Almost everyone in today’s geographical North-central Nigeria was once under what was known as Kwararafa Kingdom until the quest for separate, independent kingdoms arose leading to migrations to different locations today. Igala Kingdom, for instance, paid a supreme price to assert her independence in what has become part of her present history. In the first series of this Special Report, SUNNY IDACHABA takes a look at the journey of Igala independence from Wukari, its consequences and how the kingdom fared thereafter.
It was the late black American poet and human rights activist, Maya Angelou, who said, “If you don’t know where you are coming from, you certainly cannot know where you are going to.”
She did not stop there but went further, saying, “You have to know where you come from so that you can chart where you are going.”
While stressing the importance of understanding one’s heritage and roots, she said, “You may not have the ability to control all the events that happened to you in the past; but, you can decide not to be reduced by them. Know your history, know your heritage and your background; know yourself and do the best you can until you know better. When you know better, you will do better.”
This all-important quote by the late Black American sage is no doubt true at all times especially as it concerns an entire kingdom. This is because right from inception, every kingdom has its present status wrapped up in its history whether good or bad.
Therefore, whatever portrayal anyone choose to brand it: vodoo, magical prowess or ritual practice, it is a matter of word usage. But oftentimes, the rich culture/tradition of every kingdom is rooted in its historical antecedents.
It is for this reason that the story about the evolution of Igala Kingdom, her migration and relationships with other nations to date remain an interesting course of study for students of History and Oral Tradition especially the events that happened around the 15th and 16th centuries, and how it has shaped an Igala man’s world view in relationship with other nationals like Jukun, Hausa, Benin, Idoma, Egbira, Igede and Igbo today.
Setting the tone for this narrative
Idah town, right from inception, had remained both the political and spiritual headquarters of the Igala Kingdom. One account had it that its founder, a former Attah of Igala by the name Ayegba Oma Idoko. migrated from Wukari in Kwararafa Kingdom to settle there.
Another unconfirmed account had it that he was, indeed, originally a Jukun man from Wukari, but migrated from there and finally settled in Idah. Whichever account is true, it shows that almost everyone in that axis of today’s North-central came from the same parents at one time in history.
Because Attah Ayegba repudiated the rulership of Aku Uka of Wukari and revolted against the subsequent quest of the Jukun leader to extend his dominance over him (Ayegba) and his ‘rebellious’ Igala people who left Wukari to Idah, the Jukun leader(s) at the time made life continuously unbearable for him over what they called his ‘animal boldness’.
To the Jukun king, his punishment was to continue the payment of dues, tributes and royalties to the Jukun royal lord because his kingdom (Igala) was still perceived as a vassal state to Aku Uka of Wukari, having been part of Kwararafa Kingdom. This payment was to be in the form of annual remittances of palm produce like palm oil, palm kernel, other farm produce and an annual obeisance to Jukun king in Wukari.
However, this did not last as Attah Ayegba revolted by abdicating that servitude. In the process, he stopped the payment, a development that was not taken lightly in Wukari. This was the reason behind the battle between Igala and Jukun nations. Although fought many years back, it has not erased the relationship/bond once shared by the two kingdoms. For instance, today, it has formed part of their cherished history, according to Maya Angelou. That is why, despite the war, anywhere Igala and Jukun natives meet, there is a shared bond of friendliness/brotherliness and exchange of banters, an indication that, ‘even though we speak different tongues today, we were once one and still remain same’.
The same also applied to the relationship between Igala and Benin Kingdom under Oba Esiege and Oba Ewuare in the 16th century. The Igala/Benin war was not fought for political or spiritual dominance by either party, but was essentially a war for liberation from economic exploitation and sheer hatred.
In all these two wars that shaped Igala history, the strategy adopted leading to triumph over the warriors from both kingdoms were essentially the same; however, it was those two historical wars that brought the mysterious Inachalo River/Princess Oma Odoko as well as the enigmatic Princess Inikpi into Igala history books today.
The mysterious Inachalo River
Sitting in Idah today is the memorial statue of a princess by the name Oma Odoko near the ever-mysterious Inachalo River along Idah/Nsukka road. The story of Oma Odoko is linked to this river which has remained a cynosure to tourists because of its uniqueness.
Before the Igala Jukun war of 1681, according to a Portuguese record, nothing was known about Inachalo River other than it was a river to cross from the north-eastern flank before one can enter Idah and was basically used for domestic purposes, while local fishermen usually caught the fish for consumption. But following the breakdown of friendship between Igala and Jukun, Inachalo became famous even though its size was small compared to major rivers like Niger and Benue.
