₦airaland Forum

one of the massacre carried out by biafran troops.when the atrocities committed by the Biafran troops were pointed out, they go ahead and deny the claims just like the people they were cursing out earlier,  hmmmmmm,.

Okogwu, IBB’s in-law blasts Soyinka
…Claims renowned playwright is not a Nigerian and has no right to criticise Babangida
From ISMAIL OMIPIDAN, Kaduna
Monday, March 23, 2009

General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida’s (IBB) in-law and President, Black Gold Group, Chief Sunny Okogwu has said that Professor Wole Soyinka is not a Nigerian, and as such he has no locus standi to continue to criticize IBB.

Speaking in exclusive interview with Daily Sun in Kaduna, Okogwu who was apparently reacting to Soyinka’s recent lecture, wherein he said among other things that IBB denied Nigeria the opportunity of a nationhood, noted that it was high time Nigerians stopped blaming IBB for whatever happened during his rule, insisting that if he (Okogwu) should open his mouth to speak on the person of Soyinka, Nigerians would not “buy him for 10 kobo.”

“He (Soyinka) was invited to speak on a particular person who has a political legacy; instead he took on a man that has nothing to do with the occasion. If I should open my mouth to speak about Wole Soyinka, that I know, as someone close to IBB, Nigerians will not buy him (Soyinka) for 10 kobo. Pitifully too, Wole is not a Nigerian, so he has no right, no privilege to represent Nigeria and talk about Nigeria or about the situation of Nigeria.

“He is not a Nigerian, he is a settler. The man is a nationalized Nigerian. He is a beneficiary of our generous constitution. He knows where he came from. Have you ever seen a Nigerian like Wole Soyinka, the man who puts on white hair, unruly like a Rasta man, white beard not taken care of? Have you ever seen any Nigerian leader growing white hair like Wole Soyinka or white beard like Wole Soyinka? It is only Wole Soyinka that wears that kind of hair. A true Nigerian does not wear such hair, and we don’t have one like Soyinka.“
He also spoke on why he would not ask IBB to run in 2011, but was quick to add that, if he runs and wins, he (Okogwu) would be glad to return to the corridors of power once more.
He also spoke on other issues of national interest, including the claim that like Soyinka, Obasanjo, former Nigeria’s President, is equally not a Nigerian.
Excerpts:

Since after General IBB relinquished power, there is hardly any public discuss about the political situation in Nigeria that his name will not feature. Just recently, Wole Soyinka again pointed the finger at him for depriving Nigeria the opportunity of transforming into nationhood. How do you feel as somebody who was close to the man when he was in power and still close to him even out of power?
The accusation by Wole Soyinka was wrong and is still wrong. It was not true, and it was an insult to Chief Obafemi Awolowo’s kind of politics. If Wole wants to talk about anybody, let him call his own press conference. He was invited to speak on a particular person who has a political legacy; instead he took on a man that has nothing to do with the occasion. If I should open my mouth to speak about Wole Soyinka, that I know, as someone close to IBB, Nigerians will not buy him (Soyinka) for 10 kobo. Pitifully too, Wole is not a Nigerian, so he has no right, no privilege to represent Nigeria and talk about Nigeria or about the situation of Nigeria.

How do you mean he is not a Nigerian ?
He is not a Nigerian, he is a settler. The man is a nationalized Nigerian. He is a beneficiary our generous constitution. He knows where he came from. Have you ever seen a Nigerian like Wole Soyinka, the man who puts on white hair, unruly like a Rasta man, white bear, not taken care of? Have you ever seen any Nigerian leader growing white hair like Wole Soyinka or white bear like Wole Soyinka? It is only Wole Soyinka that wears that kind of hair. A true Nigerian does not wear such hair, and we don’t have one like Soyinka.

But his origin is traceable to Ogun State, and his family is well known there. How about that?
Not everybody in Ogun state is a Nigerian. We know them very well. They either came to trade from Cotonou and settled in Nigeria. They trade mostly in kolanuts, and sometimes they even come from Togo or Ghana, but what I am saying is that when you are not a true Nigerian, don’t talk about Nigeria in a way that is insulting. If he is a nationalist, why did he oppose the rule of Abiola, why did he oppose the rule of Chief Obafemi Awolowo and why did he oppose Obasanjo? Now he has been opposing the rule of General IBB. Can he, Wole Soyinka rule? The answer is no. He was given opportunity, but he failed.

When was that?
It was during the IBB’s regime, was he not made something? The only thing he could do and did well was to introduce cultism into our university system, which caused the death of our children. Is cultism a tradition of Nigeria? No, it is foreign.

But he has always come out to defend that position that when they were in school, the pirate confraternity was not a cult to harass people, but a group to defend their collective rights as students?
That is what he preached to you, he was a preacher of that tradition that does not belong to Nigeria, and he brought it, is that not enough? There are so many preachers in Nigeria that will preach something and do something else.

There was also this general belief that when he was in charge of the Road Safety Commission under IBB, there was sanity in the system, how come you now say he could not perform?
There was no sanity anywhere. In fact, the situation became worst. He knows what he did, I am not supposed to say it, if you talk about people, talk about yourself. We in the IBB family have family value and we maintain it. Soyinka doesn’t seem to have that value, and anywhere he goes he talks the untalkable.

But most of the things he said were the things other Nigerians have said about IBB, so why are you singling out Soyinka for attack?
Yes, most of things Nigerians say about IBB were things the likes of Soyinka were always saying, not necessarily that they were the truth. You can see how he changes Nigerians’ mind and take his view and put into their mind. Is that a true citizen?

But one cross that IBB has continued to carry and will remain for a very long time to come is this issue of June 12, is that not enough to pour venoms on IBB?
It was not IBB who annulled the election, and as such it will be unfair to continue to attack him on June 12 issue.

But do you agree that annulment of June 12 really has devastating effects on Nigeria?
It may have, I don’t know, but if Nigeria has a law it must be obeyed, IBB obeyed the law.

In annulling June 12?
He did not annul June 12, the court annulled June 12 and the court was higher than IBB. You people should talk things as they come, it was the court, go to the archives, the court still exists and the document still exists, and because Wole Soyinka is not a Nigerian he wants to contravene the court order. Who is he? Nigerians obey court order and we are still obeying court order whether you like it or not. Who was the person who took the case to court, was it IBB, the answer is no. How did Abiola join politics? And which political party was he into? How long was he in that party before he was nominated presidential candidate? What happened between him and Arthur Nzeribe, the man who took the case to the court and made sure Abiola never became the president of this country? And I am quoting him, go and ask him, he was the one, and he is the one and he still will not, even if you wake Abiola up, Nzeribe will never allow Abiola to rule this country.

Why?
The story is wide and long. He brought Abiola to the party late and he was the principal actor and when he (Abiola) came in he was nominated, Abiola refused to greet him and even to answer his (Nzeribe) greeting became a problem, and he (Nzeribe) told him clean and clear, ‘you have not gone anywhere, you are behaving like this,’ over his dead body, ‘you will never rule this country.’ And you know Nzeribe for what he is, he concluded his project, you can go and ask Saraki (Oloye), Saraki went and begged him in his house, personal home in his hometown, he said no, Abiola went there he said no. what is IBB’s own there? IBB heard the annulment on radio. IBB was here (in Kaduna) passing through to Katsina. He was asking me, did you hear the radio news and I said yes. What is his own there; he quickly ran back and complied. Why is Soyinka not telling Nigerians the truth, Soyinka knew about Nzeribe, let him tell Nigerians.

What you are saying in essence is that Nigerians should stop blaming IBB for the annulment of June 12 and other things that happened during his regime?
They should put the blame on the party and those who took part in the annulment that was highly concluded professionally and legally by the court.

Do you think Yar’Adua should run in 2011?
That is not for me to say, he has the decision to make.

Some people have already started urging your in-law to come and contest, the way they had always done. How would you react to that?
That is up to them.

What is your advise as somebody who is close to him, should he run for Presidency in 2011?
If I advise him, people will say I am greedy. But I am the one who suffered during President Babangida’s rule. My family and Babangida family gained nothing during his regime other than insult, threat, loss of our property. Is it now that I will ask him to pursue the position of President again, what will we gain? He himself, what did he gain? Bullets all over the places, who is saying sorry to him, you want him to start going all over places and by the time he collapses who will say sorry to him.

Supposing your in-law decides to contest in 2011, what will you do?
What will I do? I will do what I did before.

What did you do before?
I will sit on the chair and go to the corridor of power and make sure he comes out alive.

But you will not ask him to contest?
No, I can’t control him, it is an offence to control a mature man and stop him from what he wants to do. He is matured, I can’t control him.

IBB made a lot of people while in power, how come you said members of his family did not benefit anything?
That is a good leader;. Yes, he helped a lot of people thinking that it would be smooth for him so that towards the end he could help his family, but he didn’t see the end, so the family lost. Which leader do you see doing that now? That was a good leader.

What will be your advice to Nigerians?
Keep your country, and make sure that these people who come from neighboring countries do not rule you. If you give them chance, they will take your money, take your property, take everything and destroy your country and leave you.

Who are those people from neighboring countries ruling us?
We have many of them, they came enmass during the civil war and they refused to go. Some of them even changed their names, bearing names that you don’t understand. I don’t need to mention names. So many of them came from the waterfront.

We also have them here in the North?
I said everywhere, did I mention any specific place? When Abacha was ruling, did he say he is a Nigerian, you people said he came from foreign land, also you people talk of Marwa coming from Cameroon but he led you, Ribadu from borders of Chad, Buhari from Niger republic, Obasanjo from Dahomey, name them, and I will tell you where they come from.

What of IBB?
IBB is from Nigeria.

How come it is only IBB that is from Nigeria?
His name is there, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida

Olusegun Obasanjo is a Yoruba name, how come you say he is not a Nigerian?
Olusegun Obasanjo is not a name. Olusegun is not a Yoruba name. Obasanjo is not a name. Oba means what? Chief, Sanjo means what, Oba forbids sin, Sanjo is Igbo, so he has emerged from where, he has emerged from where and settled where; don’t let me bring those historical things. Give me another name and I will tell you where they come from.

