Mo Abudu Tells Young People: ‘Don’t Call Me By My First Name Anyhow’
By Cynthia Okere, Lagos
Nigerian media entrepreneur and Chief Executive Officer of EbonyLife Group, Mo Abudu, has said she does not accept younger people casually addressing her by her first name, insisting that respect for age and cultural values remains important.
Abudu expressed the view during a conversation with media personality Toke Makinwa on Toke Moments, where she discussed her upbringing, business career, relationships and her understanding of respect.
The 61-year-old media executive described herself as a traditional person whose outlook was strongly influenced by being raised by her grandmother in Ondo.
“I am very traditional. I was brought up in Ondo by my grandmother. You can’t be calling me by my first name anyhow. I won’t take it!” Abudu said.
She explained that when younger people address her too casually, she sometimes considers their cultural background before responding.
According to Abudu, she tends to be more understanding when the person is not Yoruba, but would still politely correct the individual.
Her position, she said, is rooted in the need for younger generations not to lose important aspects of African culture and traditional forms of respect.
The comments have added another dimension to the continuing conversation in Nigeria over how younger people should address older persons, particularly within increasingly informal corporate and professional environments.
The issue recently attracted widespread attention after businessman Tony Elumelu corrected a graduate trainee who addressed him simply as “Tony” during a UBA Graduate Management Accelerated Programme graduation ceremony.
The incident divided opinions online, with some Nigerians arguing that first-name communication is normal in modern corporate environments, while others maintained that Nigerian cultural expectations surrounding age and seniority should still be observed.
Beyond the debate over forms of address, Abudu also spoke about the way successful women are perceived in business.
She argued that qualities considered signs of strength and business acumen in men are sometimes characterised negatively when displayed by women.
“If I was a man, they wouldn’t say I was a shark,” she said while discussing perceptions surrounding her business personality.
Abudu also addressed relationships, saying she would prefer a partner around her age or older and emphasising achievement and mutual respect as important considerations.
Her remarks on respect, however, have again brought the intersection between traditional Nigerian values and modern workplace culture into public discussion, particularly as younger professionals increasingly operate in environments where first-name communication is commonplace.