igboIN recent years there have been attempts on the part of some Igbo communities to deny their identity as Ndi-Igbo. Classical examples are the Ika Igbos of Agbor environs in Delta State and the Ikwere Igbos of Port-Harcourt, Rivers State.
The Nigeria-Biafran War, among other accidents in history has the blame of inflicting “mere anarchy upon the people” of Igbo in general and it appears that since the end of the war “the centre can no longer hold.” Port-Harcourt, up to 1967 had a majority of Igbo population. When the war broke out on 6 July 1967, as a result of Ojukwu’s declaration on May 30 that same year of the Republic of Biafra, Port Harcourt because of its importance in the Federal Government economy became a prime target.
Recently deliberate attempts are made by some Igbo communities in Rivers State to change their names both of towns and persons
Naturally, the Igbos dwelling Port-Harcourt as well as in other parts of the country had to return to their home communities. When the war ended on 12 January 1970 with the subsequent declaration of no victor no vanquish, the Military Government under Yakubu Gowon announced the “three R’s, Rehabilitation, Reconstruction and Reconciliation.
Notwithstanding, Gowon’s post-war philosophy based on the “three R’s” the Igbo refugees that fled from Port-Harcourt returned thither only to discover that Port-Harcourt indigenes (including Ikwere Igbos) seized their landed property and tagged them “abandoned properties”. Attempts to recover these properties only deepened hostility. In the opinion of the victimised Igbos of central communities such act, especially by their Port-Harcourt Igbo speaking brethren came to be regarded as void of brotherly sympathy.
In the process of metamorphosis the Ikwere of Port Harcourt came to be marginalised psychologically, culturally and politically by other Igbos. Soon cultural and political marginalisation widened to attract tribal self marginalisation. Recently deliberate attempts are made by some Igbo communities in Rivers State to change their names both of towns and persons. All in an effort to be free from Igbo identity.
Thus it is surprising to hear that Obigbo is now called Qyibo, Umueme now Rumueme, Umumasi now Rumumasi, Umuokoro now called Rumuokoro, etc. It should be observed, however, that the word “Umu” is a general Igbo language suffix which indicates that a community shares one progeny or descended from one great ancestor with the others. the other hand, ‘Rumu’ is found no where in Igbo language structure. “Rumu” therefore is a deliberate corruption attempt.
Influenced and drunk with this disaffectionate attitude towards their stock of origin, today it is not difficult for a modern man or woman from some of these self marginalising Igbos to deny that he or she is not, an Igbo. Most of them now feel piqued when called Igbo. Asked which tribe he belongs to he does not hesitate to say “I am from Port-Harcourt in Rivers State or Ikwere.
But this sounds absurd and as foolish as saying that I am from Isuofia, Awka or Onitsha. It does not make much sense either to say that I am from Owerri, Aba, Umuahia, Enugu, Ibadan, Benin City or Ekpoma. These are mere civil and commercial centres that sprang up in much recent times as the spirit of Urbanisation impigned upon people to live together and enjoy common facilities.
Port-Harcourt, for instance was not founded until 1912. But the Port-Harcourt Igbos have existed in the land long before this. There was nothing like Enugu before 1911, yet the people of the land were there already for generations past. Aba, Umuahia, (Umuabia) and Owerri were not heard of until 1922. Yet the Igbos have for long lived in these areas with the tribal identity and racial consciousness of Ndi Igbo.
Even Onitsha of the seventeenth century did not exist before the people that owned the geographical area. The Yoruba of course were already known as Yoruba and enjoyed ‘common mythological concept of Oduduwa progeny, before the word “Ibadan” came to mean a Yoruba settlement or colony in 1830. The Binis were known as Edo before Bini became a city, etc.
Thus it is surprising to hear that Obigbo is now called Oyibo, Umueme now Rumueme, Umumasi now Rumumasi, Umuokoro now called Rumuokoro, etc.
Nigeria, (according to Edo Broadcasting Service (EBS) Fact File has at least two hundred and fifty clearly identified tribes.
