THE FACT ABOUT THE IGALA KINGDOM

Attah’s vacant stool: A return of Ogbaikolo- As the odds favours Idakwo Ameh Atabor Julius, Lokoja: The recent death of the 21st Attah Igala HRH Alhaji DR.Aliyu Obaje although does not take the people by surprise as he has been kept out of public functions for years but what is in the lips of majority of Igala sons and daughters was who will succeed him and what mode of burial will befit him for he was the first Muslim to ascend the throne. The myth of his burial either as Muslim or as a traditionalist has become subject of conjectures as cynics have been having field days of how and when he is to be buried. In fact the coronation and burial rites of Attah has always been shrouded in mysteries. To some even though he was a Muslim the traditional method of burying Attah will take preeminence over his religion while some were of the opinion that his instruction to be buried as a Muslim should be obeyed. Born in 1920 to the Akumabi dynasty the second son of the epochal Ayegba Oma Idoko from the genealogy of Itodo-Aduga Attah died at a ripe age of 92 years. His death has spark off fierce battle for who among the four ruling houses will mount the coveted throne. HOW ATTAH’S DEATH IS ANNOUNCED.<br /> <!--more--><br />
. It was a held belief that Attah never die for he is regarded as a supreme beings as he never eat in public and shake hands with any body. It is equally a belief that when an Attah passes on he is merely resting and when it happens the Ati ebo (high priest)will wear his usual regalia to meet and attends to the gods and subjects until a new Attah emerges. analysts believed that the announcement of the death of Attah Aliyu Obaje’s family when a succession has not been selected was a smack on the culture and tradition of Igala kingdom. In the same breath as you announce the death of Attah a new Attah is announced. Every Attah must have his ear pierced and to wear ear ring as a symbol of honour for the first woman Attah Ebulejonu. THE KING MAKERS The Achadu is the prime minister of Attah. He is the Husband of Attah in quote,traditionally his is superior to Attah but in the administration of the kingdom Attah is superior. The Achadu after he has chosen a successor he then in consultation with Atemahi Igala mela in-council will announce the death of the passed on Attah as his successor. Government or native authority could only come in only when Attah In consultation with Igalamela in council could not select the new Attah. Imposition of Attah without passing through the process has been alien to the culture and tradition of Igala people. The Attah throne which dates back to pre 8th and 9th century has never witness litigation over succession which analysts held that this one will follow the same direction as Achadu and the king makers had been meticulous in observing the laid down process of choosing a successor. Although the first recorded Attah was Agenepoje the modern day hierarchy was born when Ayegba Oma Idoko established a dynasty. Ayegba Oma Idoko during his reign begot three male children which was later split into four paving way for the four ruling houses to the coveted throne. According to the recorded history the four ruling homes includes; Akumabi splited into two namely Ameacho and Itodo Aduga, Akogu and Ohiemi Obogo. THE AYEGBA DYNASTY Politically and socially the four branches of the ruling houses combined on many occasions in pairs, following the lines of the original genealogical split between Akumabi’s descendants and the two lineages. The first pair, comprising the Itodo Aduga and Ameacho lineages which has the collective name of Aju Akumabi. The second pair comprising Aju Ocholi and Akogu has no special name but its members often describe the close connection of the two lineages by kinship term of Omaye which denotes children who have parents in common. According to Yusuf Etuh an experts in Igala history and tradition opined that the split of Akumabi descendants into two was based on the fact that Akumabi first son died before his installation as Attah could be completed. The succession therefore passed on to his junior brother Itodo Aduga and since then has alternated between the descendants of these two men and members of the older maximal lineages founded by Akogu and Ocholi. He posited that that the succession has always between the Ameacho and Akogu lineages and Itodo Aduga and Ocholi lineages saying that after Ameh Oboni who was from Ocholi lineage it went to Aliyu Obaje from the bifurcation of the group founded by the Akumabi and vice versa. THE AMEH OBONI Ameh Oboni who was the progeny of Ocholi lineage became the 20 Attah in b1945 but was not allowed to complete his tenure as a result of what some pundit called as an imperialist and northern hegemony conspiracy against his rising profile .He took over from Obaje the father of the late Aliyu who is from the Itodo Aduga one of the sons of Akumabi lineages. His reigns according to historians brought tremendous prosperity and great influence to Igala kingdom until he paid supreme price in 1946 at unripe age of 48 due to orchestrated plans for his dethrone. His death which was believed to be compromised by some of the ruling houses of Oguche Akpa whose descendants were supposed to take over and that of Atabo Idenyi who left office in 1926 were hoodwinked to accept the only proposal by the british imperialists