₦airaland Forum

PhysicsMHD:
Ok then.



I was referring to that interview you posted with the Aro Council of Elders.

I think the elders of my community know what they are talking about. They are the keepers of our tradition, history and culture. And they should not be disputed.

PhysicsMHD:
Revisionism?

Where is the revisionism? I am proud of my Aro heritage. Even though there are some dark elements in Aro History, we still resisted British incursion into the hinterland.

owobokiri:
Lets get some facts straight:

1) There are fewer Hausas in Nigeria. While a combination of the two groups (fulani and hausa) might give you the largest ethnic grouping in West Africa, we always tend to inflate their numerical strength to their advantage. Moreover, being large doesn't automatically translate to being dominant if others are ready to push back. I will get to this point later.

2) The Yorubas in Benin, Togo and Cuba or the Igbos in Equatorial Guinea and Gabon don't come fighting for their respective groups in Nigeria when there is a crises between these groups and their neighbors. If every group across Africa should band together to fight whenever we have our usual local squabbles, I can bet that the Hausas and their fulani cousins will find life more difficult than they envisage.

3) If the Hausas in those areas can afford to join hands to fight against the Beroms, then other minorities in the middle belt can decide to join the Beroms and I know no Hausa of fulani man wants to face a Tiv man. Those ones seldom brook their nonsense. Most times those of us in the south tend to classify everything up north as Hausa fulani. The opposite is the case. An Igede man in present day Benue state will fight you if you define him as belonging to any of the two groups. In fact folks from there even hate to be called northerners. This present Jos crises with all the fulani careless war rethorics will only swell that rank.

4) As Nigerias treasury which has always been their cash cow slips slowly out of their hands, it will slowly go back to either Fulani or Hausa. I know that religious wars and a high level of ethnic cohesion has almost tied the two groups together but I am not totally sure if it is right to always define them as being totally one, ,forever. It is not without reason.  For instance the average fulani can speak Hausa fluently but the typical haughty Hausa man may never understand a word of fulani. . Also remember that Hausa is the lingua-franca from Lokoja upwards. So even the Beroms and Angas etc speak Hausa fluently. While this helps to push the Hausa fulani agenda forward, it doesn't make a man a woman or vice versa.

5) Back to the first point. Numbers can be deceiving ma friend. You doubt me? Ask the Congolese (Zaireans). They have the most economically endowed country in Africa. They have a very big land mass and when compared to a tiny Rwanda their population and history as a cohesive unit after the katanga uprising can be seen as being far ahead of the Rwandes. But who is lording it over the other down their in the great lakes region now? It is the Rwandes  who imposed a head of sate in Kinshasa, then killed him when he stopped acting to their dictates. The present president of Congo is not finding life easy with them, for the simple reason that at this moment, the guys from Rwanda are better organized. Not saying that the fulanis are not well organized, in fact sophisticated traditional organization has been their best weapon for years, but who knows how things will work out these days?

BOTTOMLINE:

Some fights need to be fought. When you have a group of people like the Huasa/fulani with their dangerous ambitions to dominate you even in your own backyard, you must be willing to find a way to push back. Otherwise , you will wake up someday a tenant in your home. It is not like anybody is against the peaceful resolution of the Jos conflict or the co-habitation of this groups, but knowing our history with the Hausa/fulani in Nigeria, is anybody here willing to stick out his neck to say that if the price of peace is to allow the fulani run the politics of Plateau, peace will reign? My answer to that is no. They will start telling you where to live (sabon gari), where to urinate (or you go to alkali courts) and how your women must dress and stuff like that. Are the fulani/Hausas indigenous to Abuja? Where we not here when they said that the Miss World Pageant will not hold even in Calabar? These people just want to dictate your destiny and the share the same ideology with their Arab brethren. If you don't want to be treated as a slave in your home, you just have to push back, so Governor Jang in my view is doing the right thing. Let them keep their barbaric culture in the desert.

Thank you for this post.

Obiagu1:
I don't necessary think it's about mixture because some Anambra people are mixed. From my experience in Enugu, one thing was very different about Anambra, they don't care who you are or where you are from and they are more liberal in their thinking and believe that every Igbo has to act as one and indivisible unit not minding our differences or varieties in culture. That's the difference and they believe they can compete with anyone and equal to anyone. If you fail in anything, don't start to begrudge others rather change your trade, maybe your initial trade was not your destiny. Other Igbos tend to highlight the differences between us more than Anambra people do and it frustrates Anambrarians.

Those that I know that used the core Igbo term used it out of frustration and when they try to tell you, our ideology of fair play and live and let live has not died or adultrated yet.

