Obasanjo's Real father - A Paternity Controversy

BY SAHARA REPORTERS JUNE 18, 2007

It may sound stranger than fiction, but as daylight melts into darkness, the rumour about Obasanjo’s Igbo roots is gaining currency. Former Abia State governor, Orji Uzor Kalu, had inadvertently teed off the Obasanjo paternity debate a few weeks ago when he declared that nobody should use the ex-president’s failings as a yardstick to appraise the competence of Yoruba leaders, because Obasanjo is not a Yoruba man in the first place. But the significance of Kalu’s postulation was lost on many who dismissed it with a wave of the hand.

However, last week, tales about Obasanjo’s non-Yoruba ancestry received an oriental twist when The Nation of Sunday, 10 June, published what could be regarded as the biggest affront on Obasanjo’s paternity. Slammed on its front page were two identical photographs of Obasanjo with the headline “Spot The Difference.” While on the right was an old photograph of Obasanjo, on the left was what appeared like an old black-and-white photo of the same Obasanjo. To assist the reader, who apparently, would require the services of a graphic artist to spot the difference, The Nation editors provided a caption to illustrate the pictures. “The personality in picture A is not former President Olusegun Obasanjo who is in picture B. But what do both personalities have in common?” The Nation asked.

The man in picture A, The Nation explained, was an Igbo who lived in the Abeokuta area in the 1930s, about the time Obasanjo was born. According to The Nation, the police officer later became a monarch on a prominent South-Eastern throne. Before then, however, he had interacted fruitfully with the local community and had a brief affair with an Owu lady, before his final exit from the South-West. Though the newspaper did not say more than that, it left little to the imagination. Whatever innuendo was left of the brewing Obasanjo paternity controversy was blown open the next day by the Abuja-based Leadership newspaper via a damning column tagged Olusegun Igbochukwu Obasanjo, authored by Sam Nda-Isaiah. Using the pictures supplied by The Nation as the fodder of his write-up, the columnist released the bombshell. “The editors of The Nation didn’t want to say much, and they have left us to our imagination, but it won’t be from me that you will hear that Obasanjo’s father was Igwe Onyejekwe, a top ranking police officer who became the Igwe of Onitsha in his lifetime. During his controversial reign, the throne was in contention between him and Igwe Okosi II, just as it is today between Igwe Achebe and Igwe Odukwe,” Nda-Isaiah wrote.

Not done with Obasanjo, the columnist went for the kill: “Igwe Onyejekwe, Obasanjo’s daddy, died after the civil war and, like his son, was said to be very cantankerous and quarrelsome.”The columnist intoned that the circumstances of his birth and rejection would have helped make the former president a very bitter and wicked person. He implored Nigerians never to make anyone their leader except they know where he is coming from. “And Nigerians really saw that proverbial wickedness in the last eight years. It is a very wicked man that would increase the price of a litre of fuel by a whopping N10 on his way out of power, simply because he has a pecuniary interest in refineries he had just sold away. It is also a very bad and wicked president that would double the value of VAT on his way out. What does it cost to be nice and kind and empathetic? Nothing! But that’s for normal people. And Obasanjo is far from being normal.” Closing on a comical note, the columnist advised that since Obasanjo loves power so much and is a prince of Onitsha, ‘‘can’t we just simply crown him the Igwe so that he can leave us alone?’’

But can it be true? Is Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, the Balogun of Owu in Egbaland, be the biological son of Igwe Joseph Okwudili Onyejekwe, the Obi Onitsha Ado N’Idu from 1962-1970? Onyejekwe ascended the coveted throne after the demise of Igwe James Okosi who ruled from 1931-1935. His enthronement came after the report of the famous W.R. Harding Commission, which resolved disputes among the contenders for the throne. If the answers are in the affirmative, does that mean that the Igbo have accidentally taken their eight years ration at the presidency and the Yoruba have not? Oba Isaac Adeyemi Ojelade- Badegunle 1, the Onibogun of Ibogunland, Obasanjo’s reputed maternal hometown, says the rumour peddlers are either callous or are just doing it out of idleness. “It is a big lie, it is nothing but rumours. Obasanjo is a typical Abeokuta man and his father was a pure Egba man from Owu with three facial marks on each side of his cheeks. As a matter of fact, his father came from Abule Elere to Ibogun. They are from Agbole-Olusomi in Abeokuta and I come from his mother’s lineage,” the nonagenarian told TheNEWS.