and the northern oligarchy that only an educated son of the lineage could be crown Attah which at that time Aliyu Obaje from the Itodo Aduga who was a tutor at the famous Institute of Administration Zaria was the only qualified person by the new education benchmark set for Attah by the colonial administrator. THE IGALA NATIVE AUTHORITY (Modification of Law and Custom order) Section 49(3) of January, 1961. This law relating to a person to be the Attah Igala states that in respect of the bestowal of the title of Attah Igala he shall be chosen by the Achadu in consultation with the traditional Igala mela from the descendants in the male line of Ayegba Oma-Idoko who were members of the four ruling houses of Igala namely Aju Akogu, Ocholi, Ameacho and Aju Akuh and who are the sons of Attah or in the absence of such sons the sons of a brother of an attah all eligible candidates being taken into consideration, but the choice so made shall have no force or effect unless it is confirmed by the Igala native authority The law went further to say if there is divergence of views between the Igala native authority and the Achadu in consultation with the Igalamela and it is not resolve within a period of thirty days from the date when the native authority declare such divergent exist the Igala native authority shall nominate a candidate from one of the four ruling houses and the two nominations one by Achadu in consultation with Igalamela and the other by the native authority shall be forwarded to the governor who shall set up committee of inquiry to consider the two nominees and make recommendations thereon. OGUCHE AKPA 1919 AND ATABO IJOMI 1926 From the available records the Oguche Akpa descendants ceased to aspire to the Attah throne after his demise IN 1919 while Atabo Ijomi ‘s descendants could not also have access to the throne again after he passed on in 1926 the reasons which has become subject of controversy among the ruling houses. CONTENDERS Prince Idakwo Micheal Ameh a retired deputy director monitoring and logistics in the Federal Capital Development Administration. He is the direct son of the 20th Attah Ameh Oboni according to analysts based on the selection procedure from the Ayegba dynasty which has been alternating between the descendant of Ohiemi Obogo and Itodo Aduga lineages the odds seems to favour the prince above other aspirants. ALIYU OBAJE children Based on succession arrangement since the Ayegba dynasty no Atta’s son has directly succeeded him. Isah Odomah Ajuma is believed to be the son of Ajuma from the lineage of Akogu . experts believed that the function of a woman in her fathers house is to ensure the cleanliness of the palace and nothing more. A retired GM public Affair with IBBL Kaduna has his eyes on the throne. Peter Opaluwa the present Ejeh of Ugwolawo also has his eyes on the throne but the odds against him is that for one to be eligible to the throne of attah he must have been a son of attah and not a grand son. To Usman Ojochile a commentator on Igala traditional politics opined that the next Attah should be one that will undertake all the rites worthy of the making of Attah. He should also be one that will have the unity and prosperity of Igala race at heart . He warned Achadu Attah in council with Etemahi Igalamela to observe the process with the spirit of Igala ancestors to be devoid of partisan in order to elect a man that will reposition the battered progress of Igala in the last fifty decades as subversion of peoples will through external influence may not augur well for the people and the kingdom. Ocholi Isaac Ausa MNCS System Analyst Garki Hospital Abuja Tafawa Balewa Way THE IGALA-NATION AS A PROMINENT PRE-COLONIAL NIGERIAN ENTITY. READ THIS ARTICLE AND TELL US YOUR OPINION History has it that the igala-kingdom is one of the nine well entrenched kingdoms that existed in pre-colonial Nigeria,with its historical and well celebrated seat of power at idah where tha Atta,Agabaidu cuts the short.History equally has it that the Igala kingdom span from the present day Koton-karfe to Onyedega in Ibaji and its sorroundings which include part of present Anambra north in Anambra state,it also extend to the present day onyagede and north-western part of Idoma land and the entirety of present day Igala-land. Prior to the advent of colonialism and British particularly in Nigeria,the then existing Nation-states were the Sokoto caliphate,The Karnem -Bornu empire,The greatest Kwararafa Empire,The undefeatable Igala-kingdom,The Nupe Empire,The Oyo Empire,The Benin Kingdom,The oil rich People of present day south-southern Nigeria and The republican Igbo people.in pre-colonial African societies,just like medieval Europe,wars of conquest and liberation were recurring decimal with Nations trying to lord it over each other,the igala-nation was not immuned to this, rather she was engaged with her neighbours at one time or the other,oral history in Igala land has it that the great hausa-nation expandist queen Amina died on the shores of Koton-karfe on the account of Atta’s soldier in an attempt to stop she and her army from entering and infiltrating the Igala kingdom.history also has it that the igala-nation defeated the Benin-kingdom in a fierce battle in the 1660’s where the statue (eju-abeju-ailo)) which is been worn by successive Atta was confiscated as a mark of humiliation of the famous Benin-kingdom.The