Polygamy is not as popular among the Igbos of Nigeria as it is among many other groups of Nigerians. It is therefore a curiosity that many Igbos online today do not see that attempting a romance with a married woman, is not just immoral, but is not something any group of people should be proud of or a concept they should be advertising.
Dr Azikiwe’s attempt to become the Premier of the Western Region of Nigeria was crass immorality since it could only have been borne out of covetousness.
Incidentally, Nigerian Igbos are the largest homogenous group of supposed Bible-believing Christians in Nigeria. And “Thou shall not covet your neighbour’s wife is one of the earliest commandments of God as recorded in the old testament of the Christian Bible.
Trying to lead a group of people you are not part of, or related to in any way, and you do not know much about, is akin to trying to have a romantic dalliance with an already married woman, a queen for that matter, with the intention of fathering one heir who will naturally have a confused heritage.
Today’s Igbos should first popularise Polyandry, that extreme from of polygamy where a woman can marry more than one man, after making polygamy the rule, before preaching the propriety of a Fulani becoming the Obi of Onitsha while another Fulani remains the Sultan of Sokoto in the supposed spirit of “Nigerian unity”. They should do this before they popularise what they should see as immorality in trying to lead a people you do not know.
Calling a man who merely told you the woman you are ‘toasting’ is married is the right and civil thing to do. It will always be the right thing for as long as it is right for the owner of a house to defend his house against any intruders, no matter their intentions on his house.
It became worse when it is recognized that the Dr Azikiwe who was trying to lead Yorubaland back then, had not shown any outstanding leadership skill even among his people.
Incidentally, for the 40 following years he led his people, he never led them farther than Chief Awolowo led the Western region despite Awolowo being in opposition and Dr Azikiwe being the President of Nigeria. Of course, he could never have led the Western region farther than he led his people.
Today’s Igbos should not be proud of that earliest display of greed and selfishness among Nigeria’s federating peoples. They should rather be pushing for a return to a proper federation where the different peoples of Nigeria readily understand and respect one another.
It is quite possible that Dr Azikiwe was short-sighted or was misguided or merely misjudged the welcome the normally warm and welcoming Yoruba people gave him, like every good wife will welcome a dignified-looking visitor.
A truly dignified visitor should know that is never be a licence for the visitor being respected to assume he is wanted in preference to the man of the house. Knowing boundaries is one proof of being civilised.
Never ever again should any Igbo say Awolowo introduced tribalism into Nigerian politics except they believe it is right for visitors to try to seduce already married women in the house of their hosts.
Without owning up that Dr Azikiwe was wrong and should not have sought to lead the Western region when there were many Yorubas in his Party who could very well lead their Yoruba region, today’s Igbos must agree that their Dr Azikiwe was only being covetous and trying to steal in the Western region, what he wished he had in his region, but did not have and could not creatively develop, like Awolowo did.