By Chimamanda Adichie
A few days ago, the Oba of
Lagos threatened Igbo leaders. If they did not vote for his governorship
candidate in Lagos, he said, they would be thrown into the lagoon. His entire
speech was a flagrant performance of disregard. His words said, in effect:
I think so little of you that I don’t have to cajole you but will just threaten
you and, by the way, your safety in Lagos is not assured, it is negotiable.
There have been
condemnations of the Oba’s words. Sadly, many of the condemnations from
non-Igbo people have come with the ugly impatience of expressions like ‘move
on,’ and ‘don’t be over-emotional’ and ‘calm down.’ These take away the
power, even the sincerity, of the condemnations. It is highhanded and offensive
to tell an aggrieved person how to feel, or how quickly to forgive, just as an
apology becomes a non-apology when it comes with ‘now get over it.’
Other condemnations of the
Oba’s words have been couched in dismissive or diminishing language such as
‘The Oba can’t really do anything, he isn’t actually going to kill anyone. He
was joking. He was just being a loudmouth.’
Or – the basest yet – ‘we
are all prejudiced.’ It is dishonest to respond to a specific act of prejudice
by ignoring that act and instead stressing the generic and the general.
It is similar to responding to a specific crime by saying ‘we are all capable
of crime.’ Indeed we are. But responses such as these are diversionary tactics.
They dismiss the specific act, diminish its importance, and ultimately aim at
silencing the legitimate fears of people.
We are indeed all
prejudiced, but that is not an appropriate response to an issue this serious.
The Oba is not an ordinary citizen. He is a traditional ruler in a part of a
country where traditional rulers command considerable influence – the
reluctance on the part of many to directly chastise the Oba speaks to his
power. The Oba’s words matter. He is not a singular voice; he represents
traditional authority. The Oba’s words matter because they are enough to
incite violence in a political setting already fraught with uncertainty. The
Oba’s words matter even more in the event that Ambode loses the governorship
election, because it would then be easy to scapegoat Igbo people and hold them
punishable.
