Lagos Guber Hopeful Rhodes-Vivour Confirms Yoruba Fluency for Campaigns

Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, the African Democratic Congress's contender for the Lagos State governorship, has announced his acquisition of Yoruba language proficiency, enabling him to conduct his campaigns in the local dialect as he eyes the state's top office. Speaking on Arise TV on Thursday, Rhodes-Vivour revealed that he had hired a Yoruba instructor and significantly improved his linguistic capabilities. While acknowledging the significance of culture and language, he emphasized that his primary focus remains tackling the numerous issues confronting Lagos inhabitants.

He was quoted saying, “Culture and language is very, very important, and I’ve gotten a Yoruba teacher, and I’ve learned Yoruba, and I can campaign in Yoruba, and that is wonderful.” Demonstrating his improved skill during the interview, Rhodes-Vivour responded in Yoruba after a presenter addressed him in the language. When a presenter offered to greet him in Yoruba and then translate, Rhodes-Vivour chuckled before replying, “Mo ki gbogbo yin,” which translates to “I greet all of you.”

Rhodes-Vivour highlighted that pressing issues plaguing Lagos, such as persistent flooding, the severe housing shortage, and crippling traffic gridlock, impact all residents equally, regardless of their ethnic origins. He articulated his vision, stating, “My passionate interest is to ensure that we have a Lagos that no longer stinks. All of us are going to, when you translate it, all of us are going to hear the smell, right? Everybody is going to experience the failure, is experiencing the failure of our flooding, of our housing crisis, of the traffic, of the loss of dignity of Lagosians. And that connects all of us.”

These recent remarks surface amid lingering debates surrounding Rhodes-Vivour’s command of the Yoruba language during the 2023 Lagos governorship election. In the run-up to the 2023 polls, both his Yoruba and Igbo ancestry and his spoken Yoruba abilities became central points of political discussion.

In a March 2023 interview on Channels Television, Rhodes-Vivour, who has a Yoruba father and an Igbo mother, had previously admitted that while he could understand and speak Yoruba, he lacked fluency. He explained that his upbringing and educational background, which included time spent abroad, contributed to his limited proficiency. His particular comment about not being able to “think in Yoruba” later drew significant criticism throughout that campaign period.

Following this, Rhodes-Vivour announced that he had engaged a Yoruba tutor to improve his language skills, expressing confidence that enhanced fluency would foster a stronger connection with the populace. His backers, including groups like Afenifere and Eko Forum, also came to his defense during the controversy, dismissing efforts to challenge his indigeneity to Lagos based on his maternal lineage and language capabilities.

In the 2023 Lagos gubernatorial race, Rhodes-Vivour ran under the Labour Party banner, securing third place. He trailed behind the incumbent Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of the All Progressives Congress and Abdul-Azeez Adediran, famously known as Jandor, who represented the Peoples Democratic Party. Currently, Rhodes-Vivour is aiming for the ADC's Lagos governorship ticket for the upcoming 2027 election.