Wole Soyinka?
Of course, you know, Wole is not a name, Soyinka is not name. It is Yinka that is a name, so where did ‘So’ come from. They came from somewhere and took kolanut to Badagry. I don’t want to tell you this type of things. They begin to organize rallies, amass power and they become the leader of the multitude and the multitude use propaganda tool to make them prominent and they become Wole Soyinkas of this world. I think the trend must stop.


http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2009/mar/23/national-23-03-2009-05.htm

too many aids(HIV) among your people.your women are, 

Tiv
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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For the T.I.V. oyster, see Totten Inlet Virginica.
For the tornado chasing equipment, see Tornado Intercept Vehicle.
Tiv
Total population
Approx. 2 million[1]

Regions with significant populations
Nigeria, Cameroon
Languages
Tiv
Religion
Christianity, Islam, traditional
Tiv are an ethno-linguistic group or ethnic nation in West Africa. They constitute approximately 2.5% of Nigeria's total population, and number over 5.6 million individuals throughout Nigeria and Cameroon. The Tiv's traditional language is spoken by over 6 million people in Nigeria, with a few speakers in Cameroon. Most of the language's Nigerian speakers are found in Benue State of Nigeria. The language is also widely spoken in the Nigerian States of Plateau, Taraba, Nasarawa as well as the FCT Abuja. It is part of the Southern Bantoid Tivoid family, a branch of Benue-Congo and ultimately of the Niger-Congo phylum. The Tiv are also known as the Mitshi, Munchi, or Munshi. They depend on agricultural produce for commerce and life.

Contents [hide]
1 Social and Political Organization
2 Tiv Music and Communication
2.1 Kakaki
2.2 Ilyu
2.3 Indyer
2.4 Akya
2.5 Adiguve
2.6 Gbande
2.7 Ortindin (Ortyom)-Messenger
2.8 Korlu ku Bua-Cow Horn
3 Notes
4 References
4.1 Unpublished works
5 External links



[edit] Social and Political Organization
Most Tiv have a highly developed sense of genealogy, with descent being reckoned patrilineally. Ancestry is traced to an ancient individual named Tiv, who had two sons; all Tiv consider themselves a member either of MbaChongo (descendants of con Chongo) or of MbaPusu (descendants of son Ipusu). MbaChongo and MbaPusu are each divided into several major branches, which in turn are divided into smaller branches. The smallest branch, or minimal lineage, is the "ipaven". Members of an ipaven tend to live together, the local kin-based community being called the "tar". This form of social organization, called a segmentary lineage, is seen in various parts of the world, but it is particularly well known from African societies (Middleton and Tait 1958). The Tiv are the best known example from West Africa, as documented by Laura Bohannan (1952) and by Paul and Laura Bohannan (1953); in East Africa the best known example is the Nuer, documented by E.E. Evans-Pritchard (1940).

The Tiv had no administrative divisions and no chiefs or councils. Leadership was based on age, influence, and affluence. The leaders' functions were to furnish safe conduct, arbitrate disputes within their lineages, sit on moots, and lead their people in all external and internal affairs.

The Tiv race is the fourth largest Ethnic group in Nigeria after the three Major Ethnic groups.

These socio-political arrangements caused great frustration to British colonial attempts to subjugate the population and establish administration on the lower Benue. The strategy of Indirect Rule, which the British felt to be highly successful in controlling Hausa and Fulani populations in Northern Nigeria, was ineffective in a segmentary society like the Tiv (Dorward 1969). Colonial officers tried various approaches to administration, such as putting the Tiv under the control of the near by Jukun, and trying to exsert control through the councils of elders ("jir"; these met with little success. The British administration in 1934 divided the Tiv into Clans, Kindreds, and Family Groups. The British appointed native heads of these divisions as well. These administrative divisions are gradually assuming a reality which they never had aboriginally.

Members of the Tiv group are found in many areas across the globe, such as the United States and United Kingdom. In these countries they hold unions, known as MUTA, where members can assemble and discuss issues concerning their people across the world, but especially back in Nigeria.

Before the introduction of printed material, radio, film and television, mass communication in Nigeria was done through the indigenous people with the use of traditional political systems of communication. The rulers and the chiefs governed their ethnic communities and communicated with them through various channels.


[edit] Tiv Music and Communication
Locally made musical instruments were traditionally used for political and ceremonial communication. The key instruments follow/


[edit] Kakaki
This is an instrument used to convey specials messages to the people of the community, such messages as the new born child of the King, his naming ceremony, the crowning of a new king, to gather people together during the marriage ceremony of the king and the king’s son’s marriage ceremony. This instrument was used to convey all the messages to the people to assemble at the square for the ceremony, as well as when there is an enemy attack on the community, a warning sound of the Kakaki is blown to alert those whom can defend the society and every citizen to be alert.


[edit] Ilyu
A light wooden like instrument, it was used to pass messages to the people of the village, probably for the invitation of the people for a particular meeting of the elders at the king’s palace or for the people to gather at the market square for a message from or by the king.it is now used as an instrument to indicate the death of someone


[edit] Indyer
A heavy wooden instrument carved out of mahogany trunk. It is used especially during festivals of masquerades, yam festivals with music to pass messages for the ceremonies, celebration of good harvest for the year.


[edit] Akya
It is used together with Agbande (drums) combined with Ageda at festivals to pass a message across to the people for a call for the display of culture.


[edit] Adiguve
It’s an instrument like a violin, used for music and dances in conjunction with Agbande (Agbande) at festivals and dance occasions, sometimes to announce the death of a leader or an elder of the community, during this period it is played sorrowfully for the mourning of the dead, most time it is played funerals.


[edit] Gbande
Agbande (plural), a set of crafted wooden musical instrument used to compliment agbande at festivals, this is particularly large and it is played by the young men of the community, the special drum beats communicates special messages and music for the festivals to come and during the festivals, for instance, signifies a royal occasions such as the coronation and funeral.


[edit] Ortindin (Ortyom)-Messenger
Usually he is chosen by the elders of the community to do errands for the elders and the leader of the community. He is sent out to the heads of the neighbouring families for a crucial meeting at the head of all the leaders of the community.


[edit] Korlu ku Bua-Cow Horn
This an instrument made out of cow horns, like in my community, there are farmers associations that use this instrument when they have job to do, probably the were invite to ridge a land, the PRO of the association use this medium to wake the members for the work they have for that day.

Indigenous communication is not only vertical, from the rulers to the subjects, it is also horizontal. Individuals communicate with society through physical and metaphysical means. A farm owner, for example, may mount a charm conspicuously on his farm in order to stress private ownership and to scare off human intruders.

The fear of herbalists and witches influences social behaviour considerably.

Rainmakers communicate their power to disrupt events through various psychological means. Village sectors in Africa communicate mostly via the market-place of ideas contributed by traditional religion, observances, divination, mythology, age-grades, the chiefs courts, the elder's square, secret and title societies, the village market square, the village drum(gbande) men, indeed the total experiences of the villager in his environment.

Unlike the mass media, access to the native media is culturally determined and not economic. Only the selected group of young men or the elders can disseminate information generally. The young only disseminate general information about events and the social welfare of their communities using the media mentioned above.

The Tiv people of Benue state still practise some of this traditional system of communication, using the KAKAIS, AGBANDE, INDYER, ADIGUVE and ILYU etc, nevertheless the increase in the western world media is threatening the cultural communication system.

Many of the communities in Benue state still use these instruments to convey messages to the people of their community, and it is helping a great deal, since there is a language barrier to the people with the introduction of the western world means of communication, using the western language (English) to convey information.


[edit] Notes
^ "Ethnologue". http://www.ethnologue.com/14/show_language.asp?code=TIV.

Annang
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
The Annang (also spelled Anaang) is a cultural and ethnic group that lives in the coastal southeast Nigeria. At present, the Annangs have eight local government areas of the present thirty-one local government areas in Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria (Akwa Ibom State Local Government Areas), namely Abak, Essien Udim, Etim Ekpo, Ika, Ikot Ekpene, Obot Akara, Oruk Anam and Ukanafun in the Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria. They were formerly located in the former Abak and Ikot Ekpene Divisions of the Annang Province, in the former Eastern Region of Nigeria.

Culture
Annang society is patriarchal. Individuals locate their place in the social world from the Idip, literally translated as, womb. Thus a brother/sister from the same Idip means that they can trace their origin to the same mother or father. Since polygamy is practised in the society, those who can so trace their ancestry to the same parents form Ufok (literally a house or compound). Several ufoks make up Ekpuks or extended family and several Ekpuks (extended families) make up "Idung" (meaning village) and several villages make up the "abie" or clan.

Leadership at the family, lineage, village, or clan level remains the prerogative of the men, and lineage ties extends to women even after marriage. There are many societies and associations (Nka) for men and women which are very important in traditional village life. Individuals are measured by both the number and types of memberships in Nka's and by the achievements of one or more Nkas. Governance is done by elderly males who act as the legislative arm called Afe Ison or Afe Isong, directed by the Obong or Obong Ison or Obong Isong (Village Chief and Clan Chief) who is the head and the chief executive but without the authority beyond what the Afe Ison or Afe Isong gives. A chief can be appointed by the Afe or can be an inherited office. The strength of any individual, family (or group for that matter) is typically based upon a consensus of the village or clan through this complex social system.

In all this, Annang women are not completely subordinate to men. Instead Annang women are partners and leaders in many aspects of Annang tradition, including female chief priests in "Abia Idiong" healing and cleasing teamples. The first-born female known as Adiaha is important and commands respect in the family and lineage. Some traditions hold that a woman's first birth should take place in her mothers compound. Women organizations such as "abi-de" and "Nyaama", and "Isong Iban" play important roles in giving the women voice and status in society. There are no traditional or cultural barriers that prevent women from attaining high offices or positions. Indeed, traditionally Annang women have a great deal of economic independence from men.

Annangs value the ability to speak well and oratory ability using proverbs is highly desirable, especially among the leaders. The American anthropologist, Peter Farb, stated that the name "Annang" among this group means 'they who speak well' An individual who has the gift of eloquent speech is often complimented as Akwo Annang meaning the singer of Annang.[1]

The Annangs are known for the efficacy of their charms, prowess in trading, and their renoun art. This extends to mural paintings, raffia, masks, cement sculptures, markets, ceremonies and exceptional food. Above all, Annang people possess unparallel academic and scientific knowledge.


[edit] The Fattening Room
Much has been written about the fattening room among the Annang, and the interest of the academic community in this subject has increased since Professor Brink's introduction and field work in Annang ( Brink, 1989). The Annang Heritage Preservation Society, a socio-cultural organization dedicated to the preservation and archiving of the Annang culture is in the process of documenting these practices. The fattening of the bride in Annang land, though seen mostly from the point of view of aesthetics, is more than a demonstration of what the culture regards as "beautiful". To the Annangs, plump women were seen as beautiful. It meant that the woman came from a home where the parents were well-to do and it also meant that the husband was also well-to-do. Some western social scientists have theorized that individuals from societies where the food supply was lean and famines frequent were likely to regard being fat as a desirable body structure and to see being fat as beautiful. We in Annang are not surprised by such theories because western scientists who derive their worldview from evolutionary perspectives have always seen Africa and Africans from Darwinian lenses. As Gloria Allred observed, the characteristics of the powerful have always been seen as the ideal while those seen as without power have historically been relegated to the background and often seen as pathological. The destitute-likes-fat explanation disregards the very definition of what a culture is and looks at the world primarily from an ethnocentric perspective. Thus, what is western is ideal and how the other lives becomes primitive. Augustus Comte had divided the cultures of the world into two camps namely: the primitive and the civilized. Under the Comtean classification the European culture was the civilized one and all the others were primitive. Yet according to him, all cultures began at the same time but the development of the primitive cultures was arrested and the western culture advanced and reached a civilized stage. Today, this Comtean model has been used to describe the fattening of the Annang brides. However, it should be noted that the fattening period among the Annang was a period of education. The young bride was taught house keeping, child care, history, and how to be a wife and citizen of the community. The Annang society was semi-matriachal before the Christian missionaries destroyed it. Children bore the names of their mothers. Such female names as Ukpong, Essiet, Essien were androgenized and became names for men because of the new practice brought by the British that made children to bear the names of their fathers (Ette, 2007). It became important therefore, for the women to be taught good citizenship in the fattening period. The fattening room was more than an exercise in primitivity; it was a period to educate and to socialize the young into the values of the society.


