Adubi Riot was the revolt of June 1918 in Abeokuta, following the discontent inherited from the Egba United Government period, in which about thirty thousand Egba people tore up the railway line and looted stations and trains, leading to the killing of a number of people including an Oba, Osile, and one European. The Alake narrowly escaped assassination as 1,000 troops were rushed in this uprising described by British officials as an expression of resentment at the termination of Egba independence. The Adubi incidence was the culmination of the the growing powers of the Oba and district heads, abrogation of Abeokuta’s independence in 1914, and the introduction of direct taxation and forced unpaid labor in Abeokuta. After the riots, which the colonial government effectively quelled, some compromises were made to the governance structure and methods of tax collection.
