₦airaland Forum

sartorius:
his fathers name might have been masi ubasanjo
http://www.saharareporters.com/www/photonews/detail/?id=86

Oh my goodness! I do hope the story turns out to be true!! Can you imagine if in actual fact, it gets established that OBJ was actually born by an Igbo man??

Wait first, lemme stop laughing. . . . too many folks will be forced to eat their words!!

Shouldn't we be looking at the best 'individual' that can run the country? We shouldn't restrict ourselves to just "tribe."

Please has there been any newspaper report which states that Segun Adeniyi has accepted the job of Special Adviser to Yar'adua?

Does anyone have a link to such a report? Kindly paste it here.

Yeah, it isn't. I haven't come across an exhaustive list yet. I'm sure there must be a federal govt. document that contains more info. somewhere, but I haven't been able to lay my hands on it.

Still searching, though.

tpia:
some parts of Plateau state also seems to have a high rate of extra-tribal marriage, from what I've seen. I've had some friends with Plateau relatives, in the past.

And yes, at the end of the day, the gap doesnt really seem to have been bridged. In many parts of the country, the children of inter-tribal marriages are raised solely in one culture, mainly ignoring the other part.

I really think it all depends on each specific family. Many of my relatives are products of inter-ethnic marriages, and they understand the cultures of both parents. My cousins for example, speak their paternal & maternal languages, fluently. So do I. A person may be more fluent in one than the other, but it all depends on his/her flair for languages, learning dexterity & the parents' ability to ensure the kids assimilate both cultures, at an early stage.

The best thing is to expose the kids to both cultures early enough, and send them to spend as much of their holidays, in both regions. It also helps if the grand-parents on either side are alive, as they can also help to teach the kids more about their respective cultures, on each visit. 

In my opinion, kids of inter-ethnic marriages are often more tolerant and able to mix with those from other ethnic groups much more easily. But please note: this is just my own personal view.

babyosisi:
In the old days,I heard osus could not go to the market places and people burnt down their houses.
Is that happening now?

Re-ea-ally??! You mean the 'osus' suffered this kind of deprivation? Wow! I must say one thing though, this is the first time you have admitted in deatil that you know a bit about what they actually went through. Most of the time, you have chosen to gloss over the issue. Ah, well. . . . !

babyosisi:
If you burn down someone's house you are prosecuted.
Do you want people to be arrested and charged to jail for failing to marry someone?
You really do amuse me

Are we talking about the same law, that you initially cited in your previous post?? That law says nothing about burning down of houses. Please check it again! On the other hand, arson is a criminal offence according to the laws of the Fedral Republic of Nigeria. It doesn't matter if the person whose house was burnt, is an osu or a diala, the offence carries the penalty of imprisonment. The laws on arson, were not drawn up to end the discrimination against the 'osu.'

Arnold1:
I am not making anything worse thiefofhearts. I am not going to sit here and let that idiot talk rubbish about yorubas.

When she stops, I will stop.

Quit talking like a disgruntled element. What makes you think that, by talking rubbish about the Igbo, you have 'evened' the score? You are merely getting more irritating, and showing everyone you have nothing upstairs.

babyosisi:
Laudate,I was one of the people that loved your post initially until it became clear that your bail of okirika was third class okirika.

An unbiased mind would applaud the fact that laws had been entrenched in Igboland that would prosecute any one who discriminated against another or denied them the same space we all share but instead you choose to ask a baseless question similar to my asking you why we still have a police force in Nigeria or why people still put faucets in homes built in Iyana Ipaja when we all know the "water works" doesn't work water!

Is there a single person that has denied the existence of this osu caste system?
name the person!

What all Igbos,at least most have consistently ststed is that the act is grossly reduced from what it used to be in the time of our forefathers.
But as usual,you must go on and on like a woman on PMS

Pray tell, what was 'baseless' about the question? The fact that the government promulgated a law that was never enforced? The fact that as old as the law is, no single person has been prosecuted over it? Do you think that mere legislation would put an end to a cultural practice, if that law is not enforced to serve as a deterrent? Do you realise we have so many 'dead-letter' laws in Nigeria?

One thing is clear from the trend of all the responses here, though. The whole 'Osu' thingy, seems to be confined to certain districts. It is also location-specific. Depending on what part of Igbo land you reside in, or that you are from, you may not have had a direct encounter with the practice, unless it actually crosses your doorstep.

Finally, I will choose to ignore that offensive remark about PMS. But it won't stop me from pointing out that if that law was effective, we wouldn't even be having this conversation. This thread wouldn't even have arisen!.