[edit] History

[edit] Oral History
The Annangs have a rich oral tradition. It is believed that the group have their origins in Egypt and settled in Ghana before arriving in the present area. The name Annang in Twi in Ghana means fourth son. It is believed that Annangs started their migration from Egypt around 7500 BC. The Abiakpo came to the northern range of Annang from Eka Abiakpo. They were quickly followed by the Ukana clan, the Utu, Ekpu, Ebom and Nyama (The British would lumped these together and gave the name Otoro), and other Annang clans.

Oral traditition has it that the Annang and the entire people of akwa Ibom and Cross River States of Nigeria (AKwaCross people) have occupied their land in the coastal Southeastern Nigeria thousands of years before the birth of Christ.

The same oral tradition has it that their ancestors were Israelites (Jews) of the Northern Kingdom who left Israel to Egypt before the Babylonian captivity and that the ancestors of the Annangs and other people of Akwa Ibom and Cross River States (the Efik, the Ibibio, etc) of Nigeria were the products of marriages of the people of Israel and Egyptians who migrated from Egypt to their coastal southeastern land in Nigeria via Ethiopia and Sudan.

The group is related to the Efiks and the Ibibios. It is believed that they all originated in ancient Egypt and through various wars and conquests were pushed south into the Sahara Desert. They moved across the desert and some settled in the upper West African region about 7500BC. Remnants of their language according to Waddell can be found among the Egyptians. (Waddell, 1893) Another evidence of their Egyptian origin is found in the burial customs and veneration of the dead. Migration brought the groups to live among the Twi of Ghana where the name Annang means fourth son. From Ghana, the group moved eastward into present day Cameroon. It was in the Cameroon highlands that the group broke off but later arrived at same territory in the Coastal Southeastern Nigeria . It is believed that upon their arrival at the virgin coastal southeastern Nigeria the groups took an oath of solidarity to be together and bonded to fight whatever was seen as a common enemy. Lineages were recognized and the groups organized themselves into clans based on old family origins known as Iman, a simialr structure extends into the land of their northern neighbors, the Igbo. (Ette, 2008)

The following are some of Iman Annangs and their food taboos. Eka Abiakpo clans do not eat turtle. The Afaha people forbade its members from eating the (Nserise) squirrel. They identified with the quickness and intelligence of the animal. Other examples of clan groups and their food taboo are: Ukana python (Asabo); (Ibom); Ekpenyong (albino Python); Ikpe Uruk- Ikot (snake); Utu, Ebom, Midim (birds); Nto Osung (African black bird). Other Annang clans chose vegetables as their food taboo. Thus Ika has sweet yam (anem) as taboo, and Nto Edino has the river reed (Nyama). The food taboo was so important to the Annang that it was used as a distinguishing characteristic to locate the origin of an individual and to separate one Iman from another. Children learnt as part of the socialization process that a particular Iman are people living in a particular geographical area with a given food taboo. Ekanem (2002) reported that those from Midim preferred to starve rather than violate their food taboo during the Nigerian civil war that lasted from 1967 to 1970.


[edit] Written history
Very little was written in the European papers about the Annang people before the middle of the nineteenth century. Early European traders who arrived in the cross river territories referred to groups who lived outside of the coastal areas as residents of Egbo-Sharry Country. Rumors of cannibalism and fear tactics were used as tools by the Efiks to keep the European traders away from trading directly with groups outside the coast. This tactic worked, for it prevented the traders from going outside of the Calabar middle men until the Christian missionaries arrived in the middle of the nineteenth century Ette, 2001). The first written mention of the Annangs is in Wilhelm Koelle's account of liberated slaves in Sierra Leone(Koelle, 1854). He mentioned a liberated slave named Ebengo who hailed from Nkwot in Abak. Ebengo was captured and sold to the Portuguese but was subsequently freed by a British warship and later settled in Waterloo, Sierra Leone. The British soldiers listed the languages spoken by the slaves in that captured ship as "Annang" (Koelle, 1854). The second mention is in the description of what is known as the Ikot Udo Obong Wars. The British described the killings of the Annangs by King Jaja of Opobo as a punishment for the Annangs defying his orders and trading in palm oil directly with the British merchants instead of going through him as a middle man. In the war that ensued, the British intervened and with the help of the Annangs, the British captured (King Jaja) and exiled him to the West Indies. The British established a military post at Ikot Ekpene in 1904 and then in Abak.

Following British colonialism and with changes and ban in ancient hunting practices, the Annang witnessed attacks by wild animals. As the men went to fight in World War II these attacks intensified. The British authorities called the attacks murder and blamed it on "the barbarism of the Africans". The indigenes were accused of belonging to a secret society called The Human Leopards Society. It has been argued that killings borne out of insurgency against the British elsewhere in Africa led to the branding of leopard attacks as murders by the British authorities among the Annang. Between 1945 and 1948 about 196 people were killed. The British convicted 96 people and executed 77 innocent people (Pratten, 2007). The Annang religion called Idiong was banned and the priests arrested. Articles and worship materials were publicly burnt and those who did not join Christianity automatically became suspects (Ette, 2007).

The Annangs have a history and reputation for their fearlessness and the ability of villages and clans to bind together to fight a common enemy. This is perhaps why they were able to thrive living so close to Arochukwu with its famed Aro deity that demanded constant human sacrifice. The Annangs suffered genocide in the Nigerian Civil War. The war lasted for three years (1967 - 1970) and the Annang lost a significant number of its people. The effect of the war and the resulting neglect of the Annang is now a serious political issue and a source of unrest in the area. The Annangs have been overlooked in the current state structure in the Nigerian system through which the country's oil wealth is shared. Repeated requests for the creation of a state for the Annang area have been ignored by the Nigerian authorities. Like other minority groups in the volatile Niger Delta in Nigeria, history and culture are taking a back seat to issues of politicas and justice but the Annangs continue to fight for their rights.

Nupe
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This article includes a list of references or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (February 2008)

This article is about the ethnic group. For fraternity members called nupes, see Kappa Alpha Psi. For the British trade union, see National Union of Public Employees.
The Nupe, tradititionally called the Tapa by the neighbouring Yoruba, are an ethnic group located primarily in the middle belt and northern Nigeria and are the dominant group in Niger and an important minority in Kwara State.


Although a version of their history claim that they originally lived in Egypt. The more common tradition traces their origin to Tsoede who fled the court of Idah and established a loose confederation of towns along the Niger in the 15th century. The proximity of Nupe to the Yoruba Igbomina people in the south and to the Yoruba Oyo people in the southwest led to cross-fertilization of cultural influences through trade and conflicts over the centuries. It is said that the famous Yoruba oba or king, Shango (also spelt Sango, and also known across the world as 'Xango, Chango, Nago Shango and Jakuta) who was once an Alaafin of Oyo before being deified following his death, was the son of a Nupe (Tapa) woman.

Many Nupe were converted to Islam at the end of the eighteenth century by Mallam Dendo, a wandering preacher, and were incorporated into the Fulani Empire established by the Jihad led by Usman dan Fodio after 1806.

However, the traditions of Nupe were retained, hence the ruler of Nupe is the Etsu Nupe rather than being called Emir. The city of Bida fell to the colonialist British forces in 1897, the Etsu Abubakar was deposed and replaced by the more pliable Muhammadu (Vandeleur 1898). During the reign of Muhammadu, a Prince named Jimada moved to Patigi, northeast of Bida (not to be confused with near-identically spelt Pategi, southwest of Bida, on the southern and opposite bank of the Niger River) protesting against being ruled by a Fulani (Vandeleur 1898). Now Jimada’s descendants are fighting for the post of Etsu Nupe claiming to be the only existing pure Nupe ruling family.

More detail on the history of the Nupe kingdoms can be found in Burdon (1909), Nadel (1942), Hogben & Kirk-Greene (1966:261-282) and Mason (1981).


[edit] Population and demography
There are probably about 1,5 million Nupe, principally in Niger State. They are primarily Muslims about 90%, although traditional religion still exist but are weak. The Nupe people have several local, traditional rulers. The Etsu Nupe (Bida) is not Nupe and is actually part of the Fula tribe but they came to rule the Bida in the 1806. They have no present capital, although they were originally based at Rabah and only moved to Bida in the nineteenth century.


[edit] Traditions, art and culture
The Nupe people have various traditions. As Muslims much of their culture is adopted from the Arab nations but they still hold on to much of their culture. Many Nupe people often have tribal scars on their faces (similar to an old Yoruba tradition), some to identify their prestige and the family of which they belong as well as for protection, as well as jewelry adornment. But these traditions are dying out in certain areas. Though their continues to be hints of their traditional religion persisting many Nupe claim to be Muslim, although there are also some Nupe Christian's. Their art is often abstract. They are well known for their wooden stools with patterns carved onto the surface.
Siegfried Nadel, whose book, Black Byzantium, remains an anthropological classic.
The Nupe, were described in detail by the ethnographer .

The Ika people

Onyeche Ifeanyi Joseph, PhD

Saturday, 11.02.2002, 03:21pm (GMT+1)




The reader is advised to note that the facts presented here in no way represents the whole facts of the history of the Ika people. The more detailed description of the Agbor clan (one of the Ika eleven clans) more than the other clans is only due to the materials available to the writer at the time of writing. More research on the part of the reader is encouraged. For the complete bibliography/Sources of citations in this work, write to the webmaster.


Introduction

In this work there will be a description of the Ika community, the various Ika clans and their claimed sources of origins. These accounts of origins will be based on oral traditions and legends of the various clans as well as some historical facts documented by ethnologists, historians and colonial officials.

Geography

Geographically, the Ika speaking people are found in the north west of Delta State. They share borders linguistically in the west with the Edo speakers, in the north with the Ishan speakers, in the East with the Aniocha language speakers and in the south with the Ukwuani speakers.

