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A TikTok creator has ignited intense conversations online after explaining why the Igbo tribe is often stereotyped as “betrayers” in relationships, linking the label to Nigeria’s 1966 military coup.
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In a viral video circulating on social media, the creator, identified as @truecrimewiththereni, argued that the perception did not originate from relationship behaviour but from historical distrust rooted in the January 15, 1966 coup.
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How the 1966 military coup shaped ethnic stereotypes
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She explained that “the coup, led by junior army officers including Major Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu, resulted in the assassination of key political leaders from the Northern and Western regions, while prominent Eastern leaders survived. Victims included Prime Minister Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, Northern Premier Ahmadu Bello and his wife, Hafsatu, as well as Finance Minister Festus Okotie-Eboh.”
According to her, the uneven outcome of the coup created a lasting narrative of ethnic betrayal.
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“This was a planned and coordinated operation carried out while most Nigerians were asleep,” she said, noting that political instability in the Western Region aided the coup’s partial success, while resistance and hesitation in the East led to its collapse there.
Why history still influences modern relationship narratives
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She further stated that after the coup failed, Major General Johnson Aguiyi-Ironsi took control, arrested Nzeogwu instead of executing him and suspended the constitution, actions that deepened suspicion against Igbos.
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The coup was later widely described as an “Igbo coup,” a label that fuelled ethnic resentment, violent reprisals, the July 1966 counter-coup and subsequent attacks on Igbo communities.
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The TikToker urged Nigerians to re-examine history critically, arguing that stereotypes formed during political crises continue to influence ethnic perceptions and even modern-day relationships.
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