These tribes, each belongs to distinct linguistic (though sometimes mutually identical) class or speech community. The people of Agbor, Kwale, Obiaruku, Ahoada etc. in Delta States are thus neither safe nor wise to deny their Igbo tribal trunk. One believes that their tribal dissassociation is psychological rather than real. But if they insist it is real then they must be able to identify themselves with some tribe else where.
The safest thing to do is to regard the civil war and incidents like that as external circumstances brought about by accident in history. The civil war bias and all its attendant evils like soap bubbles must be allowed to disappear and give way to proper cultural and political reintegration.
Agha naa, Asiri anaa shall once more be regarded by all Igbo as a uniting and forgiving philosophy. Thus there exists no more ground of justification for any original Igbo stock or community to disassociated from its tribal heritage and consciousness. Igbo heterogeneity ought to be an asset not a liability. To deny tribal link because of mere circumstantial anarchy is cultural suicide of no little futuristic consequences.
To deny tribal link because of mere circumstantial anarchy is cultural suicide of no little futuristic consequences.
Affection must be restored so that the whole Igbo should see itself as one body of original stock capable of presenting one strong front when threatened by any external forces. To achieve this, F.C. Ogbalu gave a reason which this author believes is an encouragement to the people of Ika (Agbor) in particular and other ill affectioned Igbos in general. Ogbalu’s reason is a linguistic one. He said:
“It is significant to note that while the Ika can communicate with other Igbo people with some of whom they are separated by as much as two hundred and fifty miles, the Ika can never communicate with the Ishan, their nearest neighbours – a few miles apart- except through Ishan. While the Ika does not have to learn the other dialect of Igbo to communicate with the Igbo man. All he does – and this is usually mutual – is adjust. No amount of adjustment short of learning Ishan, can make an Ika communicate with the Ishan, without using Ishari.”
The argument Ogbalu seeks to buttress hinges on the fact that the Ika people and indeed all that marginalise themselves from their Igbo originality because of one bias or the other have no cultural or linguistic justification to do so. The language they speak betray them indivisibly as tribal colonies of the most egalitarian, individualistic and enterprising peoples of the world known as Igbo.
When an Ika wants to give his king identity, he not call him Oba or Ooni just like the Edo Yoruba might ascribe to theirs respectively. But rather the Ika choses to call him Obi of Agbor. Notwithstanding that Edo of ancient had serious monarchical influence over the Ika they still retain their original monarchical identity Furthermore, when an Ika wants to tell you goodbye- he says Ijeoma like every other Igbo. When he talks abouts his native doctor he does not call him Babalawo to suggest that he is a Yoruba, but he call him Dibie just like other Igbo Dibie or Dibia.
It is significant to note that while the Ika can communicate with other Igbo people with some of whom they are separated by as much as two hundred and fifty miles, the Ika can never communicate with the Ishan, their nearest neighbours-a few miles apart-except through Ishan
An Ika does not call his son Osaro to suggest that he is Edo but he calls him Ikenchukwu, unconsciously reminding the child that he has common tribal identity with other Igbo communities where the Ikechukwu and/or Okechukwu are common names for males. For those who go as far as changing their names and other tribal identity, we caution that such is a height of absurdity.
Mike Ekunno wrote in Sunday Vanguard (October 5, 1997 P.8): Igbo land is full of the “WAWA”, “IJEKO-EBE”, “AGBAENU”, “IKA-IGBO”, “NWA-ONYE ONITSHA” etc. “It is here that the saying becomes germane that only the man who wilfully opts out of the train claims he was forced out”.
The calls of IGBO-KWENU” should, however, begin to re-echo from Nsukka, Arochukwu, Abakaliki ends, and let the response resound in the streets of Ikwere Port-Harcourt, quarters of Ahoada and intersections of Kwa and Agbor districts.
In any random picking of Igbos from a group of other Nigerians, the physical characteristics that distinguish mainland Igbos are also boldly visible on his Rivers and Delta brethren. The same goes for their language,. culture, work ethic, value system and social institutions.
The vices, whether real or imagined, with which the mainland Igbo is associated are also donned by other Igbo diaspora in Port-Harcourt, Ahoada, Agbor and Kwale districts. Thus ethnographically and geographically they are unavoidable recognised as Igbo of the Igbos, Philipians 3:5.