Ohaneze shocks Ooni, says Yoruba were Igbo slaves in Ife

In what appears a periodic brush between Ife and other ethnic groups in southern Nigeria, Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, has drawn the fire of Ndigbo with his peace efforts clothed in family tree analysis.

After affirming what he called the inseparable family ties between Yoruba and Igbo nations, the Ohaneze Ndigbo fired back, saying Oduduwa, the father of the Yoruba, was the last prince of a king in Igboland.

The firefly began when the president of the Lagos Ohaneze Solomon Ogbonna visited him alongside other members of Farmers and Cultural Organisation of Africa.

“We have to say the truth and the truth must set us all free, we are blood brothers. We should be inseparable. Please feel at home in Yorubaland and respect your Yoruba brothers and sisters too, said Ooni.

“We still have House of Igbo right in this palace till date. We call it Ile Igbo up till now. Our ancestors are buried and transfigured there. That is where kolanut was first discovered and nurtured.

“The ancient Igbo house is one of the most sacred places in the palace till date. One of my brother kings – Aka Arogundabi from Iremo quarters saw the mysteries of house of Igbo(Aka-ri-Igbo). Till date, Akarigbo of Remoland still sees house of Igbo as a common heritage of his forebears.

“We have a lot of discoveries that the Igbo and Yoruba people once lived together as one family and this will be revealed to the public. We should look at things that connect us together, not those that separate us.”

Reacting to the statement from Ooni’s palace yesterday, Ohaneze’s National Deputy Publicity Secretary of Chuks Ibegbu rejected that genealogy.

He said Igbo people were the original occupants and owners of  Ile-Ife before the arrival of the Yoruba.

“Odudunwa (Last born), later called Oduduwa was an Igbo Prince who occupied Ile-Ife, but the Yoruba saw him as a god because he was very powerful and had magical powers,” he said.

“The Yorubas learnt and spoke Igbo language then and that is the reason for the similarity between   Igbo and Yoruba language.”

Two years ago, similar historical arguments erupted between Ife and Benin historians, snowballing into blitzes of media attacks on monarchs and historians from the two ancient towns.