Ikechukwu Ayo Aduba, a retired police commissioner, has hit back at Chief Phillip Asiodu. Asiodu recently claimed that Asaba is not an Igbo community and denied ethnic motives behind the 1967 Asaba Massacre.
In a detailed response titled "Building On Truth: Asaba, Igbo Identity And The 1967 Massacre," Aduba dismantled Asiodu's assertions. He argued that language, culture, and historical records all prove Asaba's Igbo roots.
"To say the least, Chief Philip Asiodu is free in his political views," Aduba noted. "But history is not a personal opinion.
It is recorded in Language, Artefacts, and Blood."
Aduba pointed to linguistic evidence first. Asaba, located in Delta State, belongs to the Anioma/Igboid cluster, he explained.
According to him, linguists classify Anioma communities—including Asaba—as native speakers of Igboid languages. This language branch falls under Niger-Congo and connects to official Igbo dialects like Onitsha and Enuani.
Enuani is spoken in Asaba and nearby Anioma towns. Asaba itself recognises Igbo as its national language.
Cultural practices also reflect Igbo heritage, Aduba contended. Asaba's traditions mirror core Igbo Omenala customs and values.
The Asagba of Asaba pledges to preserve "Asaba Cultural Heritage, especially IgbaMkpisi culture." IgbaMkpisi is an Igbo initiation rite tied to titles and ancestry.
Traditional greetings to the Asagba use Igbo titles and cosmology. "NnaAgu!
AsagbaAhabaAgu!" is the formal salutation.
Masquerade traditions like Agaba and Mgbedike originate from Igbo-speaking communities. Five quarters—Ezenei, Ugbomanta, Umuagu, Umuaji, Umuonaje—all bear the Igbo morpheme "Umu," meaning "Children."
Asaba's original name was Ani Ahaba, an Igbo phrase meaning "We have settled in this land." This detail alone undercuts Asiodu's revisionism.
On the 1967 massacre itself, Aduba rejected Asiodu's characterisation entirely. Federal records, survivor testimony, and academic research all confirm the killings were ethnically motivated.
Between 373 and 800 people died during the October 5-7 attack. Survivors and recent memorials cite figures exceeding 1,000 deaths.
In 2001, General Yakubu Gowon, Nigeria's former head of state, publicly apologised to Asaba over the massacre. His acknowledgment validated what Asiodu now seeks to deny.
"The Asaba sons and daughters who died in October 1967 deserve the truth," Aduba insisted. "So do future generations.
True history is the foundation of great nations."
