Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has for the first time publicly addressed persistent claims suggesting he has Igbo paternity, dismissing the allegation with amusement.
Speaking on Thursday when he received the leadership of the Ndigbo Amaka Progressive Market Association—an umbrella body of major markets in Lagos State—at the boardroom of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library in Abeokuta, Obasanjo described the insinuation as laughable.
According to a statement issued Friday by his Special Assistant on Media, Kehinde Akinyemi, the former president simply said: “It just makes me laugh.”
The meeting focused on the group’s request for Obasanjo’s support in actualizing the long-planned Owerri Central Market, envisioned as one of the most modern and largest markets in Nigeria.
Obasanjo acknowledged that the project had been contemplated since Imo State’s creation but had repeatedly stalled for various reasons.
“I am glad it is coming up again and I hope this time, we are all going to make it real. It is going to be big, the first of its kind,” he said, expressing optimism due to the current Imo State governor’s interest and commitment.
He offered to lead the marketing team for the market and pledged to assist in mobilizing support.
The former president used the occasion to reaffirm his belief in national unity and freedom of movement across Nigeria.
“I don’t believe anybody in Nigeria should be driven away from any part of the country. We own this country together,” Obasanjo declared.
He recalled his role in the civil war era, stating that the conflict was fought “to bring Igbos back, not to drive them away.”
“Having ensured that the Yorubas, Igbos and Hausas all came together to fight the war of unity in Nigeria, and not to fight Igbos to go, but to come. So if anybody says to me that somebody should leave any place, he will be the one to leave,” he added firmly.
The group’s spokesperson, Chief Emeka Emmanuel, who read a letter jointly signed by Chinedu Ukatu and Iwuchukwu Ezenwafor, described the proposed Owerri Central Market as a future hub for innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic growth.
They sought Obasanjo’s intervention to help secure loans and spaces for members, as well as broader support to take many traders off the streets and into formalized market settings.
Obasanjo’s response reflects his long-standing advocacy for national integration, inter-ethnic harmony, and equitable development across Nigeria’s regions.
The former president has consistently rejected ethno-regional divisions and emphasized collective ownership of the country by all its peoples.