Arnold1:
Okija has been around for a very long time until it was finally made public, so you are talking nonsense.

Atleast yorubas have never been cannibals like you igbo people are.

Arnold1:
Any bunch of people that eat humans are despicable. igbos uurrgh, yuck.

Arnold1, please turn right round. The exit door is behind you. Take it. If you have nothing decent, sensible or logical, to contribute to this debate, please kindly go and find a thread that is more suitable to your juvenile, debauched tastes.

[quote author=I-man link=topic=59301.msg1209731#msg1209731 date=1182022539]I seem to recall that you were the first to respond to my comments which were clearly directed to someonelse

Your tribalism on this forum is well known already.Please explain what you mean by "status quo" then?

Are you sure you are alrite? [/quote]For you to have asked me this question, you obviously did not witness the two campaigns that both men ran. Tofa was clearly out of touch with the masses, and could not discuss the cause of rising food prices or even recall how much a tuber of yam cost in the market, when inflationary trends & food scarcity, were being discussed in the press. He could not articulate the party's programmes or policy, neither could he highlight in a credible manner, how he would revamp the economy. He didn't even know anything, about the bad performance of the economy, in the first place!

He also didn't know much about the educational problems in the country, and did not offer any credible programme for health-care. Please visit the NTA's premises, to ask for a copy of the nationwide televised debate, between Abiola and Tofa, which took place prior to that election. Watch it and then draw your conclusions.

For me, his Northern background did not work against him in that election. His inabilty to grasp the basic issues, did. I felt insulted that, such a clueless candidate could be foisted on Nigerians as a presidential candidate, by a major party.

And finally, in response to your last question, am quite alright. . . thank you! Your choice of words is quite reminiscent of Donzman. His manner of response, also runs along the same lines! That led me to make that statement about the Hands of Esau.

denex:
@laudate

you mean you refused to read the part of the article that reported Abiola's deal with Abacha to topple the Interim National Government and hand over to him after six months? What Abiola did not realise was that it would be the last coup he ever sponsored. A coup against himself.

In what part of that article did you read that? All I saw was this:

ThisDay: There were reports that Abiola allegedly entered into a deal with Abacha who was then Chief of Defence Staff of the ING to take over government and hand over power to him (Abiola) after six months. Abiola's meeting with Abacha within hours of Abcaha's toppling of ING also spurred speculations that the reigns of government would be handed over to him. Whether there was any truth in that or not, in the search for legitimacy, some SDP chieftains were appointed into Abacha's cabinet.

Please where was it written that there was incontrovertible evidence that Abiola planned with Abacha to topple the ING? This report states quite clearly, that it was an allegation i.e. not proven. It also talks about speculations. Since when did speculation, allegations and hearsay, become the gospel truth? If you remember, a High court presided over by Justice Dolapo Akinsanya ruled that the ING was illegal! So when Abacha removed the ING, he claimed to be acting on the orders of the court at that time!

How interesting. So if someone decides to pull up another article describing all the deities in your own part of the country, as well as the international connections they have, I guess that would make it alright?

Donzman:
So how did you deduce what the Igbo guys were thinking?. . .Amidst all my explanations, you insisted it was tribalism that made them go back to the East to get married. So you're clairvoyant and Donzman can't be?

Donzman, stop fabricating stories. I never said I knew, what the Igbo guys were thinking. All I ever said, was that one should look at their actions. After dating girls from other ethnic groups, they still head back to the East to marry from their ethnic group, without giving any concrete reasons for this volte face. If you remember, you came up with the term 'cultural familiarity', to describe this ocurrence. You were the one who wondered initially, why there was a dearth of Igbo guy-Yoruba girl relationships. I shared my own observations, and you also came up with your own view. Simple.

I still repeat that, in the story above, the lady in question never made her choice based on ethnic reasons. I bet, if a young, single Yoruba guy had also made a pass at her, she would have turned him down flat, in favour of a married man. I have met some women like that, who have an inexplicable attraction, for men that are taken. Dunno why!

[quote author=I-man link=topic=59301.msg1208814#msg1208814 date=1182008485]So your enthusiasm for Abiola rests solely on your perception that his campaign was "formidable" and he was "a credible alternative to the status quo"?Not much I must say.

Why won't his campaign be "formidable" when he went about on a brazen bribery campaign? I cannot imagine anywhere in the world,where educated people are giving the thumbs up to a campaign conducted in such manner.