I understand what you are saying. And that is how it suppose to be.

I really wonder how Aganga will react. Can he even compete?

This is crazy! I pray that the Boko Haram menace does not spread.

Mehn if only I was born during the days of the Aro Confederacy. Nostalgia!

asha 80:
you forget that igbos from abriba are also hard core business men.if fact i think they were the ones that first started this 'cotonou business' and merchandising


http://aciuvalencia.tripod.com/id1.html

Those Igbos are picking up what the Aro Igbo before them left off. Too bad Arochukwu has fallen on hard times. Ever since our defeat by the British, we have lost our prominence in our region. Sad day when they sacked Arochukwu.

The Aro only live in the shadow of our proud history.

jason123:
How can they tell the difference? I mean, its not like they would take your blood sample?

I don't know. Igbo bu Igbo. However, some Anambra Igbo feel that they are more cultured than the Igbos to the East of them. The Eastern Igbo clans were more warlike and bordered neighboring ethnic groups. Some of those Igbos clan intermarried with other neighboring groups.

Maybe you should read about Nri.

eku_bear:
Expound on this. Abagoworo and others have alluded to it. Central vs. peripheral Igbo, etc.

Core Igbos are what some of the Igbos of Anambra State and Imo State call themselves. Igbos from those states believe they are more "Igbo" than others.  They feel other Igbo clans are mixed and not "pure blood." But the term fluctuates to different regions in Igboland.

Peripheral Igbos can be found in Abia, Ebonyi and Rivers State.  

To some Igbos, I would not be considered a pure Igbo, because of my Aro blood. They say we are mixed with other groups groups like the Ibibio.

eku_bear:
Lol, that isn't how it happened. Yes, certain parts of Yorubaland enslaved lots of Hausa, but it was just business. I highly doubt we'd have been together at all.

That changed with the rise of Uthman Dan Fodio though. Just imagine what the Sokoto Caliphate could have done if the British did not stop them. They would be pushing into the South. However, we better thank the people of the Middle Belt who put up stiff resistance against the Fulani.

And the Kanem-Bornu Empire also were a bulwark against the Fulani.

To be honest, I swear some Igbos clans will still scream marginalization. Not naming any names.  In Aba, you hear traders complaining about Igbos from Anambra. Many Igbos in Abia and Ebonyi fear Anambra domination and I don't know why.

Wow! The Oyo Empire was truly a force to be reckoned with. They even defeated the mighty Asante Confederacy in battle. And anyone who knows the Asante people will understand that the Ashanti were warriors.

The Ashanti even raided their Muslim neighbors for slaves instead of the other way around.

It is interesting how the Ashanti terrorized their Muslim Northerners while Oyo was falling because of the Fulani conquest.

Onlytruth:
I really think that this thread was derailed by Obiagu and Ezeuche.

This Gabon thing should be a new thread on its own.

I ain't leaving Nigeria for anyone, rather I would even expand more in Nigeria.  

All I need is to be strong and courageous.

If I get a functioning international airport in Enugu from Jonathan's presidency, I would take it and wait for my turn.

Time has a way of favoring those who wait.

This thread has gotten interesting. Who cares if the thread was derailed? The discussion has turned historical.

alj harem:
oboy, you and chyz were arguing on something you do not know


why

I have lived in Ghana and been to Togo countless times. I didn't hear any Yoruba being spoken. Maybe because I was in Lome, which is in the Ewe heartland, that is why I didn't hear the language.

But you can say that there are no native Yorubas in GHANA!

eku_bear:
Anyway, let's not derail the thread with this discussion; I guess it is now clear that Yoruba are natives of Togo.

Back to Obiagu's idea to found a new homeland  

So the Ede Nago are Yoruba? Wonders never amaze me. Do they consider themselves Yoruba? I find this new found information fascinating.

Why are we even arguing about the Yoruba on an Igbo thread?

alj harem:
this is a website from benin

you need to know what you are talking about

even the yorubas in benin are saying the same thing

tell me how ijaws jumped over itsekiris in delta and claim some part of ondo

I am not arguing about Benin. I already know there are Yorubas in Benin. But not in Togo.

eku_bear:
EzeUche, take a look: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Atakpam%C3%A9

We've been in Togo for 240+ years now.

That I think is enough time to qualify as natives.

I know about that battle. The Oyo Empire was trying to help the Dahomey Kingdom against the Ashanti Empire. Last time I checked, Dahomey was not a Yoruba kingdom. It was a Fon Kingdom!

