Chinua Achebe’s Secret Message: Exposing Ibo's True Agenda in Lagos

"We are strangers in this land. If good comes to it may we have our share. But if bad comes let it go to the owners of the land who know what gods should be appeased." -Chinua Achebe Cultural worldviews dictate how groups interact with host communities, and the famous literary words of Chinua Achebe in No Longer At Ease reveal a profound psychological truth. He wrote that strangers from Umuofia, representing Ibo people, take their share when good comes to the land, but leave the bad to the owners who know what gods must be appeased. This perspective explains the underlying transactional nature of certain migrant populations living in Yorùbáland. They view themselves permanently as sojourners who extract wealth and seek to capture political influence without building genuine loyalty or cultural integration. Nigerian politics reveals this exact dynamic playing out in real time with Ibo sojourners frequently scrambling for political offices in Lagos while dodging accountability whenever local crises strike in the same state. This mindset is a reflection of the philosophy where strangers partake in the good fortunes of a host territory while leaving the burdens to the indigenous owners. History shows how this opportunism operates during moments of high tension. During the tumultuous political upheavals of 1993 to 1994 following the events surrounding M.K.O. Abiola and the June 12 struggle, many Ibo residents packed their bags and fled the South West en-masse to escape potential danger. They returned only after courageous indigenes and other Yorùbá people weathered the storm, immediately resuming their demands to dictate governance and resource control to the owners of the land. True community building requires absolute loyalty, matching the wisdom of our elders captured in the saying: ẹyẹlé kìí bá onílé jẹ, kó bá onílé mu, kówá dí ọjọ‌ ikú kó yẹrí. This means a pigeon does not stay with its owner when the going is good and then fly away when things go awry. That expression represents the ultimate standard of loyalty and dependability which seems foreign to those who treat our heritage with transactional detachment, living by the doctrine that strangers merely take the good and leave the bad to the owners of the land. Yorùbá culture thrives on unmatched hospitality, welcoming every visitor with open arms and generous communal warmth. At the same time, this hospitality must never mutate into blind naivety or surrender to political manipulation. Yorùbá politics require clear boundaries to ensure that Yorùbá people retain their rightful authority without falling victim to parasitic political exploitation under the guise of unity. Recognizing differing cultural values amongst the different ethnic nationalities in Nigeria helps safeguard regional and economic stability. We cannot afford to assume that every other group has the same worldview as we do. While we expect the ẹyẹlé, or pigeon, to be loyal, some do not mind the ẹyẹlé making its way into their pots. by 'Busuyi Oris #LagosPolitics #YorubaHeritage #NigerianElections #SouthEastMigration #IndigenousRights #PoliticalTruth #NigeriaHistory