As for him being a credible alternative to the "status quo".The status quo at the time was a military dictatorship,Tofa would not have been a military dictator so I presume,by "status quo", you mean Tofa's Northern origins.What's wrong with his origin,Ms Tribalist? That means you won't have been so enthusiastic about Abiola if he was from Kano or Sokoto.In other words,that means you are a hard core tribalist.[/quote]Like your brother Donzman, you are beginning to develop an unhealthy obsession with Laudate. I don't know why you must split hairs over everything I say.

Yes. . . Abiola provided a credible alternative to the staus quo. What is wrong with that? Does it offend your sensiblities? In a country like Nigeria, which was deeply polarised along ethnic and religious lines at that time, getting more than two thirds of the adult citizenry to unite behind you in your quest for public office, is no mean feat.

And as for Tofa, maybe you have some additional information which is unknown to me, about how Tofa would have been a better choice. Kindly enlighten every body. And as for objecting to Tofa based on his northern origins, that is the most laughable idea of the century! Must you lie, like other members of your tribalistic cartel, in order to get your warped, putrid view across? And this your view, where you stated that "I presume,by "status quo", you mean Tofa's Northern origins.What's wrong with his origin? shows clearly that[i] you[/i] I-man, are the dyed-in-the-wool tribalist!!

Not only are you on a personal vendetta against Laudate, you now have to twist and fabricate 'presumptions,' into your comments, in order to paint me black. This isn't the first time you have done this. Everyone can see where this is coming from. It has the hands of Esau (i.e. donzman), and the voice of Jacob _*edit* (i.e. I-man), written all over. Continue. The world is waiting with bated breath, for your next batch of lies!!  

grafikdon:
I think you are getting it all mixed up. Nobody here ever denied the existence of the Osu system, they were merely trying to correct the erroneous concept of "Osu has taken over Igboland" and this simply means, "If Osu has taken over Igboland as you claim, how come I have never seen/experienced such a discrimination?". This by no means does not suggest denial, it simply lends credence to the fact that the Osu system is not as widespread as it is touted and that it is a despicable practice that is fast slipping into oblivion. I have heard tales of Osu but have never actually experienced such a discrimination especially in my home town, you know how close knit Nigerian communities can be, words fly , everyone knows each other so there is no way anyone can hide such a sickening discrimination from people.

The bottom line is: Osu is a reality. Is it a wide spread practice in Igboland? NO. Is it as prevalent as it used to be? NO it is fast slipping into oblivion and may as well be a down low practice since you're bound to draw fire from everyone around you. That's the reality.

Grafikdon, thank you so much for your understanding, and your grasp of the basic issues at stake. And thanks once again, for spelling everything out in such clear, lucid terms. No one is saying the "'Osu' concept has taken over Igbo land." No. All am saying, is that some of us are aware of its' existence, even if others are not. It doesn't matter, where you live. Those who are aware of its' existence are not wrong, neither are they right. Neither are those who are unaware of it, right, or stuck on the wrong path. The issue transcends all that.

But it seems as if those who are unaware of it, take delight in insulting those who claim to have encountered it, because they feel those people[i] (especially if they are non-Igbo)[/i] are trying in some way, to conduct a smear campaign against them, when nothing could be further from the truth! Why??

Every part of Nigeria has some inherited, ancestral practice that is morally repugnant, and to which solutions must be found. It doesn't matter if that community is in the North, South, East or West. But a solution does not come forth, when people launch attacks on those who speak about the problem, neither will a solution drop down from thin air, by acting as if it doesn't exist.

Like I said earlier, am not Igbo so this 'osu' issue does NOT affect me one way or the other. Period!

[quote author=I-man link=topic=57333.msg1208522#msg1208522 date=1182001656]Even honesty eludes you.Not only did you,a non-Igbo,inform us that it is "odd" that any Igbo who lived in Igboland does not know an Osu.You went on to make the following crass remarkYou are not Igbo,nor have you lived in Igbo land yet you think its sensible to cast aspersions on an Igbo person who is telling you her personal experience.According to you,she either lived a very sheltered life,is in denial or is blithering.And you know this because. . . . you have Igbo friends.[/quote]And obviously, you wouldn't know what the truth looked like, even if it came and hit you right in the face. Yes, I said it was 'odd'. So what?? What is your blinking problem? I call it, the way I see it. That was my first impression when I read that post, and I will not 'doctor' my responses just to suit your twisted imagination. What was crass about my using the word "odd?" And why the heck, does it offend you so much? Look here, I cannot be held responsible for your imaginary fears or trauma. See a shrink!

