Were We Once the Same?

By Okoi Obono-Obla 

Were We Once the Same?

Can we now accept my postulations that in this country we were once one and the same?

“The truth is that there was no distinct tribe or ethnic group known as the Igbo in this part of the world before the arrival of the British government in West Africa. Those who today identify as Igbo were originally Igalla, Benin, and ancient Ibibio people. To this day, Ibibio communities remain present across all five states that make up what is now considered Igbo land.”

 — Idongesit Udobong

This perspective resonates with the testimony of Olaudah Equiano (also known as Gustavus Vassa), a boy captured in the Benin Kingdom, enslaved, and later freed. In his autobiography The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano (1789), he described his homeland:

 “The part of Africa in which I was born is called Eboe, and is situated in the interior of Africa… It is named Essaka.”

Equiano’s words show that he identified his birthplace as Eboe (Essaka), within what was then considered the Benin region. His account underscores how identities in West Africa were complex, fluid, and often reshaped by colonial and external forces.

Conclusion:
Taken together, Udobong’s perspective and Equiano’s testimony invite us to reflect on whether the distinctions we now emphasize were once blurred, and whether, at our roots, we were truly one people.