Politically, Ika speakers are mainly found in two local government areas, Ika North East and Ika South local government areas, both created in 1991 from a single Ika Local Government Area, in Delta State. Ika South and Ika North East local government areas, occupy a land area of 117.45 square kilometres (Delta State Government website, 1999) with a total population of about 240,000 people. There are other Ika speaking people that are political outside the Ika North east and Ika South local government areas. The exact population of speakers of the Ika language or those with Ika as mother tongue is not known since this information was not included in the 1991 census result (1991 census). Ika people do not have any shared physical characteristics distinguishing it from other ethnic or language groups in Delta State.

In this work, Ika North East and Ika South local government areas of Delta State, will be referred to as the Ika community although there are some Ika language speaking areas (i.e. Igbanke) outside these two local government areas. The Ika community is made up of eleven independent groups, which I will refer to as clans, and a metropolis. All eleven Ika clans speak a common language, the Ika language, with a cluster of dialects, which belongs to the Igboid group (Williamson 1968). There are however, no significant differences between these dialects but mainly phonological and lexical variation.


Origin of the name Ika

Although earlier colonial documents have referred to the present Ika people as Ika speaking people (Marshall 1936, Whiting 1936, Simpson 1936, Denton 1937, and Stanfield 1936), the present Ika people have not always been the only group known by the name, Ika. Forde and Jones (1967) used the term Ika for a wider community, which included the present Ika group. Ika was used by Forde and Jones (1967) to represent the inland parts of the four groups that make up the western Igbo group (Aniocha, Oshimili, Ika and Ukwuani) found in present Delta State away from the shores of the river Niger. The remaining members of these groups that are on the shores of the river Niger i.e. Asaba, Aboh and others were referred to as Riverain Ibo (Forde and Jones 1967: 49-50). Within this Ika group the present Ika community was classified as Northern Ika along with Aniocha and Oshimili while the Ukwuani group was classified as Southern Ika (Forde and Jones 1967). However the origin and meaning of the name Ika and when only the present Ika community and their language began to be known and referred to by that name, which they retain until today, is not clear.

Ika Structure: Clans, villages (Ogbe), quarters (Idumu) and family units (nmunne)

As has been stated above, there are eleven clans and a metropolis that make up the Ika collective group, which I refer to as the Ika community. Except for the Idumuesah clan the rest ten are today also referred to as kingdoms as they have the hereditary kingship traditional system. The kings are known and referred to by the title of Obi (king), however the king of Agbor clan has changed his title from Obi to Dien for reasons not clear to me at this time. The following are the eleven clans and a metropolis that make up the Ika community:

1. Agbor clan,
2. Owa clan,
3. Abavo clan,
4. Ute-Okpu clan,
5. Ute-Ogbeje clan
6 Umunede clan,
7. Akumazi clan,
8. Igbodo clan,
9. Otolokpo clan,
10. Mbiri clan,
11. Idumuesah clan
12. Orogodo/Boji-Boji

Clan is used in this work to refer to the shared belief in a common lineage (or agbon) of descent held by members of each of the eleven Ika clans who occupy a certain land area. For instance Marshall (1936: 3) regarded Ute-Okpu clan as a "true clan" since all the units traced their "ancestry to a common origin." A lineage is regarded as a unilineal descent group composed of people who trace their genealogies through specified links to a common ancestor (Bates 1996). Although members of a clan may sometimes not be able to tangibly prove a blood relationship, it is the case that clans " derive from lineages that become too large or too dispersed to keep track of their genealogies" (Bates 1996: 218).

The concept of kings and kingdom in the Igbo speaking areas is a more modern concept (Nwaubani, 1994). Unlike clan, the concept of kingdom is more territorial. Kingdoms are not necessarily made up of groups with shared belief in common origin or groups that perceive each other as siblings. For instance, the Old Kingdom of Benin consisted of both the Edo and non-Edo speaking groups, which are not linguistically or genetically related to each other (Osae and Nwabara 1977). However, there are instances where descent groups and territorial groups intertwine (Tosh 1978). In describing how some kingdoms were formed, Isichei (1983) stated that:

"In some areas, where the celebrated kingdoms developed, a change seems to have taken place which often follows a similar pattern, whereby a multiplicity of small-scale states, whose 'priest-kings' were sometimes rulers of little territories…gave way to unified kingdoms (1983: 129)."

There has been no reliable documentation or account of such pattern of formation of kingdoms in the Ika area. There is no word in Ika language for 'kingdom' the closest word is ali (land). The different Ika clans, refer to the physical area or territory they occupy as ali, e.g. ali Owa, ali Abavo e.t.c. However, among each Ika clan people do not perceive their physical land space as being separate from the people and their ancestors. Although there is a coinage such as ali eze (King's land) it still is not the equivalent of kingdom. Each of the Ika clans refer to themselves as nmu nne (siblings). For instance the members Abavo clan refer to themselves as nmu Abavo (children of Abavo) based on their belief in a common lineage of descent, which unites all the villages that make up ali Abavo (abavo clan). This applies to all the eleven Ika clans with or without kings.

The concept and belief held by the various Ika clans about their land, is no less powerful than that embodied by concept of kingdom. Members of each Ika clan have always regarded themselves and their land from the point of view of their belief in shared lineage of descent which created that collective consciousness causing them to refer to themselves as nmu nne (relatives or siblings) or clan. During the colonial period, there was a rise in new kingdoms (Nwaubani 1994). Any area with a king began to be regarded as a kingdom. Groups, such as in the Igbo speaking areas like some Ika clans that previously had no monarchical system, followed this pattern mainly because of the independence that the concept of kingdom implies (Intelligence report on Mbiri clan, 1932; Denton 1937). When kingship systems were created where there were previously none, in order to make administration easier for the colonial administrators, a kingdom was also created (Nwaubani 1994). However the concept of a land (ali) emphasised in clan concept made up of siblings has always been there, since the prehistoric times, in the mind of the people unlike kingdom whose emphasis is basically political.

Although I refer to the Ika collective group (all eleven clans) as a community, they are sometimes regarded as an ethnic group or tribe (Bates 1996; Lewis 1996; de la Gorgendiere 1996; Jenkins 1997). Bates describes tribe as:

"a decentralized descent-and kinship-based grouping in which a number of subgroups are loosely linked to one another… There is no centralized system of authority, decision making, or social control, but potential exists to unite a large number of local groups for common defense or warfare… The internal organization is similar in principle to that of the lineage or clan. Just how the lineages are expressed and maintained varies from society to society. One system is for two or more clans to see themselves as related, even though each group generally will act autonomously in managing its affairs. However, the sense of common identity can be called into play for defense" (1996: 219).

A tribe can be seen as sometimes containing several independent clans or what Bates (1996) called subgroups that are not necessarily related through shared lineage of descent (Gutane 2001). However, in this work, I will refer to Ika as a community instead of tribe or ethnic group due to the fluidness of the meaning of tribe and the emotion they sometimes evoke.

All eleven Ika clans are bound together by shared language, custom, culture and an unclear but strong belief in their oneness, though not like that which exists within individual clans. The Ikaness of all the clans is grounded in subjective and emotionally charged identification (Dahl 1996) which manifests itself in their belief system in the form of the gods such as o¤`zun (the god of iron) and in festivals like Igwe (New Year) and Iwa-igi (New yam festival) and general cosmology. Further, their share language, the Ika language, concretises their legendary sameness of origin. Ika clans are made up of villages and villages are made up of several quarters or idumu in the Ika language.

As in most parts of Nigeria, a village or Ogbe (Ika word for village) in the Ika area is sometimes geographically identifiable. Apart from modern government records of village boundaries, in most cases village boundaries are marked historically by certain natural markers like trees, hills, rivers, etc. A typical Ika village, or ogbe, consists of residential areas and a considerably vast farming area. Ika villages are made up of several quarters or Idumu (in the Ika language). The quarter (idumu) is made up of a family (nmu) or several family units depending on the size of the family. When a family gets too large for its present site it expands geographically forming a new quarter or Idumu (Marshall 1936: 6).

Ika villages or ogbe sometimes claim a common descent that could be described as nonunilineal (Bates 1996). This descent is usually narrowed down to a specific ancestor on the level of quarters, Idumu, which is usually made up of a unilineal descent group within a village. For instance Jegbefume, the Obi of Abavo, who ruled between 1910 and 1953 married fifty wives and had about two hundred children. These number of wives and children may have made up a substantial population of a quarter in the Abavo village called Ogbe-Obi which is the village of the royal family and since polygamy was a way of life the other quarters of Ogbe-Obi village may have been populated by other branches of the royal family (Amokwu and Jegbefume n.d).

The typical Ika family unit or nmunne consists of both immediate family unit directly linked by blood ties and the extended family unit linked by distant family ties which could sometimes be a 'fictive kinship' (Freed and Freed 1976: 148). This term will be used in this work not to indicate that the relationship or kinship is not real or genuine to the people involved, since it is as real to them as the extended family system, but that it is not biologically determined.

The non-biologically determined family tie is normal in many quarters (idumu), village (ogbe) and clans. It is usual for a family for a different ethnic or language group to migrate to an Ika village and is of good behaviour, participating in village activities and rituals, it is then accepted by the neighbours or the quarter, and later by the village elders. Finally, the family members are then accepted as members of that village thereby becoming entitled to all the benefits of membership (Forde and Jones 1967). Marriage is another way of establishing kinship between families (migrant or not) of different lineages. When a marriage takes place both families involved consider themselves related by marriage. However, the conditions (such as marriage) on which their relationship is built is most often forgotten after a generation or two, if there continues to be active positive interaction between both families, with both families considering themselves as simply related. According to Marshall (1936) it is indeed not clear at what stage a family, nmunne, evolves into Idumu, quarter.


Ika clans, structure and claimed account of origin
In this section I will be describing the structure of the various Ika clans. The origin of each Ika clan based on documented oral tradition will also be discussed in order to show the relationship between all eleven clans.

AGBOR

Agbor is and has always been the largest of the Ika clans. It was to the most politically and militarily powerful of all the Ika clans due to its constant war with Benin until the late nineteenth century (Isichei 1983 and Simpson 1936).

Agbor and Abavo clans make up Ika South Local Government Area while the rest make up Ika North East Local Government Area. Agbor clan consists of twenty-three villages and a metropolis known as Orogodo or Boji-Boji Agbor:

1. Ogbemudein
2. Ihogbe
3. Obielihe
4. Ihaikpen
5. Ogbeisore
6. Ogbeisogban
7. Agbamuse/Oruru
8. Alifekede
9. Omumu
10. Alisor
11. Alilehan
12. Alizomor
13. Ozanogogo (Ozara)
14. Alisimien
15. Ewuru
16. Idumu-Oza
17. Aliokpu
18. Alihami
19. Agbor-nta
20. Alihagwu
21. Oki
22. Ekuku-Agbor
23. Emuhun
24. Boji-Boji Agbor

The villages of Alisor, Alilehan and Ozanogogo are not Ika speaking. They speak an Edoid language known, especially to the Ika speakers, as Oza or Ozara.

