Ibadan is the largest city in west africa by geographical area. Ibadan is my city. I live in Ibadan. This write up isn’t meant to be an epistle or take you through the history of Ibadan. It is just to inform and educate some who might not know some salient facts about Ibadan. Well for those that read history, you will agree that Ibadan was the pride of Nigeria many years ago.
Photo: Samuel Falade
What Ibadan lacks in aquatic splendor is well compensated for by the majesty of its rolling scenery. The hills, the landscape, the rivers, the valleys, name it. Straight to the point, many a times, people make jokes out of Ibadan. These jokes have become so old it seems no other city exist in Nigeria again. Well it’s okay to make a joke of any place to make people laugh. While some of them might be correct, most times they are over hyped. For some of the comedians, it might be just to make people laugh but most times people take the issues to be the fact ESPECIALLY people who have never been to Ibadan before. When I say people who haven’t been to Ibadan before, they include
People who just pass through Iwo road, Ibadan on their way to or from Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, etc
People who came to Ibadan for an Interview, a program or any other short visitation that last very few days and didn’t even explore
People who although are from Ibadan by Origin, but were born outside Ibadan and grew up till adulthood outside Ibadan and just breeze into Ibadan ‘once in a very yellow moon’
People who only know Ibadan as the capital of Oyo State
People who have only read about Ibadan on newspapers or any printed materials or watch nollywood movies shot in Ibadan
If you belong to any of the categories above, you know nothing about my City! So if you believe all those jokes of everyone in Ibadan having tribal marks, people eating amala at shoprite, using bike to carry 32 goats, and all of those nonsense you are on your own.
Respect to those comedians who after making jokes of these things still try to reiterate that it’s all jokes. You hear “na joke o, no go take am serious o” meaning "It's a joke, do not take it for a fact". But a lot of people still will swallow what has been said hook, line and sinker. This in turn affects their perception of Ibadan.
So my friend, respect Ibadan!
In case you don’t know or you have forgotten, Ibadan is the city of many firsts in Nigeria, even in Africa! Respect Ibadan! If there is any city in Nigeria with the most tourism potential, it is Ibadan.
In Ibadan, we have
The first University in Nigeria - (University of Ibadan)
The first Private TV Station in Nigeria, (GALAXY) Ibadan
The first Television Station in Africa - NTA
The first stadium in Africa – Liberty Stadium
The First Sky scraper in Africa – the Cocoa House
The First dualised road in Nigeria – named The Queen Elizabeth road, from Mokola to Agodi Secretariat
The first teaching hospital in Nigeria – UCH
The first Modern Parliament in Nigeria – Agodi that housed the Regional House of Assembly and the House of Chiefs.
The First Government Secretariat in Nigeria
The first Housing Estate in Nigeria- the Bodija Housing Estate
The first and oldest surviving Newspaper in Nigeria – the Nigerian Tribune
The first zoological garden in Nigeria - University of Ibadan Zoo
The first city in Nigeria to have more than 17 radio stations within the same city
The first city to have an international research institute. It is also home to the first set of Research and Training Institutes in Nigeria.
Respect Ibadan!
These are structures and monuments but the list of firsts itself is not exhaustive. An example – Ibadan is the first to have a structured civil service in Nigeria. There are so many others. Do a little more research, you will be amazed about this same Ibadan people belittle so much.
My utmost concern is the set of people who have never been to Ibadan whom I described earlier. For those of us who are here, who stay here or who are part of the city even though not currently in the city, we know the real deal. When we come across some of these jokes, we just laugh at them lightly, but we all know the fact. Well I understand people love Ibadan so much and can’t stop talking about the city. At the same time, don’t let these jokes becloud your reasoning and imagination of Ibadan.
For those who don’t know, I would advise you go on a vacation to Ibadan for a few days. It will so change your orientation. Your eyes will be opened to so many facts about this same Ibadan that people belittle. You will learn so many things. Know this too – because someone says something embarrassing on social media and his location says ‘Ibadan’, that doesn’t create room for generalization. This is so common on social media and people who know little or nothing about Ibadan are so quick to believe whatever statements that arises from this scenario. Ibadan is actually a cool place to live. For those who want to take a tour of the city, contact me, i can be your tour guide and guide you to an amazing experience in the city.
A lot of opportunities abound in Ibadan, a lot! Daily, we see new things that have never been done before. Lots of investors are coming into the city because all they see is potentials and opportunities. The new Ibadan is different from the Ibadan you used to know.
Before I forget, IBADAN makes the best amala in the world. Don’t forget that.
So much to say, but then, this isn’t meant to be a lecture or an epistle. Experience is the best teacher. Make plans to visit Ibadan soon. After spending some time, you will respect Ibadan! For happenings in ibadan, follow @connectibadan on twitter and instagram
I love my Ibadan and will do anything for the development of the city. The new Ibadan is bridging the gap already in all areas – Entertainment, Business, Investment, Tourism, etc. Very soon, I bet Ibadan’s population will explode.
You’ll remember you read this!
So whatever you say or do, please Respect Ibadan!!!