igala-nation stood tallest amidst the commitee of pre-colonial Nigerian Nations after her historical defeat of the Aku-uka’s army.which mark her absolute independence as a sovereign Nation,she was revered to high heavens till the advent of colonialism . At colonialism,after her conquest by the British regiment between 1880- 1901,which was achieved after fierce resistant and battle by the then Atta,the Igala-nation became part of what was to be later known as protectorate of Northern Nigeria as a native authority( Igala Native Authority),this singular event mark the begining of a cycle of endless decline in value and prosperity to the Igala-nation and people.it is regretable to note that as a uniting nation-state within the protectorate of Northern Nigeria,the prosperity and development was remarkable and intimidating,she was the richest in cultural heritage and identity,the second richest native authority within the protectorate owing to the booming oil palm trade ( oil was and is still produced in commercial quantity in Igala-land),with the Kano native authority as the richest as a result of the trans-sahara trade.Above all,the Atta ,his kingdom and subject were held in awe and reverence by all the neighbouring entities. This state of affairs persisted untill the partition of the native authorities into provinces and the subsequent recognition of emerging nation states within the northern protectorate( the Tiv nation having gained her independence from the kwararafa empire was the first to be accorded recognition and empowered by the Huasa-fulani backed colonial masters to weaken the kwararafa empire),at this point of province delineation,the first crack in the unison,might,sense of identity and unity ofpurpoe of the igala-nation and people appeared.in emerging thirteen provinces,a nation with the foregoing status whose existence as a sovereign entity was recognised generally in Africa was considered not consequential enough to be a province,rather a vast percentage of her landmass and people was merged with the relatively unknown okun-yoruba and Ebira to make up the Kabba province with its centre of administration at Kabba while the remaider were cut up in the Oji-river province of present day Anambra State and Benue province of present day Benue state.This act orchestrated by the Hausa –Fulani oligarchy and perfected by the British was meant to checkmate the ever surging influence of the igala-nation and her Kwararafa sister state who suffered similar treatment. By this act,Idah the centre of igala civilization and seat of power became desolate and decay set in,the igala-nation began to loose her sense of selfpride and identity,her unity of purpose was diffused and a negative precedent of complacency with bad governmental policies and programms set in.The Igala monarchy and her people accepted this act without any form of protest and has ever since lived at the mercy of successive governmental administrations.The protectorate of Northern Nigeria’s capital on her soil at Lokoja (though sold to the Queen of England) was relocated to Kaduna , yet there was no protest,governmental institutions and amenities were been cited without regards to this noticeable entity within the protectorate(which subsequently became Northern Region of Nigeria). The ugly trend continued through the pre-independence preparation era when the Igala-nation was engrossed in internal leadership sqaubble by the then educated elite who have formed an alliance with the aim of removing the then vibrant Atta Ameh Oboni,consequently,the Igala -Nation paid little or no attention to developmental and resource allocation issues .After this period, sucessive administrations begining from Tafawa Balewa down to Sani Abacha have created states and other minor entity of administration,yet the Igala-nation has been treated with impunity and inattention,she suffered total neglect as the farthest entity from the seat of power in the days of Northern region with Kaduna as its capital city,the State creation exercise of the Gen Gowon era took the Igala-natiion off to Kwara with Ilorin as its capital,there she remained an outsider and played second fiddle roles to people that hitherto rever her. The igala-nation was again merged with the Tivs and Idomas of the old benue provinc e to make up Benue state in the wake of state creation in 1976,this was not done in response to her agitation,rather it was meant to balance the conditions of creation in favour of the Tiv nation.it should in summarily be stated here that it was in old Benue that the loss of identity and sense of purpose of the igala-nation became revealing.she lost her cultural traits including her attire.