Anti-Igbo sentiment
[5] 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.
[6] 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.
[7] 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.
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.
[14] 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.
[15][16] 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.
[19] During this time millions of Igbo people fled back to their homeland in Eastern Nigeria and ethnic relations rapidly deteriorated.
[23] 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.
[28] 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.
The announcement led to a rumor that the Nigerian government, through that medium, intended to find out the exact population of the Igbo in Lagos, with the plan of eventually exterminating them.
[34] In a 2021 interview with Ebuka Obi-Uchendu, Stella whose surname "Damasus" often sparks discussions and internet memes,[35] highlighted that her family felt compelled to change their Igbo name to safeguard against potential harm or violence.
[32] Before the federal army arrived in Benin City, the Urhobo and Isoko people attacked their Anioma and Ika neighbors.
[33] 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.
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.
[41] The Banking Obligation (Eastern States Decree) further marginalized Igbo account holders by limiting compensation to 20 pounds, regardless of pre-war deposits.
[citation needed] The Indigenisation Decree of 1972, intended to empower Nigerians economically, alienated the Igbo, who were unprepared due to the war’s devastation.
[43] 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.
[44] 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.
[45] 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.
[46] 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.
[51][52] Following the transition of power from the PDP to the APC in Nigeria in 2015, noticeable cases of Igbophobia emerged within the Nigerian government.
[53] 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.
2023 elections Peter Obi's emergence as the Labour party candidate prompted Igbophobic sentiments and hatred against the Igbo people.
[46]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".
[92] 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.
[101] 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.
[102][103] 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.
[106] 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.
[107] 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.
[110]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.
