Veteran actor Kola Olaiya has taken a swipe at fellow actor Pete Edochie. He criticized him over the ongoing talks about seniority in the Nigerian acting scene. Olaiya described Edochie as proud and accused him of not recognizing the work of earlier theatre actors.
Olaiya made these comments during a recent episode of Oyinmomo TV, uploaded on Friday. This comes as the debate heats up over who can be called a pioneer in Nigerian acting. This discussion follows comments made by Edochie and Yoruba theatre legend Lere Paimo.
In the interview, Olaiya stated that the history of Nigerian acting goes far beyond the actors who became famous in the English-language film industry. He insisted that earlier theatre practitioners laid the groundwork long before Edochie started acting.
"Pete Edochie is a proud human being. I have known him for long. Pride is in his blood. That is why he cannot respect elders," Olaiya said.
He pointed to the late theatre pioneer Hubert Ogunde, who started his career in 1944 after leaving the police force. Olaiya argued that Ogunde's work came long before Edochie's rise to fame.
"Before they gave birth to Pete Edochie, Ogunde had been acting. That is why he cannot admit that some people started before him. Ogunde started theatre in 1944, when he resigned as a police officer," he said.
Olaiya also mentioned other key figures in the growth of Nigerian theatre, like Oyin Adejobi, Duro Ladipo, and Kola Ogunmola. He questioned Edochie’s standing in the industry if seniority is based on when actors started.
"Ogunde produced a lot of movies and made records before Edochie was born. After that, people like our fathers, including Oyin Adejobi, Duro Ladipo, and Kola Ogunmola, joined the industry. Where was Pete then?" he asked.
He added that Edochie’s fame in his area should not mean he is senior to actors from other parts of Nigeria.
"I do not know if he is the first in his region and has no superior; that is fine. But in the whole of Nigeria? No," Olaiya said.
These comments come during a larger discussion about the history of Nigerian theatre, early stage acting, and the rise of Nollywood as a modern film industry.
The debate got more attention after Edochie appeared on the Curiosity Made Me Ask podcast hosted by comedian Isbae U. He claimed he began acting in 1962 when he was just 15 years old.
Edochie also mentioned his role in William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice as part of his early acting journey. His remarks raised questions about how to define the start of an acting career, especially when comparing stage performances to film careers.
In September, Lere Paimo, in an interview with filmmaker Kunle Afod, said he started acting in 1958. He met Ogunde, whom he called senior to him and others.
"I started acting in 1958. I met Hubert Ogunde, who was senior to me and others, and there were big movies produced back then," Paimo said.
His comments strengthened the view that the history of Nigerian acting cannot be based only on the rise of Nollywood in the early 1990s.
Edochie has held firm that his acting career began with stage performances in 1962, before Nollywood emerged. He also highlighted his role as Okonkwo in the 1985 TV adaptation of Chinua Achebe’s Things Fall Apart as a major point in his career.
This disagreement has brought back focus on the contributions of earlier Nigerian theatre artists, especially those in Yoruba travelling theatre. They set performance traditions long before Nollywood became popular.
Ogunde, who is seen as a pioneer of modern Yoruba theatre, began his professional work in the 1940s.
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