(i grew up to see our elders in achi,traditionally weaven dark adire),her festivities have over the years been discredited as diabolic and jettisoned,no rallying point or generally acceptable elderstateman, her values regarded as inferior and her people treated with disdain . The believe in negative spiritualism such as witcraftry and charms were extolled and her people negatively labelled thereto.The end product is that though the Igala-nation has divinely albeit accidentally ended up as the rulling tribe in Kogi state where she was originally encycled and sentenced to perpetual domination by the powers that be,she remain one of the two pre-colonial Nation-State with her jukun brother of the ancient kwararafa empire yet to have a state or a state capital on its soil in a nation of thirty six states including a federal capital territory.she remain the only well populated entity in Nigeria without any form of cultural identity or image(i have visited the office of National tourism development corporation,NTDC on several ocassions on the account of this research to find out whether there is any Igala cultural artifacts with the corporation and why it is not been showcased as those of other nations,but record reveals none),no trace of cultural attire as stated earlier,i have as an Igala activist partook in numerious igala function such as the Ittalo annual festival,Igala-day of Igala Students Association in several schools and more and noticed that why we gather in most of these functions as igala sons and daughters,we are often regretably dressed as either Hausas,Yorubas,Igbos,Niger-deltans and or even the Tivs thus underscoring the fact that we are a people without an identity and as a Nigerian elderstatesman and Hausa fulani apologist Yusuf sule Maitama once rightly said ‘a people without a culture,is a people without an identity.a people without an identity is a people without a future’ This has always been manifest to any preying eye that even in our leadership of Kogi state,our chequered mentality albeit inferiority complex has rubbed off in our affairs,thus we have failed or refused to foist our identity on kogi as it is practiced by other majority in the Nigerian arena(the Hausa-fulani,Igbo and Yoruba’s identity and culture including languages are been foisted on other minorities) while at the states level nations such as the Tivs and Urhobos have given us clue as to how majority tribes identity should be popularised as that of all.I watched on the NTA live broadcast with pity( for myself as an Igala-son,the igala nation and the duo of Drs Ahmadu Alih and late Steven Achema the two illustrious igala sons who have always tried to popularise the igala-traditional attire) the kogi state presidential campaign rally of president Goodluck Jonathan were contrary to established protocol,the president and his entourage including our own son and Governor Ibrahim Idris were all dresed in green-white green agbada as against the traditional attires of the people of the varrious enclaves they visited,this is a testimony of our lack of or lost of identity. The identity question or challenge staring the Igala-nation and people is equally responsible for the non teaching of the Igala Language in our schools,it is an incontrovertible fact that Nations of the world have ensure the preservation and sustenance of their cultural and identity through effective transmission of same from generation to generation,in recent times,the school system has been identified and adopted as the most effective way of doing same,thus in Nigeria ,Languages such as Hausa, Igbo ,Yoruba, Fulfude, Efik,Tiv and more are been taught in Schools and colleges,i remember with notalgia those days in the 1980s when i understudied Igala at both the junior primary level and the Qua Iboe Church organised Igala classes,it was of tremendous help in consolidating my education foundation.rather than improving on this system by ensuring that Igala as a tribe is studied and taken at the Senior School Certificate Examination,it has been neglected to death with the churches abdicating thereto on the excuse that education is a state responsibility,thus the emerging population of the Igala-nation can barely read and write in their mother’s tongue while those that are or were raised in other parts of the country such as Kaduna,Lagos,kano,Enugu and more were compelled to study and communicate with amazing ease in either Hausa,Yoruba or Igbo.i have met and interacted with numerous Igala sons and Daughters who speak or write Yoruba or Hausa fluently but can hardly exchange pleasantry in Igala hitch free,the argument that these tongues were the only ones nationally recognised while Igala is not cannot hold water as my investigations at the federal ministry of Education and The West African Examination Council have shown that any language can be made a subject of study in Nigeria relevant schools provided the required instructional materials are available,it is worth mentioning here that some pan –Igala organizations have been working on this and the personal effort of Dr Ibrahim Omale ,a foremost igala academics and first Igala rated orator (he single handedly published an igala dictionary amidst several mind bulging igala books which can help in satisfying the FME and WAEC’requirements) is worth commendation and i wish to add that but for the Identity question with the accompanying loss of sense of purpose and direction,the Igala-nation and the leadership of Kogi State can pursue this agenda to a logical end. In addition to all that has been said,it is equally worth noting that it is only in Igala land that people dont bear their tribal names,they abandon tribal names and pick up engish names for themselves under the disguise of civilisation/westernisation therby generating confusion as to their root,this again is a fall out of the identity and battered psyche questoin confronting the Igala-nation thus igala names are jettisoned for western and islamic names.our own Ojochenemi,Ojochide and Eleojo or Abah,Adejoh and Oguche are left for our Idoma brothers who hitherto were our adoptees