Simpson (1936:6) quoted Talbot's reference to the Origin of Agbor documented by the Dutch historian traveller Nyendael that describes an exodus from Benin before his visit in 1702. This exodus involved two families one of them "settled in Agbor while the other went to Obior."

Agbor oral tradition claimed that the village of Agbor-nta was the original headquarters of the old Agbor kingdom several centuries before Christ (Obuseh, n.d) while the first king to be accounted for in Ika oral tradition was Dein (1270-1307) . This is ambiguous since the kings of Agbor are traditionally called Dein unless one assumes that the title must have started from the first (accounted for) king of Agbor. The headquarters of Agbor has been moved several times until the recent in 1935 to Ime-obi (Anonymous, 1998:19). The reasons for the movement of the headquarters several times have been given as farming convenience and wars of succession. Since the old Agbor had always faced threats from the old Bini kingdom, it is also possible that the security of the headquarters from external invaders was an important consideration in the constant relocations of the headquarters.

In emphasising the relationship between all the Ika clans, Obuseh (n.d) recounts Agbor legend that states that all the founders of the Ika clans were related by blood. One of the kings of Agbor, Igbudu, fearing for his security sent his children, apart from Owuwu who was later crowned the Obi of Agbor after him, to settle distant from Agbor to form out posts against enemies. One of his children named Ika was sent south as protection against the Aboh people and founded Otolokpo clan, another son, Ede, was sent east and founded Umunede'. This, according to Agbor clan's legend, was how all the clans were founded. Agbor's oral tradition claims that all the Ika clans were part of the Agbor Kingdom. This kingdom, it claims, was ruled over by the Obi of Agbor with other clans as vassal states ruled by chiefs or perhaps kings that were subordinate to the Obi of Agbor. The oral tradition of the other Ika clans contradicts this claim

However kings of Agbor, at various times, had married several wives from other clans like Akumazi. Agbor regent, Ekeze's (1929-34), married wives' from other clans such as Akumazi and their families were given lands to settle in parts of existing villages in the Agbor clan, giving birth to new quarters in such villages. There are other instances where immigrants from other clans or ethnic groups like Ishan and Benin were given lands to settle away from the existing villages resulting in a new village being born. Such inter-marriages may partly explain some of the bonds existing between some of these clans especially among the royal families.

Alisimie village was founded by a great hunter from Benin called Ene while his friend, Adagbe, who migrated with him founded the quarter of Alijemisi in Alisimie village. People that fled Uteh-Okpu clan and sought refuge in Agbor clan after a kingship succession dispute founded Aliokpu village (Simpson 1936).

There are also villages that were founded by people who moved far way from Agbor. For instance the village of Ekuku-Agbor (see map 4) that is located in the far south of Ika south local government surrounded by villages of the Abavo and Owa clans and those of the Ukwuani speakers, was founded by by Ose the Ologbosere (War chief) of Agbor who was sent by the king of Agbor, Obi Madu, to stop the incursion of the Ukwuani people into Agbor land. Influential farmers founded the villages of Agbor-nta, Ewuru, Alihagwu and Alidinma while Ohumadia, the Elema (Agbor chief), who was sent to protect the southern border of Agbor land, founded the village of Oki (Simpson 1936).


Abavo

Abavo shares borders with Agbor clan in the north, Owa clan in the east, the Edo speaking people of Uronigbe in the south. Abavo clan, also known as Awuu, comprises of five villages:

1. Ogbe-Obi (Abavo Central)
2. Azuowa (made up of four quarters: Ekwueze, Ekwuoma, Okpe, Oyoko)
3. Udomi
4. Igbogili
5. Obi-Ayima

In the account gathered by Forde and Jones (1967) on the founder of Abavo, they learnt that Awu who had the title of Eze (meaning a leader in Igbo) was himself from a place called Awu. This, perhaps, was stating the obvious that Awu was from Abavo. However, Abavo oral tradition claims their founding father, Awu, had migrated directly from Benin (Amokwu and Jegbefume, n.d). According to Abavo oral tradition, their founding father, Awu, was originally from Benin. He escaped from Bini kingdom around the 15th or 16th century to avoid being sacrificed and later settled at Abavo (Amokwu and Jegbefume, n.d).

Owa clan

Geographically, Owa clan shares borders with Agbor clan in the west by the Orogodo River and Abavo clan, in the north Orogodo (Agbor metropolis), in the east by Umunede, Otolokpo and Ute-Okpu clans. Owa clan is made up of the seven villages and a metropolis:

1.Oyibu
2. Alizomor
3.Owa Alidinma
4.Ufie
5. Aliro
6.Owanta
7. Owa-Eke
8. Boji-Boji Owa (a metropolis)

Owa has its origin in Nri, Northern Igbo (Forde and Jones 1967 and Isichei 1983). The founder of Oyibu village (also know as Owa Oyibu) was Odogu son of Ijie of Ute-Okpu (another Ika clan) who is from Nri (Northern Igbo) while "the other villages found in Owa clan are derived from Benin or other Agbor groups" (Forde and Jones 1967: 47). Oyibu village is the political centre of the Owa clan.

According to Whiting (1936), Owa oral tradition has it that Odogu angrily left Ute-Okpu and settled near the present site of Oyibu village because his brother, Okpu, inherited everything after his fathers death, while Odogu was away serving the Oba of Benin in wars. However Ufie, the founder of Ufie village presently in the Owa clan, had already settled in the present site of Ufie village on the directive of the Oba of Benin who had bestowed on him the Obi title. After Odogu settled in Oyibu, it was claimed that Ufie invited Odogu to his Ikenga festival. Odogu, impressed by the festival, decided to celebrate it himself at Oyibu. He then invited Ufie. According to the legend, Odogu deceived Ufie into taking a subservient role during a ritual sacrifice thereby serving him. This action was observed by Odogu's subjects then proclaimed Odogu as greater than Ufie. Odogu then took the Obi title from Ufie. This, it is claimed, accounts for why Ufie is today a village in the Owa clan. Ozomo, Odogu's brother who followed him from Ute-Okpu founded Alizomo village while Omi and his wife Iro who came from Benin founded Aliro village. Okue who came from Benin founded Owanta village. Later, Adie later arrived from Ute-Okpu to found Idumu Adie, a quarter in Owanta (Whiting 1936).

According to oral tradition, Ekei and his wife Abor who migrated from Benin when Ise was the Obi of Owa founded Owa-Eke village (Whiting's 1936). However the village of Owa-Eke initially moved away from Owa due to problems with Ise the Obi of Owa and settled at Owanike in the Benin Kingdom but the Owanike village later split and one part returned to Owa-Ekei in Owa still considering themselves as subjects of the Oba of Benin while serving the Obi of Owa. Ugbebo who was sent there by Obi Gbenoba of Owa to protect Owa traders buying guns and gunpowder from the Kwales founded Alidinma village (Whiting 1936).

Concerning Boji-Boji, Whiting (1936) stated that "when the troops that came to Agbor station in 1906 the usual camp followers settled on the other bank of the Orogodo River where the settlement is known by the delightful name BOJI-BOJI. Nearly every tribe in Nigeria is represented and the only educated and progressive element in Owa is found here. They were originally allotted their land by the District Commissioner and later came under the control of the Obi of Agbor. In 1926 there was a dispute as a result of which the portion south of the main Agbor-Asaba road came under the Owa and is recognised as being part of the Owa village lands of Owanta and Owekei" (1936: 7).


Ute-Okpu Clan

Ute Okpu shares common borders with Agbor and Otolokpo clans in the north, Ekuku Agbor in the south, Idumuesa and Owa clans in the west and Ute-Ogbeje clan in the east. Ute-Okpu is made up of eight villages (Marshall 1936):

1. Ibi-Agware
2. Owele
3. Ogbe
4. Idumu Eze Aje
5. Odah
6. Alihe
7. Alumu
8. Enugu

Ute-Okpu people claim two sources of origin: Benin and the Igbo side of the Niger. In his account of the origin of the Ute-Okpu clan, Marshall (1936) stated that the original founder of Ute-Okpu was called Ute who migrated from Nri near the present Onitsha in Anambra State, Eastern Nigeria, after a quarrel with the Eze of Nshi (Nri). He settled near the present location of the village of Ibi-Agware. He had two sons Okpu and Odogu, Okpu later became the Obi of Ute-Okpu while Odogu later founded Oyibu village in Owa (1936: 3-4).
The dual claim in the origin of Owa clan appears to indicate the presence of an original Igbo group before there was contact with other groups of Benin origin. Isichei (1976) hypothesised that the present Ika region may have been inhabited by a group of people of Igbo origin. Isichei (1976) also hypothesised that there was a possibility that they existed in the location of Owa clan before Odogu became their leader their leader. It is not unusual for most Nigerian clans to trace the origin of their clan to their king's origin. The first King is always considered the founding father of the clan even if some of these kings emerged or were imposed on them long after the founding of the clan. For instance the history of Benin is always traced to the first Oba of Benin, Oranmiyan, who himself was from the Yoruba town of Ife (Bradbury 1973). This, however, does not mean that the people of Benin are certainly from Ife themselves. Likewise, the Ika clans think of their history in 'dynastic terms'.


Ute-Ogbeje

Ute-Ogbeje is made up of four villages (Marshall 1936):

1. Ogbe Obi
2. Ogbe Akpu
3. Emike
4. Akpama

The origin of Ute-Ogbeje, like those of many other Ika clans, is surrounded in myth. According to Marshall (1936), the Ute-Ogbeje people claim that Ogbeje was the brother of the Oba of Benin and came with him to discover a place to live. The two brothers travelled by canoe. As they were paddling along a bird called Ukpoko dropped a snail into Ogbeje's canoe. Ogbeje threw the snail overboard and land immediately surrounded him. Ogbeje decided to settle on this new land while the Oba moved on. Ogbeje then had a son, Inai, who succeeded him. Inai was extremely cruel and many of his subjects fled and formed a new settlement called Ute-Okpu (Marshall 1936). This account, however, seemed to contradict that of Ute-Okpu. Marshall writes further:

"There appears to be no doubt that there was some connection between Ute-Ogbeje and Ute-Okpu, but it is not impossible that the two branches of the Ute clan got separated in their easterly migration and came back at different times" (1936: 4).


Idumuesah clan

Idumuesah shares boundary with Ute-Okpu clan in the east, in west and south west by Abavo clan and Owa clan in the north. Idumuesah was founded by a group of people that migrated from Ugboha in Ishan, north of Ika community (Forde and Jones 1967; Whiting 1936). Whiting (1936: 22) states that "It is uncertain whether they came to their first settlement in what is known as the Agbo bush between Oyibu and Aliro before or after Odogu". He stated that Ibile, one of the founders, is said to have come from Ugboha in Ishan Division and to have joined with Abu from Aboh in Kwale District in settling in the Agbo bush. Oje and Ilor came from Uromi in Ishan Division and joined them (Whiting 1936). Idumuesah consists of four villages, which may once have been quarters (Idumu):

1. Iliobome
2. Aliobo
3. Alioje
4. Alilor

It should be known that the name Idumuesa means seven quarters (Idumus) but the above list of current villages shows only four villages. It is claimed that, "the other three which were said to have been very small, have returned to their home towns in other districts" (Whiting 1936: 24).

