Nigerian celebrities continue to speak openly about polygamy, offering a range of views that run from cultural defence and personal pride to clear rejection and quiet regrets. Their comments, drawn from interviews, podcasts and social media posts over several years, show how deeply the practice still divides public opinion.
Bimbo Akintola:
Veteran actress Bimbo Akintola has argued that polygamy remains part of Nigerian, especially Yoruba, tradition and should not be dismissed. Speaking on the Talk To B podcast, she said:
“With the way the world is going, people should embrace polygamy. You say marriage is everything, so if we don’t have enough men according to statistics, does that not mean two women to one man?”
She added that many in Generation X and older Yoruba families grew up seeing men with two or three wives, and that some women even choose a co-wife for peace when sexual needs differ.
“I know someone who married a second wife for her husband so that she could have peace. They didn’t have the same libido. His was higher than hers, so she thought, ‘this man will kill me, let me find support.’”
Teni:
Singer Teni has described her own childhood in warmer terms. On the Zero Conditions podcast she recalled growing up with three wives and ten children in her late father’s home.
“I grew up in a polygamous family with many people, so you can’t come and do rubbish. I received excellent care, a lot of love and protection. Three wives, ten children. Huge respect for my bloodline,” she said.
She called the alternative boring:
“How can I be in a house with one mother, and one father? Ah ah, then all of us will now be sitting down there. Ah ah. There’s no chaos.”
She credited her father with planning ahead so the family stayed intact after his death.
Seun Kuti:
Afrobeat musician Seun Kuti has defended the idea even while remaining married to one wife. On the Bahd & Boujee podcast he stated:
“Monogamy doesn’t work. As a powerful man, you must have the support of numerous powerful goddesses. You know, women that are in your life because the ancestors want to put them there. You share with them.”
He pointed to his late father Fela, who married 27 women in one day and, according to Seun, had over 100 concubines living in the house.
Yul Edochie:
Actor Yul Edochie has been the most public defender of his own choice. After announcing his marriage to Judy Austin and the birth of their son in 2022, he posted on Instagram, “Real men own up and take responsibility. Fake men dey hide for back dey run am. EZEDIKE! Na man you be.”
Later he wrote:
“I’m a very proud Polygamist. With my full chest. Read Exodus 21 vs 10. The Bible acknowledges Polygamy. It is my destiny. God directed me to do it.”
He has continued to say polygamy is not a sin.
Jide Kosoko:
Veteran actor Jide Kosoko told The Honest Bunch podcast that he never planned four wives at once and does not support the practice.
“I didn’t have four wives at the same time o! Don’t get it wrong because people are not getting it. I had two, I lost them. I married another two. I am not supporting polygamy. Not everybody can be this lucky.”
He described the financial pressure of large households and said losing wives under different circumstances was painful.
Segun Ogungbe:
Actor and filmmaker Segun Ogungbe has been more direct about regret. In an interview on Biola Adebayo Ent TV he said marrying a second wife was never part of his plan.
“I have never intended to be in a polygamous marriage… I didn’t plan to marry a second wife, I only married a second wife by mistake.”
He has also stated he will not take another wife, citing the cost and ongoing issues between co-wives.
May Edochie:
May Edochie rejected the arrangement after her husband Yul publicly took a second wife. She wrote on Instagram, “My family and faith ABSOLUTELY do NOT practice polygamy, although it works for some people.”
In later posts she added:
“I will not be cajoled into accepting polygamy, which goes against my beliefs, faith, and values. I will not be numbered in a home that we started building with love, faith, tears, hopes, and prayers in a Catholic marriage of 18 years.”
Rita Edochie:
Veteran actress Rita Edochie has used the public disputes in the late Mr Ibu’s family as a warning. After the actor’s death she posted:
“Polygamy has done more harm than good, not just in Nigeria but in Africa as a whole. We must call a spade a spade. Late Mr Ibu did not do well at all.”
She later clarified that she is not against polygamy itself but against a man taking a second wife without first informing his existing wife.
“I am never against polygamy. But the fact remains: the way you present polygamy. I am against getting a second wife without duly informing your wife.”
Moji Afolayan:
Actress Moji Afolayan has said her childhood in a polygamous home shaped her view. On African A-List she explained:
“I grew up in a polygamous home, so I know what I experienced. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.”
She married a widower whose first wife had died, and she has stated she would never marry a man who planned to take a second wife later.
Adebayo Salami:
veteran actor Adebayo Salami, known as Oga Bello, has two wives and 18 children and is often cited as an example of a functioning polygamous home. Yet in a recent interview he admitted:
“There were times I wasn’t proud of it, but now I’ve accepted it as destiny. I have accepted my large family as destiny, but I still warn my children against polygamy because their destiny is not that of Bello.”
He added that there are dangers in marrying two or three wives and that earlier generations of mothers tried hard to manage the arrangement.