capital. And had it been lagos failed when it stopped being the capital u people wont be spending time on dis nonsense

Read my comment up there I'm not from Lagos island. I'm from epe . Lagos state is different from Lagos(eko).
Epe are mainly ijebus and the kosoko eko epes.
Ijebus are not from ile ife , we originally from Nile of Egypt.
I'm not saying we are not Yoruba's but Yoruba should stop robbing us our political post. Appointing immigrant