OUR GINGIVITES
17 November 1970, I termed black day. I saw hell. Many lives were snuffed out in IKPEKERE. People gathered everywhere mourning the demise of their beloved ones. About ten-full fledged men has gone. Okeke my father; the bravest and a kind hearted man were among them.
Enquiries erupted; marquis began thorough investigation on what could be the major cause of death of ten men in just a day; for their death created an infallible gap in the town, gods were consulted, sacrifices were attuned.
By this time there are lots of preparations for the festival; but the most important one was the virgins to be used for sacrifice. “We want it big” says the chief priest and when we must gotten twelve virgins, the gods must be happy with us since they choose to show us the taste of their indignation. Hunt for virgins interposed amongst IKPEKERE neighborhoods’.
In the fortnight, twelve young girls were abducted by hefty men employed by the chief priest, and was kept in ichie Oku custody for up keep. Everybody the old and the young alike clamored to witness the virgins themselves; but a roaring voice thundered indiscriminately saying that “that was abomination which will snuff out more lives if Ikpekere would not withdraw from such an ilicit act.” The cries of a vengeful virgins must bring Ikpekere to naught, continued the voice. Eight years later, the town was turned into ghost town, for more than a decade, there is no cry of a new born baby in the town and the town became inhabitable for us. And we all flee to foreign lands for our rescue; until fifty years when the whole active players in the tradition had gone, by this time, Paul my brother and I had grown to full men and remained the only living human being from Ikpekere.
We summoned enough courage to make the town habitable for us and our children and wives. The journey was tough we consulted the government of our state who came and develop the abandoned land to furnish it and make it homely.