Whiting (1936) stated in his report that Owa claimed that Idumuesah served the Obi of Owa (Obi Ise) and revolted later but Idumuesah denied this. But the people of Idumuesah, for some controversial reasons, left their first settlement for their present site, which is south east of Oyibu but, according to Whiting, "they are unable to say why they left their old settlement" (1936: 23). N.E Whitings' hypothesis is that "Owa, after overcoming Ufie by trickery, became full of their importance and tried to claim over-lordship over Idumuesah who refused and left their settlement. Whatever their particular reason for leaving the main reason was to escape from Owa and it is unlikely that they would settle on any other land claimed by Owa" (1936: 23).

In the early part of the 20th century, according to Whiting (1936: 24), "one Aholor was sent by the Obi of Owa with some Oyibu people to settle there and to be Obi of Idumuesah. He caused considerable trouble, committing arson and was eventually fined and ordered to leave Idumuesah. The Oyibu people were ordered to return to Oyibu and troops went to effect this evacuation. Aholor returned and was chased and eventually captured at Nsukwa. On his way to Agbor under escort he fell in a well near Igbodo and was drowned. His son Obakpolor tried to raise a claim to the Obi title but was ordered not to return to Idumuesah.

During the colonial period, 1906, Idumuesah was placed under Owa clan but became independent in 1907 (Whiting 1936). However, Whiting (1936) recounts that the British resident, in 1915 recorded that no Obi in Idumuesah could be recognised. The polittical authority in Idumuesah is vest in age. The Onyeichen (the oldest man) of Aliobome village is always the clan head. Whiting (1936) cited the record of the resident that in1919 and 1920 the elders of Idumuesah were informed that they were subordinate to Owa clan and that they raised no Objection" (1939: 24). The reasons for these decisions were not given. It is most likely the subordination referred may have had to do with their role or representation in the district court, then in Owa, where clans in the area were represented during the colonial period. Idumuesah has remained an independent clan like the other ten Ika clans even though it has no monarchical system found in the other Ika clans.


Mbiri clan

Mbiri clan lies in the north east of Agbor clan and off the Lagos-Benin-Onitsha highway. Mbiri's oral tradition claims that Arun who migrated from Iwaisi, or the native doctor's quarter in Benin founded Mbiri. Arun, a hunter, reached the present site of Mbiri on one of his hunting expeditions and settled down there. Mbiri's oral tradition also claims that Arun had four sons three of whom were responsible for the founding of the following towns: Ewuhimi, Mbiri and Igbanke. The fourth son is claimed to have returned to Benin (Intelligence report 1932).
Mbiri adopted the monarchical system, based on Benin tradition, found in most Ika clans. According to Intelligence report (1932), "1n 1915 the Mbiris attempted to put themselves directly under the Oba of Benin, and sent a large sum of money to the Oba to gain this end. It is obvious that it was at this time that the present Chief went to Benin and received the title of Obi from the Oba, along with the Ada, or ceremonial sword, which forms part of the regalia of this title. They were again visited by the district District Commissioner who told them that they were part of Agbor District and could not therefore come under Benin"(Intelligence report 1932: 10). The Mbiri clan has the same political system as other Ika clans.


Umunede clan

Umunede occupies a strategic location along the Lagos-Benin-Onitsha highway. Umunede shares its borders with Agbor clan in the east, Igbodo in the north, Akumazi in the east, Otolokpo and Owa clans in the south. There are four villages (ogbe) in Umunede:

1. Ogbe Obi
2. Idumuilege
3. Idumugba
4. Idumuile

Although there of the villages above still retain the idumu (quarter) prefix in their names they are villages. These are perhaps some examples of quarters expanding in size and then forming villages.

Umunede's oral tradition, like those of most of the Ika clans, traces their origin to Benin. However, Stanfield (1936: 1) states the following about his observations of the Umunede people:

From legend of their origin are of Bini descent, but in their language and social structure they resemble closely the Ibos of the Ogwashi and Uburukwu clans in the Asaba Division.

According to Stanfield (1939: , "there were no titles in Umunede until 1919 when the then Eze (named Niago) obtained an Ada from Eweka, Oba of Benin." This resulted in the first Obi title and the start of the monarchical system like those found in some of the Ika clans.


Otolokpo

Otolokpo shares borders with Umunede and Akumazi clans in the north, Ute-Ogbeje clan in the east, Ute-Okpu in the south and Owa and Umunede in the west. There are seven villages in Otolokpo:

1. Ogbe Obi
2. Idumu -Oji
3. Achala
4. Idumu-Okete
5. Idumu-Obome
6. Umuhu
7. Alugba

According to Stanfield (1936), Gbobo, from Benin founded all villages apart from Umuhu, formed by migrants from Agbor, and Alugba village formed by migrants from Ute-Ogbeje (Standfield 1936).

Akumazi and Igbodo clans

Akumazi clan shares borders with Umunede in the west, Igbodo in the north, Otolokpo in the South and the Anoicha speaking town of Obior in the east. They trace their origin to Benin from where their founder fled (Simpson 1936).

Igbodo occupies an area in the north east of the Ika North local government area. It share border with Akumazi in the south, Mbiri in the west, the Ishan groups in the North and the Anoicha groups in the east. Like many of the Ika clans, they trace their origin to Benin (Fordes and Jones 1967).

In summary, while Owa and Ute-Okpu, Ute-Ogbeje have their origin in both Igbo and Benin areas, Agbor, Abavo Ute-Ogbeje, Akumazi, Umunede, Igbodo and Mbiri trace their clans to a single source, Benin (Fordes and Jones 1967: 47). Idumuesah traces its origin to Ishan but there also are villages that may have been established by people of Ukwuani origin. While Otolokpo traces its origin to Benin there are also villages in Otolokpo that trace their origin to Agbor.

The relationship among all the Ika clans appear to be mainly in their Benin origin as well as a population shift, for various reasons, which resulted in movement or relocation of villages from one clan to another forming new allegiances as well retaining their former relationship with their origin.

Ika Speakers outside the Ika community:

Igbanke clan

Igbanke clan is north of the Ika south local government area. It is located in Orhionmwon Local Government Area of Edo State. Orhionmwon Local government area, except for Igbanke, is mainly an Ishan language speaking area. Igbanke is made up of six villages (Osunde, 2000):

1. Ake
2. Igbontor
3. Ottah
4. Idumodin
5. Umolua
6. Oligie

All six villages speak the Ika language. Farmers from Ishan and Agbor villages who settled in this area, which is within Benin territory, founded the five original villages, namely Ake, Igbontor, Otta Idumodin and Umolua. Oligie village, the sixth village in the Igbanke clan, is claimed by Oligie people to have been founded by Ottor from Benin (Kerr, 1937; Simpson, n.d).



http://www.ikaworld.com/index.php

[b]Esan (pronounced /aysan/) is one of the major ethnic groups in Edo State, South-south geopolitical zone of Nigeria. It is believed by many historians that the name 'Esan' (originally, 'E san fia') owes its origin to Bini (meaning, 'they have fled' or 'they jumped away'). 'Ishan' is an Anglicized form of 'Esan', the result of colonial Britain's inability to properly pronounce the name of this ethnic group. It is believed that similar corruption has affected such Esan names as ubhẹkhẹ (now 'obeche' tree), uloko (now 'iroko' tree), Abhuluimẹn (now 'Aburime'), etc. Efforts have however been made to return to stutus quo ante. For academic purpose, Esan refers to (1) the ethnic group that occupies central Edo State; (2) (plural unchanged) a person or the people collectively from this ethnic group; (3) the language of these people which, linguistically, is of the Kwa subdivision of the Niger-Congo language family; (4) something of, related to, or having Esan origin e.g. uro Esan (=Esan language), otọ Esan (=Esan land), ọghẹdẹ Esan (=Esan banana).

A total of thirty four kingdoms (large villages/townships ruled traditionally by monarchs) make up Esan and many of them seem to have their own oral versions of the origin of Esan as well as its own starting point in history. One of the most popular of these is the one advocated by the group much of which constitutes the now defunct Agbazilo, one of the two former local government administrative units in Esan.

According to the Agbazilo group, made up mainly of Uromi and Uzea, Esan came into being when one of the children of Bini’s Queen Oakha and Ojiso Owodo, Prince Uzia Asokpodudu (Ojiso Owodo’s crown prince and heir apparent) founded Uzea in about 1188 AD after they fled their father's (the Ojiso's) palace following the death sentence passed on their mother, Queen Oakha, who was alleged to have committed adultery with a Bini chief, Ovior. The duo of Ozogbo and Oigi, Asokpodudu's younger brothers, escaped along with him and the mother. It is believed that not only did Prince Asokpodudu (the founder of Uzea Kingdom) escape with the mother, Oakha, relations and some palace servants, he also left with his father’s (the king's) royal trident, ‘Uziziẹnghain’, the Ojiso’s heir loom.

The Uziziẹnghain used to be the royal regalia with which the Ojiso dynasty was founded. Ozogbo later left Asokpodudu in his base in what is today known as Uzea to found Ẹgbele in present-day Uromi while Oigi went and establish a settlement with his mother, Oakha, which is today known as Ẹkperi (outside Esan land). 'Ikhio' is an annual feast celebrated in Uzea in remembrance of Oakha. While Queen Oakha and her children fled northward of Bini, Chief Ovior, her alleged lover, fled eastward to a settlement he established, which is today known as Obior (probably a corruption of 'Ovior'), near Asaba, Delta State capital.(1)

This is believed by some to be the very beginning of Esan, though the Irrua group may not readily accede to this historical contention. The very name 'Esan' was not applied to this people until the arrival of other emigrants from Bini, who fled Oba Ewuare's brutal reign. The Oba (Bini monarch) had decreed: "No making of fire to cook; no cleaning of homes; no procreation; no washing of clothes." Unable to abide by these rules, many natives fled the Bini Kingdom. When the king sought to know where many of his subjects had gone, he was told, "Ele san fia" ("They have fled", thus giving rise to 'E-san-fia' and later 'Esan'.(2)

In other words, the name Esan was never borne by the earlier group until the arrival of the later groups. Other groups, such as Ekpoma, left Bini later to establish bases where they occupy presently. Except some historical contention to the effect that Esan has always been where they are presently, or that Bini in fact migrated from Esan to its present abode, Esan in this sense is a group/tribe of 'fled/jumped away' people from Bini for various reasons and at different periods in history. Esan largely remains a migrants' settlement just like the New World. This position has made some historians to argue that the Agbazilo group, Uromi and Uzea, are a pre-Esan group which has decided to coexist under the same banner of Esan. It was within this same group, in Uzea, that Oba Ozolua met his waterloo and buried in Ugboha's Otokhimhin, originally called 'Oto-ukhimhin' (the land of Ukhimhin tree). This is the origin of the popular saying among Esan that "Oba ii de Esan, Ozolua ii ri Edo" meaning, "A Benin monarch does not visit Esan just as King Ozolua (of Benin) will not return to Benin."