And on page 84 of the 253-page biography titled: Olusegun Obasanjo in The Eyes Of Time- A Biography of the African Statesman, Onukaba Adinoyi-Ojo, making reference to Obasanjo’s paternity, wrote: “A little over a year after Ashabi’s (Obasanjo’s mother) death, Amos Adigun Obasanjo Bankole passed away following a brief illness. He was buried at Onigbedu where he had remained till the very end. At 22, just when a smile was perching on his face, Olusegun Obasanjo became an orphan.” But the rumour peddlers are far from being convinced. In Onitsha the popular story is that Obasanjo is the product of a romantic liaison between Igwe Onyejekwe and Ashabi, Obasanjo’s mother, in the 1930s. As the story goes, the Onitsha prince jettisoned the idea of taking Ashabi as wife because doing so would hurt his chances of ascending the throne. Another source told the magazine in Onitsha that Onyejekwe actually issued a recommendation that facilitated Obasanjo’s enlistment into the Nigerian Army in 1958. However, in Adinoyi-Ojo’s book there is no mention of Obasanjo requiring recommendation from anyone to join the Army. Yet the proponents of Obasanjo’s Igboship point to a statement credited to him (Obasanjo) during a working visit to Anambra State as confirmation of their claim. Obasanjo had reportedly told an audience in Awka that any of his children is qualified to govern Anambra State. Though the statement was brushed aside then as a gibberish political talk, it has become invaluable with the advantage of hindsight. Whatever anyone chooses to believe, indications are that the rumour mill will remain in overdrive for some time.

http://saharareporters.com/2007/06/18/obasanjos-real-father-paternity-controversy

Striking resemblance.

Igwe Onyejekwe (shirtless) on the right during his coronation.
Blood is really thicker than water.

Igwe Onyejekwe sitted in white Agbada

Ibos already had their turn

Mazi Obasanjo Igbochuku

Mazi Goodluck Azikwe

They want to marginalise Southwest


.

Obasanjo’s birth a mystery. Was Igwe Onyejekwe secretly in communication with him as a young boy. A little boy cannot fund his tuition fees and upkeep by himself, especially as the adopted Father abandoned his mother. Did late Onyejekwe used his contacts as a Police Officer to link up his first son in the army officers cadet?

Obasanjo and Ifeajuna from Onitsha were good friends. Obasanjo and Nzeogwu were even said to be more than brothers. Is this ordinary? It was even rumoured that Obasanjo knew about the coup. The book ”Nzeogwu” was written by Obasanjo.

Obasanjo was close to Ironsi and acted as a mediator between the coup plotters and the military head.

Like Joseph, God used him to save his people from potential genocide by the third marine division. Obasanjo made sure those guilty of rape and also those who took part in post-war extrajudicial killings of Igbo civilians were shot.

Igwe Onyejekwe’s demise in 1970 may have helped cover the true origin of Olu Obasanjo, but the acts and deeds of Obasanjo after the civil war and during his Presidency is a pointer that blood is thicker than water.

Onyesanjo that Obasanjo changed to Obasanjo just because to be accepted by Yoruba people.

Onyesanjo should leave Yorubaland and go and meet his people.

Yorubas keep scoring an own goal to further darken their chances of getting the presidency in 2023

I mean who do they think will buy into this tales of the moonlight?

I just can't stop laughing though

Anago55:
Yorubas keep scoring an own goal to further darken their chances of getting the presidency in 2023

I mean who do they think will buy into this tales of the moonlight?

I just can't stop laughing though

Well you are right. By equity and natural justice, the 2023 Presidency goes to the SE, but looking at the mystery of Obasanjo’s paternity you can't just push it aside. Unlike Murtala whose origin to Auchi seems to be accepted by the day, Obasanjo’s origin despite the clue is still muddled in secrecy.

johnmartus:
Onyesanjo that Obasanjo changed to Obasanjo just because to be accepted by Yoruba people.

Onyesanjo should leave Yorubaland and go and meet his people.

So this is your new tactics?if you are so sure that SW will get the presidency in 2023 then there is no need for all this controversy. Except you people already know something others are not privy to...

Bonesking:
Well you are right. By equity and natural justice, the 2023 Presidency goes to the SE, but looking at the mystery of Obasanjo’s paternity you can't just push it aside. Unlike Murtala whose origin to Auchi seems to be accepted by the day, Obasanjo’s origin despite the clue is still muddled in secrecy.