My map shows the boundaries. And I have been to these areas. I know the Yoruba areas of Benin. Togo is practically all Ewe in the Southern region. The Volta Region which is Ghana's Eastern section of the country is all Ewe.

Now how can you tell me what I have seen with my two eyes?

Plus, I have lived in Ghana and I used to go to Lome quite often?

Seems like people need to see a map.

This is the map of Benin, Togo, Ghana, Ivory Coast etc

Now tell me where the Yoruba jumped over the Fon population in Benin to get into Togo?

I have seen plenty of Hausa who are indigenous to Northern Ghana, Northern Togo and Northern Benin.

Igbos have been present in Cameroon since pre-colonial times. I should know, most of the Igbo present in Cameroon are from my very own Aro Clan.

alj harem:
ezeuche there are indigenous yorubas in togo,.,.,.,.,., ewe or not some of them call themselves yorubas

it is just like calling a fulani in sudan that he is not fulani because he is in sudan

False! I have been to Lome plenty of times and I rarely see any Yorubas. I have seen more Hausa and Igbos in Togo than I ever seen Yorubas. However, in Benin, there are plenty of Yorubas.

And Ewe do not consider themselves Yoruba. Who told you that? lol Do not argue with someone who has lived in these areas.

eku_bear:
Bah. Looks like were in Ghana, but got kicked out:

http://www.imi.ox.ac.uk/pdfs/rasheed-olaniyi

Now I need to read through this and find out why it happened 

That was the "Nigeria Must Go" saga in the late 1960s after Kwame Nkrumah was ousted. That was before we had Ghana Must Go.

It wasn't aimed at just the Yoruba. It was aimed at all Nigerians.

alj harem:


so yorubas are in benin and togo what about ghana,.,. can you tell me if they are in ghana as well

Yorubas are not in Togo. The Ewe are in Togo and Ghana. I lived in Ghana and I can say 100% that the Ewe are in the Volta Region of Ghana. Yorubas did not extend into Ghana. That was the realm of the Asante Confederacy

Soludo is one educated man.

Now this was thorough repudiation of Aganga!

asha 80:
there is what i call sensible brainstorming and there is fantasy.develop homeland before thinking of going somewhere else to develop another.how hard is it?imagine bostwana?LHM!i have lots of my village folk in gabon.how has them being business men in gabon help my village economy?

Who said we would forget about our homeland? Do the Lebanese forget about their homeland, when they come to Africa? The answer is no. Why should I forget about my homeland? I am talking about creating a new base, which would be for the benefit of the fatherland! The money I take from these regions would be used to build up our cities.

Obiagu1:
Who told you that they are hostile? Just because one crazy Fang leader murdered thousands of people in Bioko, Equitorial Guinea and was executed by his cousin makes the Fang group hostile? Where did you see that?

Was that post directed at me? But if it was, you know Francisco Macías Nguema was a madman. That man killed a lot of people. Especially the Bubi people who once numbered 3 million people have been reduced to 100,000!  

Obiagu1:
@ EzeUche, don't change the discussion. We're not going to fight anyone.

My mistake. My warlike tendencies sometimes rear its head in threads. I just hate that PhysicsMHD think we would be afraid of some Fang people.

Some Igbos clan make me afraid. Just look at the Mbaise people.

asha 80:
all these gorrila chest beating.i guess everyone will like to go and fight the fangs?i mean every 30million+ igbos? i wonder how guys reason?well comedy is quite good once in a while.

Oh come on now.   We are brainstorming. I do not want to take control of their country. I just want to create a base. We Igbos must expand outside of Nigeria.

The Yoruba have Togo. The Hausa have most of West Africa. What do the Igbo have?

You have all this empty land in Africa, that is not being used to its full potential. Just look at Botswana!

Equatorial Guinea

Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. This tiny country, composed of a mainland portion plus five inhabited islands, is one of the smallest on the African continent. President Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO has ruled the country since 1979 when he seized power in a coup. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996, 2002, and 2009 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 and 2004 legislative elections - were widely seen as flawed. The president exerts almost total control over the political system and has discouraged political opposition. Equatorial Guinea has experienced rapid economic growth due to the discovery of large offshore oil reserves, and in the last decade has become Sub-Saharan Africa's third largest oil exporter. Despite the country's economic windfall from oil production resulting in a massive increase in government revenue in recent years, there have been few improvements in the population's living standards.

PhysicMHD

You forget that most Igbo clans were warlike as well. Have you heard of Ohafia? Or Abiriba? Or even the head hunters from Abam?

We Igbos have a warlike past. And we fear nothing. Why be afraid of the Fang when we Igbos are 30 million +?