Esan land is bordered to the south by Benin City, to the south-east by Agbor, to the north and east by Etsako, to the west by River Niger. From Ewu to Benin City, the State capital, is 100 km long. No accurate demographic data of the people is available and the various local governments in Esan appear to lack reliable information in this direction. The people populate areas such as Uromi, Ewatto, Igueben, Irrua, Ubiaja, Ebele, Ehor, Ekpoma, Ewu, etc in central Edo State, South-South Nigeria. It has flat landscape, one lacking in rocks and mountains, and good for agricultural purpose. Rubber tree (used for the production of plastic products) and palm tree rank highest among Esan trees. The land's variety of fruits range from mango, orange, grape, pineapple, guava, cashew, banana, plantain, black pear, avocado pear, lime to walnut and even more. Cassava, yam, cocoa yam, sweet potato, pepper, okra and rice are some of its farm produce. It has numerous streams that are too small to afford fishing.

Replete with different dialects, Esan language is quite unintelligible to even many native speakers. For instance, the Esan word for person (or, somebody) is variously called by the different kingdoms' dialects as ọria (by Uromi, etc), ọhia (by Uzea, etc), ọyia (by Unea, etc), ọhan (by Ugbọha, etc). This obvious difficulty associated with speaking others' dialects other than one's mother dialect has given rise to the widespread use of Pidgin English, which is the local patois, a mishmash of Portuguese, English and Nigeria's local languages.

During the era of the military,the Esan had between five to six high ranking military, naval, and police officers as governors (administrators) of various states around the country at different occasions, a feat that owed much to their learning, sociability and especially their loyalty. Chief Ikimi and Chief Anenih have been known to occupy the position of chairman of two national parties — NRC and SDP — respectively.

Esan Day is celebrated at the Tafawa Balewa square, Lagos every December. During the occasions names of prominent Esan figures are read to loud ovation. Esan believe in self help, thus assisting to reach villages and towns to achieve development. Some prominent Esan are Chief Anthony Enahoro, who raised the motion for the independence of Nigeria; Peter Enahoro, who wrote How to be a Nigerian, Saintmoses Eromosele, international poet and novelist who wrote his bluckbuster first novel, "THE WINDS OF LIFE" at the age of sixteen and while still in secondary school; Tony Anenih, a top Nigerian politician and former minister of Works and Housing. Others include the late Ambrose Alli, Governor of Bendel State; Bishop Ekpu; Engr. Joshua Iboaya; Anthony Cardinal Okogie; late first lady Stella Obasanjo; Sonny Okosun, a famous musician; writers Aba Aburime I and Odia Ofeimu; Chief Tom Ikimi, a politician and former foreign affairs minister (during the reign of Gen. Sani Abacha); former Lagos state police commissioner, Oyakhilomen; former vice president of Nigeria, Augustus Aikhonmu (retired Real Admiral); former deputy commissioner of Lagos state Vincent Airebamen; Rev. Chris Oyakhilomen; late [(Justice Omosun)], former Chief Justice of the Gambia and legal luminary; etc.

Esan are fun-loving people who have various festivities and ritualistic traditions. Their folktales and folklores serve as forms of learning and entertainment, like the famous igbabonẹlimhin and akhuẹ. They have prominent traditional rulers who keep order and sanity in a complex society where beauty and manners are intertwined. Despite the long-term impact of Christianity among Esan, the people are largely traditional in that a large number still practise traditional beliefs in the form of worship of ancestral spirits and other gods. A large percentage of Esan are Christians, mostly Catholic and recently of other denominations. Esan has various dialects all of which stem from Bini and there is still close affinity between the Esan and the Bini, which leads to the common saying "Esan ii gbi Ẹdo" meaning, Esan does not harm the Ẹdo (i.e. Bini).

Esan boasts of some renowned scholars, writers, singers, wood-carvers, storytellers, politicians, etc. The folklore and history of Esan are worth revisiting and attempt should be made to research on the various ways that the villages are related to Bini and other groups who may have occupied Ifeku Island many years ago. The Esan heritage is unique despite the variation of dialects. It has been contended that a handful of Esan families are known to possess Portuguese ancestry, resulting from links harking back to the 16th Century when Portuguese sailors, missionaries and tradesman first entered the Bini Kingdom via the coast. British arrived Bini in the wake of the Portuguese numerous expeditions to, and intercourse with, Bini.

There is a small Esan community currently residing in Upstate New York, more specifically in Rochester, New York. This small community is governed by Papa Bear, a prominent Esan elder. Like any other community there is the local town fool, the Esan named Jesse.[/b]


Esan Local Government Areas in Edo State
The autonomous clans/kingdoms in Esan land are currently administratively arranged as follows under the current five local government areas:

(1) Esan-North-East LGA, Uromi: Uromi, Uzea

(2) Esan Central LGA, Irrua: Irrua, Ugbegun, Okpoji, Idoa, Ewu

(3) Esan West LGA, Ekpoma: Ekpoma, Urohi, Ukhun, Egoro

(4) Esan South East LGA, Ubiaja: Ubiaja, Ewohimhin, Emulu, Ohordua, Ẹbhoato, Okhuesan, Orowa, Ugboha, Oria, lllushi, Onogholo

(5) Igueben LGA, Igueben: Igueben, Ebele, Amaho, Ẹbhosa, Udo, Ekpon, Ujorgba, Ogwa, Ugun, Okalo


[edit] Esan Proverbs
Esan, like many of the tribes south of the Sahara, is rich in proverbs. ‘Itan’ is the Esan word for proverb (plural: ‘itanh’). Being a polysemous word, ‘itan’ also means insinuation or innuendo. To differentiate which one is being employed in a speech, the verb that precedes the Esan noun would always be the deciding factor: “kpa itanh” means “speak in proverbs” while “fi itan” means “insinuate, make allusion.” This collection of Esan proverbs is by no means exhaustive, since the use of proverbs is a common feature among nearly all Esan. When placed beside any of the proverbs below, the acronym ‘LIT’ means Lost in Translation, which is to suggest that that particular proverb couldn’t be translated to be true to its original meaning. For instance, the proverb “Ojie kha la le ọ’ ki zi ọgbọn” is a short form of “Ojie kha la le ọ’ ki zi ọgbọn ọhle ojie Udakpa da yọ ni Aah khue alogbo rẹkhan ọle.” If translated, it would be “A king’s ascension to the throne is initially followed with fundamental changes, which was the reason the king of Udakpa ordered to be escorted with musical instruments.”). Besides being lengthy, the reader who has little knowledge of Udakpa in South-East Esan – and the many political changes that have transformed it – will fail to grasp the message in the proverb. When rendered in Esan language, however, the proverb offers some literary appeal and reminisces the distant past of that ancient community. Also, italicized phrases in the English translations are additional information which is meant to aid easy understanding, especially of non-Esan and those who aren’t so good at appreciating adages. Where a proverb has an English equivalent, it is given and preceded with the conjunction ‘Or’ and the abbreviation cf (compare).

Ose ii gba ni usẹnbhokhan. ( A young man's beauty is never without defects.)

Eji Aah nyẹlẹn ọhle Aah khọ. (People resemble where they live.)

Udo ni Aah daghe ọ' vade ii degbi ọrhia bhi ẹlo. (A missile that one sees coming does not blind one.)

Aah ii fi ini bhi otọ kha khin oha-ọtan. (Do not go hunting for squirrel while you have an elephant as a catch.)

Aah ii di isira ọnọ khin eni khin ẹkpẹn. Or, Aah ii khin ẹkpẹn man ọnọ khin eni. (You don’t change to a tiger in the presence of one who can change to an elephant.)

Amẹn ni ọrhia la muọn ii gbera ọle a. (The water one would drink can never flow past one.)

Aah ii yi ọbhẹnbhẹn khui ọkhọh
[b][/b]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esan

on igwe,??they don,t have kings.

I've always been made to believe that armed robbery is a Southern thing.

When did this start happening in the North  .

RIP to the officers.

Fani-Kayode lands new mistress, begins Guber Campaign


Brushing aside his recent travails with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the reported betrayal by his long-time mistress, Chioma Anasoh, embattled former minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode (aka FFK) appears to be moving on with life as he has reportedly kick-started his governorship campaign to succeed Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola of Osun State.

[b]Pointblanknews.com can authoritatively reveal that Fani-Kayode’s guber campaign is coming on the heels of a fresh affair with a lady called Onyeka, ostensibly to cushion the damage inflicted by Chioma’s exit.

Pointblanknews.com had exclusively reported on how Chioma ruined Fani-Kayode by setting him up with the EFCC, as well as aligning with his political foes, to avenge his refusal to take her as a second wife.

Sources close to the former minister hinted that FFK’s decision to start his governorship campaign ahead of 2011, when Oyinlola’s term is expected to expire, was buoyed by his faith that the EFCC case against him would come to naught. “We strongly believe the EFCC probe is nothing short of a political weapon designed to scuttle FFK’s governorship ambition, and that the design is set to run out of steam,” the source said.

“Consequently, we resolved at the wedding of a prominent Nigerian that FFK should take the plunge by pasting his posters. As we speak, FFK’s posters for governorship are being pasted around Osun state. We don’t want to take chances, because we know the forces we are battling. They know FFK is the man is to beat, particularly as the 2011 governorship favors FFK’s Ife zone, the reason they are hell-bent on stopping him,” the source added.

Pressed to unmask the identities of the “they,” the source unfurled: “You will recall that the Senate committee on aviation investigated the disbursement of N19 billion aviation intervention fund. Throughout the investigation, nowhere was FFK indicted for spending a dime without authorization. Yet, at the end of day, even before the report was made public, some dailies published that FFK and his predecessor Professor Babalola Borishade had been ordered to refund over N5 billion. We now know why FFK’s name was included in a report which had not been made public.”[/b]“And when the report was finally made public, the whole world saw that while Borishade was asked to refund N5.1 billion, but FFK was virtually given clean bill of health. He wasn’t asked to refund a penny. Apparently upset that nothing was found on FFK, these political opponents, who are well-positioned in the Senate, insisted that he be banned from holding public office for five years because he gave his kinsmen employment in certain parastatals in the aviation ministry,” the source surmised, exclaiming, “what absurdity!”

Pointblanknews.com gathered that Fani-Kayode may also have been encouraged by the recent embarrassing outburst by the technical consultant to the Senate Aviation Committee that investigated FFK and Professor Borishade, Captain Dan Omale, suggesting that the aviation probe may have been teleguided by Senator Omisore to torpedo FFK’s governorship ambition.

