A Nigerian businesswoman has strongly condemned a UBA staff member who addressed billionaire Tony Elumelu by his first name in a viral video, insisting no setting justifies such familiarity with an elder. Chioma Ifeanyi-Eze, an entrepreneur and social media personality, shared her views in a Facebook post published on 21 August 2026, pushing back against defenders who framed the incident as a mere social misstep.
Businesswoman Rejects Excuses for UBA Staff's Greeting
In her post, Ifeanyi-Eze argued that describing the staff member's action as "misreading the room" misses the fundamental issue of respect. She wrote that she would never address an older person by their first name in any context, whether in a formal boardroom or a casual encounter. To illustrate her point, she noted that even customers entering her egg shop are always addressed as "Ma" and "Sir," regardless of their age.
She said: "I see some people explaining that the young lady who called Tony Elumelu by first name was not rude. They say she simply 'misread the room'. Nwannem, there is no room on this entire earth where I will refer to an older person by first name. No such room. Even my customers who walk into the egg shop daily are all called Ma and Sir, irrespective of your age. There is no such room in this entire earth for me."
Nigerians React to the Viral Tony Elumelu Saga
The debate has drawn widespread reactions on social media. Stanley Befii Nayor commented: "She misread the road, did she stumble into the room? I don't want to talk about that lady. To her it's boldness, to me, her shame dey shame me." Olajide Olubunmi Osifalujo shared a workplace anecdote: "I once worked in an organisation where we were told to call everyone by first name, including the MD.. None of us called our superiors by name oo. We no dey craze. For some of the superiors that were very close to us, we coined nicknames for them." Ifeoma Ruth added: "The annoying thing about that scene, was that she wasn't even confident enough in pronouncing the name. she knew Exactly that she was trying to test waters."
Priest Offers Contrasting View on the Incident
In a related development, a Catholic priest publicly weighed in on the same incident, questioning why Nigerians were angry with the trainee. The priest noted that using first names is standard practice in formal Western settings, offering a contrasting perspective to Ifeanyi-Eze's stance. The viral moment occurred when a UBA graduate trainee greeted Elumelu with 'Good morning, Tony', sparking a nationwide conversation about cultural etiquette and respect for elders in professional environments.