Secondly, in what way did I cast aspersions on someone who claims not to know anything about the 'Osu' issue? What derogatory words, or uncouth language was used? Kindly stop being paranoid, and stick your head where the sun doesn't shine!    I stated quite clearly for the record, how I came across the word 'Osu' for the first time outside Alaigbo, despite the fact that I was resident in the South-West. So what is your beef? The fact that I actually knew people who had been cast as such, or the fact that I had been a witness to the stress that was sparked off, by the mere mention of that word? Or was it the fact, that you felt offended by a non-Igbo mentioning the word, like I had earlier said? Ah yes, I guess it must be the fact that when I used the word "how odd," you thought in your deluded mind, that I was somehow infering that she was being economical with the truth. Let us know which of the scenarios listed above, played itself out in your mind when you read my initial post!

Finally, so bloody what, if am not Igbo? So it is now a crime on nairaland, for a non-Igbo person to pass a comment on something that happens in Alaigbo? Please spell it out for us in chapter & verse o, so that we can know who died & made you the chief of Nairaland. Rubbish! 

I have stated several times, that I have visited parts of Igbo land, spent holidays there & I even have relatives from there. Yes, am not Igbo and so what? Oh, you feel it would have sounded better, if the word "how odd" was used by an Igbo person? Set up your own website, if that is the case.

I have seen Igbo folks using far more sinister & derogatory words to get their points across when discussing this topic, yet you never jumped down their throats, you coward! Laudate uses a harmless two-word phrase, that would make no one bat an eyelid, and you come in here frothing at the mouth, throwing insults around and threatening fire & brimstone. Oya, go ahead & commit suicide, since my comments do not fit in with your warped mentality. *hiss*

MILITIA:
@Xtycod

Thank you for the compliment! Now who is the dummy donkey arse? What an irredeemable dunce you are! Typical calabar mentality!  You can only mention Donald Duke out of how many southerners   For the rest do not count!.

MILITIA:
You calabar houseboy that constantly thinks with his 2 inch penis!  All you know how to do is insult other tribes.  I think I know what  your problem is. You did not breast feed for enough time,------ to get your immunities and faculties well developed.  You need to dig ya mama up and breast feed some more.  You really need it.  The first year of your life must have been very traumatic for you, since the  basic foundation for "self" trust was denied you. You feel totally disconnected from your roots, any  sense of reality or belonging around you.  You are truly a sick, lost soul! An intellectual carcase!  May God continue to offer you peace of mind!  You are a world class idiot! You dog meat!

Kai!! Militia??!! Chei! Chei!! Chei!!! Open yah window first, make I see the kind mouth wey you take talk this one!  

Dis Guy:
if he wants kpali

Ba-a-ad Guy!!

State Language(s) & Ethnic Groups

Abia             Igbo  & Ibibio

Adamawa    Hausa, Fulfulde, Bachama, Mbula, Gude, Lunguda, Kanakuru, Yandand, Batta, Highi, Kilba, Bura, Yungur 

Akwa-Ibom   Ibibio, Annang, Oron, Mbe, Okobo, HuMbuno, Eket, Andoni (Obolo)

Anambra       Igbo 

Bauchi       Hausa, Fulfulde,

Bayelsa         Kolokuma (Izon)

Benue       Tiv, Idoma, Igede

Borno       Hausa, Kanuri, Fulfulde, Margi, Schwa, Babur

Cross River   Efik, Ejagham, Bekwara

Delta     Enuani, Ika, Ndokwa, Okpe, Urhobo, Isekiri, Isoko, Ijo, Delta Pidgin, Igbo

Ebonyi     Igbo

Edo     Edo (Bini), Esan, Esako, Okpameri, Owan

Ekiti     Yoruba

Enugu     Igbo

Gombe     Hausa

Imo     Igbo

Jigawa    Hausa


Kaduna    Hausa

Kano    Hausa

Katsina    Hausa

Kebbi   Hausa, Fulfulde, (Zabaramanchi)

Kogi     Yoruba, Ebira, Bassa, Igala, Igbira-Koto, Basankomo, (Kakanda, Oworo)

Kwara      Yoruba, Nupe, Baruteen, (Hausa)

Lagos      Yoruba, Egun

Nassarawa    Hausa

Niger    Hausa, Nupe, Gbagi, (Gwari), Kambari, Kamuku

Ogun     Yoruba

Ondo     Yoruba, Egberi (a dialect of Izon/Ijaw)

Osun     Yoruba

Oyo    Yoruba

Plateau     Berom, Ngas, Tarok, Mwahavul, Goemai, Eggon, Borghan (Hausa) (Fulfulde in preaching)

Rivers    Ikwere, Kalabari, Kana, Port Harcourt Pidgin (Special English)

