Tuface and his Baby Mamas: An Inquisition into Nigeria’s Patriarchal System

About Tuface Idibia

Innocent “Tuface” Idibia is a name that’s synonymous with African music royalty.

He first rose to fame as a member and lead vocalist in the band “Plantashun Boiz”, who were notable for ushering in an era of unrivaled pop music appeal for mainstream audiences.

No sooner had the band disbanded in 2004, did Tuface release his debut album, from which the record-breaking “African Queen” took the entire world by storm. Thus, ushering in a new wave of awareness and reverence for Nigerian music amongst Africans on the continent and in the diaspora, and cementing Tuface’s place amongst the stars.

The Baby Mama Drama

In what we hoped would be a meteoric rise to global prominence, began a slew of inconsequential baby mama accumulations, holding up a mirror to Nigeria’s patriarchal bias, in what we would later learn was against the promise he made to then girlfriend and now wife, Anne Macaulay Idibia.

The first incident that hit the airwaves was with Sumbo Ajaba, who met Tuface while she was an undergraduate at Yaba College of Technology.

She would later get impregnated by the star and pin the child on another man, whom she later married. It must have been a surprise to all parties when the child was born and bore a strong resemblance to Tuface.

Tuface then proceeded to welcome this woman into his home and, with her, fathered another child.

However, in 2009, the marriage crashed after news of him impregnating another woman hit the airwaves again.

According to reports, while Tuface was out of the country for work, she packed her belongings and moved out of his house.

Next up was the daughter of billionaire businessman and chairman of Poatson Group of companies, Chief Jide Adeniyi, whom he met while she was allegedly married.

We first heard of his relationship with “Pero” in 2006. The relationship began even while he still lived and fathered a child with Sumbo.

Pero reportedly left her then-husband and decided to become Tuface’s lover, as he fathered two more children with her.

One would think there would be standards to hold him accountable for his actions, but his career, appearances, and endorsements seemed to still climb, as Nigerians reveled in the “Na so men are” narrative that filled every commentator’s lips as they paraded the media airwaves.

Pero, however, would later leave the country in 2012 after Tuface proposed to his long-time girlfriend while reportedly still in a relationship with her.

Then cue in Annie, who Tuface featured in his African Queen music video alongside Yvonne Jegede. The duo later went on to make their relationship official in 2008. They got engaged in 2012 and got married in 2013 as he fathered two children with her.

A New Twist

In new reports, the artist is said to have gotten another woman, who is reportedly a banker, pregnant.

This report comes after a winded apology was released on his social media platform, as he clearly called himself and his supporters out for the privilege he has so graciously enjoyed.

The artist has seen responses like ‘Nobody Holy pass’, ‘We dey for you, nothing dey happen’, ‘Forever and ever’ to his recent apology.

Nigeria, Patriarchy, and Double Standards

We seem to remember that not so long ago, news of Mercy Aigbe’s involvement with a married man came with a lot of backlash from Nigerians.

We also recall Tiwa Savages’ sex tape, about which she was bullied till it was released, and the teeming backlash that came from that.

We saw men demand better-behaved women who uphold good societal values and act exemplarily.

We have seen women slut-shamed, belittled, and insulted; when they decide to speak up, they are shut down by intrepid patriarchal bigots.

We wonder if Nigerians will ever hold the same standards against a man who, in his own words, has caused great embarrassment to his wife, family, and children.

Or will this, as usual, be a typification of the man’s world we live in where Tuface, like other men, go about their lives from moments like this, unscathed by the hurt they have caused and the shame they have forced their families to carry?

Even now, Nigeria’s patriarchy screams in vitriol at Annie, who, despite the numerous baby mama incidents over the years, has remained faithful to this one man.

One would say that she should demand more for herself, but the heart wants what the heart wants.

Annie Idibia has made it very clear that her heart wants Tuface.

The onus falls on Tuface to do better. Words are no longer enough as this slew of baby mamas is becoming a recurring theme in the couple’s relationship.

Patriarchy creates a vacuum in which men can no longer be held accountable. Accountability fuels the world we wish to see.

Accountability and moral uprightness should not be demanded from women alone. It is a collective societal function.

The quicker Nigerians recognize this, the sooner our country evolves from a place where women are undermined and treated unfairly to a nation where everyone is treated justly and with respect.

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