In his “Fani-Kayode Deserves a Breather,” Omale, a trained pilot, argued in the Leadership newspaper, where he runs a column that it was immoral for the Senate committee to have allowed itself to be used to harass Fani-Kayode, whom Omale insisted was the “whistle blower” in the aviation scam.

Wrote Omale: “ During the N19.5 billion aviation interventions probe, simply on the orders of a powerful politician in government, Fani-Kayode, despite being the whistle blower and, was virtually exonerated of any misappropriation himself, he was arrested and kept in custody of the EFCC for nearly 13 days along with those blamed for the mismanagement of the funds.”   

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Omale, whose column was said to have thoroughly embarrassed the aviation committee, further suggested that FFK’s travails may not be unconnected with “an uneducated senator from his constituency, who, like Femi himself, wants to be the next governor of his home state of Osun. “The competition has brought in a bitter rivalry between the two so much that, the senator wants Fani-Kayode implicated in any messy issue that could jeopardize his political future. The senator has invested heavily in diabolical plots, including using Fani-Kayode’s friends against him, all in the name of getting him disqualified for the 2011 gubernatorial contest.”   

Omale scoffed, to the chagrin of the senate committee, that, “Now, the senate committee on aviation has come out with its finding and recommendations on the N19.5 billion aviation intervention fund. Fani-Kayode, although has no case in the misappropriation, has been recommended for a ban from holding public office for the next five years for issues unrelated to the N19.5 billion.”   

Meanwhile, Fani-Kayode, who recently broke up with his mistress of close to four years, Chioma Anasoh, is said to be seeing a certain Onyeka. A sociologist by training, the new lady in FFK’s life was said to have been an acquaintance, but became intimate with the former minister after Chioma deserted. While scanty information is available on Onyeka, sources close to the new lovebirds told Pointblanknews that, unlike Chioma who was very insolent, assertive and boisterous, the new mistress is reserved and “very respectful to madam (Fani-Kayode’s wife), as well as to friends, relations and aides of the former minister. [b]Close friends of Chioma claimed she has been in hiding in Abuja, and is reportedly upset by reports suggesting she has kick-started an affair with Senator Omisore. According to one of her close friends, “Chioma may have betrayed FFK by turning his secrets to his political foes, including Iyiola Omisore, but I don’t think she has descended to the level of dating that senator, having complained of his bad breath.” The friend disclosed that Chioma was now a nervous wreck, occasionally lamenting how she brought harm to bear on the man who loved her so much. “On the few occasions we met, Chioma expressed regret that she allowed herself be used to destroy FFK. She blamed the situation on a spiritual problem, akin to what the Igbos call ogbanje. She traced the problem to how her mother, Antoinette, also destroyed her dad, who thereafter became distressed and had to retire to the village after they had separated. “Chioma really gave me the creeps with stories of how, in the spirit realm, she is a serpent and a crab. How she thrives in the marine kingdom as Oluchi and Seventeria, and how she wields her seven levels of power to seduce, disarm or enchant her victims. She told me that her favorites remain married men, whom she likes to suck and discard like oranges. She said something like have the Succubus demon that traps men’s souls and leads them to destruction by replacing their goodies with miseries,” the friend disclosed. [/b]


http://pointblanknews.com/index.html

Ukraine-based Nigerian pastor in fraud charges

EZRA IJIOMA

[b]Flambouyant Nigerian pastor and apparently Ukraine’s most prominent Pentecostal leader, Sunday Adelaja, has been indicted on fraud charges. Pastor Adelaja is the senior pastor of the largest church in the Ukraine, "The Embassy of the Blessed Kingdom of God for All Nations, Kiev."

The Ukrainian Interior Ministry has accused him of defrauding citizens of money, the ministry’s Department for Media Liaison and International Activity said. Sunday Champion gathered that the amount is over $100m.

"The investigator has brought charges against Nigerian citizen Sunday Adelaja, who permanently resides in Ukraine and is a senior pastor at the Embassy of God church. The charges were brought under Part 4, Article 190 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (the embezzlement of funds in very large amounts via fraud)," the ministry said.

Last month, several church members went to authorities saying they were unable to recover the money they invested, which left many of them bankrupt. Police later arrested one of King’s Capital leaders, Aleksandr Bandurchenko, on suspicion of fraud.

Speculation about Adelaja’s involvement with King’s Capital grew after reports surfaced that he was part of a bank in Nigeria known as GS Microfinance Bank Limited. Some speculated that Adelaja, a native of Nigeria, invested funds from King’s Capital in the African bank and planned to leave the country.

Adelaja, however, said those accusations are unfounded. He said he has never been involved with King’s Capital but denied that it is a Ponzi scheme, which uses later investments to pay dividends to earlier investors.

He said King’s Capital was a legitimate business that failed under the pressure of the global financial crisis. He said because the company poured most of the investment capital into real estate, which decreased in value, it has been unable to pay investors.[/b]"When the economic crisis came, all the real estate is no more selling. The land is enough to pay back the money owed. ,  The problem is ,  everything is stopped in the country--nothing is selling now in Ukraine,’’ he said.

Adelaja said Interior Affairs Minister Yurii Lutsenko accused the church of involvement because he wants to undermine the evangelical movement in Ukraine. With several thousand members across the nation, God’s Embassy is one of the most influential congregations in Ukraine.

"(Lutsenko) is in a very bad situation," Adelaja said. "He’s got to prove now that (King’s Capital) is a pyramid scheme, but he cannot."

Adelaja said he never encouraged his church members to invest in the company and cautioned them to invest in businesses that offer insurance. "Of course ,  if you invest with insurance you get less percentage," he said. "What happened was many people said they didn’t need insurance because the (King’s Capital leaders) were Christians."

He acknowledged being affiliated with GS Microfinance, but said he invested his name and influence in the bank, not millions of dollars. He said GS Microfinance was formed to give small loans to poor Nigerians as a way of lifting them out of poverty. "It’s not about what you can get, but the vision of the program is to elevate and get as many people out of poverty as possible," Adelaja said. "That is one of my lifetime passions ,  because I grew up in poverty."

Although Adelaja has repeatedly denied any involvement in King’s Capital, which has not officially been deemed a fraudulent business, Pentecostal and charismatic leaders across Ukraine are calling on him to repent, saying they heard him encourage church members to invest in the company on several occasions.

"He was not a president of this company, but he was the No. 1 spiritual leader, and he told them what they have to do," said Bishop M. S.Panochko, leader of the All-Ukrainian Union of Pentecostal Churches of Evangelical Faith, which is comprised of 1,500 churches across the nation. "He can do everything to tell them that he is not involved, but all the leaders have a lot of facts, and we have a lot of video of when he was pushing people, and he encouraged people to invest in this business."




Panochko was one of 10 leaders who met with Adelaja last Tuesday to confront him about his alleged support of King’s Capital and the negative impact some of his actions have had on the evangelical church in Ukraine.

The Pentecostal bishops, who together represent more than 2,500 congregations, listed seven items of concern and said Adelaja has a pattern of making exaggerated statements. They pointed particularly to his alleged claim that he led the 2004 Orange Revolution--when Ukrainian voters protested a presidential election many considered fraudulent--and his reports that God’s Embassy has 100,000 members across the nation. The bishops say those and other statements are untrue.

After the meeting, Adelaja issued a statement saying he did not organize the Orange Revolution, though his congregation participated in the demonstrations. He also asked forgiveness for the negative impact the King’s Capital scandal has had on Ukrainian churches, but he added that he did not personally have any involvement in the company.

Despite the statement, Panochko said the bishops would continue waiting for Adelaja to apologize for allegedly endorsing King’s Capital. If he does not repent, Panochko said the bishops would issue a statement to Christians in Ukraine and abroad, and to the Ukrainian government, denouncing Adelaja and claiming no affiliation with him.

Moscow-based pastor Rick Renner, founder of the Good News Association of Churches and Ministries for Russia, Latvia and Ukraine, said Adelaja’s claims are hurting Christians in the former Soviet Union.

If convicted, Adelaja may spend up to 12 years in imprisonment, according to Part 4, Article 190 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

http://www.champion-newspapers.com/sunday%20files/News/article3.htm

igboman.

KADA 2009 27/2/2009


When the 16thNational Sports Festival, tagged "KADA 2009", came to a colourful end on Wednesday, there was little doubt that it had met some of the objectives that were set for it. Between February 15 and February 25, the government and people of Kaduna State delivered a celebration of sporting excellence that was outstanding for the quality of facilities, the keenness of competition, and the depth of hospitality and goodwill.



Given its success, it is ironic that "KADA 2009" actually emerged from somewhat inauspicious beginnings. The sports festival had suffered several postponements due to the inability of the organisers to get many venues ready in time, and there were widespread misgivings that many facilities would still remain unfinished by the new deadline. However, the Kaduna State government and the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the games worked extremely hard to ensure that the games took off on the approved date.

"KADA 2009" was, indeed, a veritable festival of sport. Over 30 sports were on offer, from track and field events to traditional and special sports. Most events were characterised by intense competition, especially in team sports like football, volleyball and handball. The keen rivalry between many of the top sporting states added spice to the fierce contests that took place in the various venues spread across Kaduna.

Although Delta State came to "KADA 2009" as the hot favourites, other states like Edo, Ogun and Lagos were determined to give them a run for their money. In the end, Delta lived up to expectations, winning the highest number of gold, silver and bronze medals, in addition to producing the most successful individual gold medallist. Edo and Ogun states were second and third, respectively.

The outstanding achievement of Delta State is a testimony to the importance of proper preparation. Long before the commencement of the event, the state had embarked on comprehensive training programmes for its athletes, including training in South Africa. In addition, it had outlined a comprehensive reward system for those athletes who did well, and ensured that they got the best accommodation and training facilities available in Kaduna. It was therefore no surprise that sportsmen and sportswomen from the state were dominant in many events, and proved to be very formidable competitors.

But "KADA 2009" was not without its tragedies. About six people died in road accidents connected to the sports festival. Also, a kick-boxer representing Osun State collapsed and died shortly after a bout. In some sports arenas, there were disorderly scenes caused by alleged poor officiating and blatant favouritism. At the organisational level, there were some shortcomings in registration procedures and media coordination. Many of these challenges could have been easily overcome if the LOC of "KADA 2009" had liaised more closely with the organisers of the 15


thNational Sports Festival in Ogun State in 2006.


In spite of these shortcomings, "KADA 2009" will go down in history as a feast of sporting excellence in which Nigerians confronted one another in the best traditions of friendly rivalry. It was particularly engaging to see many athletes representing states other than those of their parentage, and doing so without any self-consciousness whatsoever.

In many ways, the 16


thNational Sports Festival in Kaduna has set a high standard that successive festivals would do well to emulate.

:-x