Sokoto  Hausa, Fulfulde

Taraba   Hausa, Fulfulde, Mumuye, Junkun

Yobe   Hausa, Fulfulde, Kanuri, Bolewa, Badenchi, Karikari

Zamfara    Hausa

_*Source*: Mutilingualism in Nigeria: The Example of Rivers State by Ethelbert E. Kari; Tokyo University of Foreign Studies Tokyo, Japan. _{A Paper Presented at the Seminar on Multilingual Situation and Related Local Cultures in Asia and Africa Institute for the Study of Languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa, Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, Tokyo, 25 March, 2002}

michelin89:
Abeg jo. Get a life and stop following women up and down.

Before na you fiancee issue because she is earning more then you, now it's an ex who wants you to sleep with her.

*hissssssssssssssss*

Ehn?? Are you sure it is the same guy?? Chei!

Are you reffering to the Ogori people of Kogi State?

Ezinwannem:
yes ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Abeg, pray for Peter Obi o! So that charlatans like Chris Uba, as well as the NURTW who caused chaos in Anambra, would not destabilise his regime this time around.

Donzman:
. . .But when Igbo men go to marry girls from the East, it's definitely because of tribalism. You Laudate are a tribalistic hypocrite, you need treatment A.S.A.P.

Nah! Donzman, na you get that 'hypocrisy' problem.  

If you read the poster's comments, there was nowhere where he said the lady turned down her Igbo toasters, on account of their ethnic group. Unless you are now clairvoyant, and you can read the lady's mind, in order to accurately deduce that she was using ethnicity as a factor, to reject those men.

Now coming back home, are you not the same person who stated that Igbo men would go for Igbo girls, because of ehm. . . (what did you call it now) ah yes, 'cultural familiarity'? Would it be right for me to tag you as a tribalistic hypocrite, for arriving at this conclusion?  

edobabe: THE OWANS /ORAS:

Oba Ozolua is traditionally regarded as the ancestor of the Owans/Ora. He was known as Prince Okpame before he became known as Oba Ozolua. He had sought refuge in Uwokha in Ivbiosakon areas in c1473. From Uwokha, Oba Ozolua founded Ora and other villages. Oba Ozolua was a warlord. He beat the people of Uzea near Uromi to a pulp when there was a revolt. He extended his carnage to Uromi when the Enogie was reported to have been rude to his messengers. He went up through Akoko land, wandering into Nupe lands where he acquired a lot of sophisticated weaponry then. He attacked the Igallas and Igbirras in the present Kogi and Kwarra states. After spending the greater part of his life in ORA, he left behind his son UGUAN and returned to Benin City.

But before he left, he proclaimed everybody free men and free women, entitled to enjoy the privileges of Edo princes and Princesses, for all the services they had rendered in his military campaigns. That is why the Oras call themselves today, the CHILDREN OF OZOLUA. Besides being in charge of propitiating the physical earth, they are responsible for ritually exorcising any harm that might come upon the EDO NATION-the land due to

violation of sexual or other taboos. Their GUILD, quartered at EVBORHAN quarter in OGBELAKA in Benin City by Oba Esigie, demands steep fines from the culprits for their services.

A few years ago, the Oba of Benin created an Ogie-Duke-traditional rulership for the Oras because of popular demand.

Need some quick info. edobabe.

Is it true that whenever an Oba is to be crowned in Benin, he has to stop over in the Ora district, to carry out some parts of the coronation programme? Is it also true that the Ora are direct descendants of Oba Ovonramwen Nogbaisi?

And is it true that among all the subjects of the Oba of Benin, the Ora people are exempted from postrating, or kneeling or bowing before the Oba, because they believe that 'they & the Oba are one'?

Facts, anyone?

Donzman:
See it's comical when people misrepresent ideas. If a person from Akoko-Edo who bears a Yoruba name is mistaken for Yoruba, that's a whole different thing. I've mistaken an Edo person from Auchi as Hausa in the past.

This isn't the same thing as the claim that Igbos OFTEN mistake Edo people as Yoruba, I already told you, if they bear a name that isn't Calabar (sorry Efik), or Yoruba and they're not from the North, we just call them Bendel/Edo/Delta,

Oh yeah? So you now speak for all those from Umunede to Izzi, in Abia State. Well done! Since in your own opinion, none of them has ever mistaken an Edo or Itsekiri or Urhobo or Isoko or Ijaw etc. for a person from another ethnic group, I guess one can safely declare that you are now the mouth piece of Nd'Igbo on Nairaland!