but have come to carve a nitche and identity for themselves out of the ruins of our misfortune.imagine an igala named Steven James,Mercy Johnson etc!These has contributed alot in relegating our identity as igala people and nation to the background. CONCLUSION. In passing,i wish to state that in my humble opinion,the Igala-nation is one in loss of its identity,values,status and sense of direction.i have sought to unravel the causes of these decline and decay in our once glorious nation and to generate and cross fertilise ideals and strategies of evolving or re-organizing the chequered Igala identtity and regaining her lost pride and dignity.to this end ,i invite comments and suggestions from noble members of project igala. Ojo ki denyo nwu ane-igala kpai ogbodu-wa (God bless Igala-land and every one of us labouring in this Igala vine yard) gala is the language spoken by the people located within the triangle formed by the confluence of the rivers Niger and Benue in Kogi State of Nigeria. ‘The Igala people are found east of the confluence of these rivers. The land is bounded on the west by River Niger, on the east by Enugu State, the south by Anambra State, on the north Benue/Nassarawa States. It is 120 kilometers wide and 160 kilometers long. It is located approximately between latitudes 6°30′ and 8° north and longitudes 6°30′ and 7°40′ East and covers an area of about 13,665 square kilometers. The population of the Igala people is estimated at two million in the late 1990s. The people are evenly distributed all over the land but with ldah, Anyigba and Ankpa more densely populated. The Igala are also sparsely found in Edo, Delta, Anambra and Enugu States. But the huge bulk of the people are in Idah, Ankpa, Dekina, Oma1a, Olamaboro, Ofu, Iga1amela/Odolu, lbaji, Bassa (and even Lokoja and Ajaokuta) Local Government Areas of Kogi State. The boundary of the land was by far larger than it is in our time. The traditional limits of the 1and included: ‘The greater part of ldomaland, Nsukka area, Kogi, Anambra area (North of Onitsba)…. The Atta of Igala formerly exercised suzerainty over them. The Igala are unmistakably the major language group in Kogi State of Nigeria today. . Igalaland could be said to be a sort of terminus. It is located strategically at the natural cross-roads in Nigeria. Owing to this reason, it has been influenced both positively and negatively by trends of events as it is pulled in different directions. By and large, it has enjoyed some degree of encounter with the Yoruba, Edo (Benin), Jukun, Idoma, Nupe, Igbo, Hausa, Igbirra, Bassa-kwomo and Bassa-nge. This experience naturally left certain imprints on the tradition or culture of the Igala people. To some extent, its central positioning may account for the land being considered a cultural melting pot. Yet, it might not be quite true to conclude that Igala is totally a conglomeration of other ethnic groups. Igala existed as an entity on its own before the other cultures were assimilated into its mainstream Vegetation, cultural endowment and communications: The Igalas have an unusually and richly endowed environment. They are within the “middle-belt” of Nigeria which has an advantage of the climate of the drier Savannah vegetation to the north and the wet forest regions to the south. The area lies within the warm humid climatic zone of Nigeria. There is a distinctive wet-dry season dichotomy. The wet season lasts from about April to the end of September or early October while the dry season lasts from about October to about the end of March or early April. Rainfall can be heavy and the effects of the harmattan can be severe, especially from about November. The area has an average rain fall of about 50” a year. The lowland riverine areas are flooded seasonally, making it possible for the growing of paddy rice and controlled fish farming in ponds that are owned on individual or clan basis. The lbaji area is the major place awashed by flood. This makes the area very fertile soil more than other place in the land: “The receding floods leave behind a large quantity of fish in ponds and lakes. This facts, plays an important role in the economic and social lives of the people,” Simply put, the vegetation is mainly deciduous, with the major rivers (Benue and Niger), a few minor ones such as Okula, Ofu, Imabolo, Ubele, Adale, Ogbagana, and many streams in the land. Hence, is Igalaland popularly known as a blessed fishing and arable region. The most common economic trees are palm trees (ekpe), locust beans (okpehie). mahogany (ago), iroko (uloko), whitewood (uwewe) and raffia palms (ugala). Common plantations are of okra (oro..-aikpele), cashew (agala), banana (ogede). Some of the economic trees mentioned here provide timber for the people and for sale. In the forest regions were also found certain wild animals, such lions (idu), hyenas (olinya), leopards (omolalna or eje), elephants (adagba), bush-pigs (ehi), chimpanzee (ukabu). etc. This favorable vegetation makes farming and hunting highly profitable. Thus. 90% of the population. practice farming. Both forest and savannah crops thrive on Igala soil very well. Thus, the main forest crops produced are: yams, cassava, maize, melon and groundnut. And they produce such savannah cereals as guinea corn. beans. millet and benniseed. However, due to the shifting cultivation being practiced, bush burning and felling of tre