By: Mike Chiedu Osemeke

While many continue to debate Anioma’s place within Nigeria’s geopolitical map, the facts remain unambiguous. Anioma is not an isolated or hybrid identity. It is fundamentally Igbo and naturally aligned with the South-East.

The people of Anioma speak dialects like Enuani, Ika and Ukwuani; these are all rooted in the Igbo language family and mutually intelligible with those spoken in Anambra, Enugu and Imo. Their culture, traditions and festivals mirror those of the core South-East states and their historical participation in the Ekumeku Resistance confirms shared Igbo ancestry.

The tragic Asaba Massacre of 1967 stands as painful evidence. Anioma men and boys were executed for being Igbo. Their language and names marked them. That incident alone invalidates any argument that separates Anioma from the Igbo nation.

Much of the confusion today stems from propaganda crafted during and after the civil war. Northern hegemonic narratives deliberately painted the Igbo as domineering and divisive, creating psychological distance between Anioma and their eastern kin. This was a strategy to fragment Igbo unity and reduce Anioma’s confidence in its heritage.

Economically, Anioma’s heartbeat connects with the South-East through trade, transport and family ties, particularly between Asaba and Onitsha, which operate as twin cities. The Niger River may divide them geographically, but not culturally or economically.

Anioma’s current classification under the South-South was a political decision, not a cultural reality. The truth is simple and evidence-based. Anioma speaks Igbo, lives Igbo and trades Igbo. Recognizing that connection is not a matter of sentiment but it is a matter of historical and cultural fact.

Strength lies in numbers( Igwe bu Ike). Denial of a fact, does not mean the fact is not a reality. For those who claim that Igbos are inherently domineering or any other slur they choose to use, remember it is in every human being to have negative character traits.

Mike Chiedu Osemeke

An Onicha- Ugbo indigene and journalist, writes from Lagos