. Wait,were you not the one I saw on the other thread arguing about the legality of the Eastern security network and how igbos are fools and all the bad things of the world. You ended it by claiming Igbo

I might be wrong though. what do you intend to achieve with this thread?

Anago55:
. Wait,were you not the one I saw on the other thread arguing about the legality of the Eastern security network and how igbos are fools and all the bad things of the world. You ended it by claiming Igbo

I might be wrong though. what do you intend to achieve with this thread?

I’m just curious just as many Nigerians to the secret paternity of Olusegun Obasanjo. Why then will you bring up that useless ECN into this discuss? Must everyone worship scammer Kanu to be seen as less Igbo?

All I’m for is that the Presidency be zoned to the SE, but the allegations of Obasanjo’s Igbo paternity is something I’ve had keen interest for a long time.

Anago55:
Yorubas keep scoring an own goal to further darken their chances of getting the presidency in 2023

I mean who do they think will buy into this tales of the moonlight?

I just can't stop laughing though

sw APC you mean?
don't drag all Yoruba to their madness

Obasanjo should thank his luck,at least they did not claim that he fell from "hell" as they usually ascribe to their projenitors.

Even though the intention of the rumor peddlers is obvious


....but to be sincere, the late Igwe and Obasanjo look alike.

If truly the man served in Owu around the time of Obasanjo's birth, then. ..

Chai! These slimy and undependable race is on rampage once again. So this is the new trick?

2023 is going to be interesting. Ndiigbo is making their last push towards a united Nigeria. The world knows it! Justice and equity demands it. Deep inside I don't want it to materialise.

I want our politicians to go back to our precivil war politics. It's been long Nigeria felt our weight. They have forgotten.

Bonesking:
I’m just curious just as many Nigerians to the secret paternity of Olusegun Obasanjo. Why then will you bring up that useless ECN into this discuss? Must everyone worship scammer Kanu to be seen as less Igbo?

All I’m for is that the Presidency be zoned to the SE, but the allegations of Obasanjo’s Igbo paternity is something I’ve had keen interest for a long time.

Guy man, you are not curious. You know the agenda and you are pushing it.

God forbid this yoruba tribe. See dem dey deny their son because of presidency. Anybody that trust a yoruba man is gradually digging his grave, dem fit deny even their mama for a plate of ewedu.

So sw is denying their illustrious son cus of 2023 presidency... These people are truly snakes and Betrayals... If they can deny their own son for just political reasons. Who can they not betray like dis.....

@ Bonesking,OBJ have taken the turn of Southwest whether he is Igbo bastard or not, it is now the turn of Southeast,I mean a person from southeast.

gwafaeziokwu:


Chai! These slimy and undependable race is on rampage once again. So this is the new trick?

2023 is going to be interesting. Ndiigbo is making their last push towards a united Nigeria. The world knows it! Justice and equity demands it. Deep inside I don't want it to materialise.

I want our politicians to go back to our precivil war politics. It's been long Nigeria felt our weight. They have forgotten.

Don't you know the OP is a fulani terrorist who wants to create a quarrel between Igbos and Yorubas? Ask yourself the essence of this thread. Don't give any ear to these terrorist. They will be frustrated.

Childish, Obasanjo is now Igbo? Well, desperation can make a man talk from his anus instead of making good use of his brain..Please stop disgracing Yoruba nation.

Yujin:

Don't you know the OP is a fulani terrorist who wants to create a quarrel between Igbos and Yorubas? Ask yourself the essence of this thread. Don't give any ear to these terrorist. They will be frustrated.

Off topic: you didn't give feedback on that comment you left on the thread. You mentioned a group, and I was fascinated.

Uzor Kalu should do and go back to jail jare..

Whether Igbo took Yoruba slot or not, SW presidency in 2023 is non negotiable. We need to right so many wrongs going on in the country.

Well, if they can make people (I mean intelligent people) believe that the man in Aso rock isn't Buhari but a cloned impostor from Sudan, then I guess it is very possible to pull this one off.
Humans really love to be deceived.


In my opinion, everything about Obansajo reeks Yoruba.

Ojiofor:
@ Bonesking,OBJ have taken the turn of Southwest whether he is Igbo bastard or not, it is now the turn of Southeast,I mean a person from southeast.

I agree with you on that. No doubt, it's the turn of the SE come 2023.