What is, however, significant about it is that it was in this river that Jukun warriors met their waterloo on their way to invade Igala land, a spiritual war devoid of weapons like guns, arrows, spears and clubs.
The chief priest’s narration
While giving a detailed account of what the river represents in Igala land as well as the importance of Oma Odoko statue near the river to our correspondent, the chief priest of Oma Odoko (appointed by the Attah of Igala), Alhaji Danlami Angwar Ayegba, who conducted him round the relics of the river (having been encroached by civilisation) and the statue, said, “The history of the river is also linked to the story of a princess known as Oma Odoko who was buried alive with some slaves at its bank.
Today, human activities seem to have encroached into the area surrounding the river with houses and roads being constructed. However the river remains a sort of tourist attraction to visitors from far and near because it can no longer be used for domestic purposes like cooking. Similarly, the fish is forbidden from being caught let alone cooked for consumption. Also, the water has healing powers over certain ailments when administered on a patient by the chief priest.
According to him, “The war between Igala and Jukun was triggered over the refusal to continue the payment of tributes by Attah Ayegba to Aku Uka of Wukari. Attah Ayegba, tired of the demand for payment of tributes revolted against it, but the Jukun king insisted that the payment must continue. When all entreaties failed on both sides, Attah Ayegba prepared oil and other forms payments in many calabashes and sent them to Wukari.
“On receiving them, the Jukun king was elated that at last Igala Kingdom would remain subservient to him forever; unknown to him, what was brought were dungs and human feaces covered with red oil. By the time the calabashes were opened, they discovered that they were tricked.
“The Aku Uka was so enraged by this singular act and, therefore, he resolved to teach Attah Ayegba and the entire Igala kingdom a lesson they would never forget. This he planned to do by invading Idah to remove the ‘stubborn’ Igala king and instal another person that would be subservient to him and Wukari. This was the reason they embarked on a mission to Idah through Inachalo River in what is today referred to as a journey of no return. So essentially, Inachalo is what it is today because that was where the Jukun warriors met their waterloo on their way to overrun Idah.”
The plot that annihilated Jukun warriors
When Attah Ayegba got a wind of the plot to attack him and the kingdom, he began to seek a way to repel the invaders, at least, to save the kingdom from defeat, shame and possible annihilation.
According to Alhaji Angwar Danlami, “Attah Ayegba, being someone with wide range of connections among other tribes, reached out to a group of people known as Bebechi, who were the initial residents of Kano, to come down to Idah and help devise a spiritual means of overpowering the warriors.”
Bebechi people, he explained, are basically Muslim prayer warriors with the magic wand to ward off evil; so were never pagans, but pure Muslims. He said that altogether, six clans came to Idah from Kano for this assignment and never returned again. “That is why, after the exploit and subsequent defeat of the marauders from Wukari, Bebechi people did not return to Kano, but remained in Idah (Angwar), a place allocated to them. They were the ones that helped Igala to eliminate the invading Jukun warriors through their charms in River Inachalo.
According to Alhaji Angwar Danlami, “The Bebechi prayer warriors informed Attah that for them to succeed, they would need the sand from the Palace of Aku Uka of Wukari. This was an impossible task to accomplish, but they insisted that it was the beginning of the processes that would lead to conquering the invading warriors.
“Attah Ayegba then sent one of the charmers to Wukari, but to be turned into a beautiful maiden on arriving there in order to gain entrance into the palace. On getting there, he indeed turned into a beautiful woman and caught the attention of the Jukun king. Expectedly, on sighting her, he fell in love and proposed to marry her.
“That night, from the hut where she was kept to spend the night, she requested to urinate and was allowed by the royal guards unescorted. From there, she collected a portion of the soil from the palace and vanished into the thin air. The royal guards could not trace her. At that point, it became clear to the Aku Uka and his people that the deception was, indeed, authored by Attah Ayegba. It was after this that they rolled out their drums of war to invade Idah and remove him.”
Back to Idah, after another round of divination, the Bebechi charmers gave Attah Ayegba a piece of distressed news as a precondition to recording victory over the Jukuns.
“They told Attah Ayegba that to prevail over the Jukun invaders, a virgin from the royal palace must be sacrificed by being buried alive.”
This was a difficult moment for him, but it was a moment to exhibit bravery in order to save the land. After a few days, his only daughter then by the name Oma Odoko was taken and buried alive at the bank of Inachalo River where her stature is erected today.
“Thereafter the Bebechi charmers prepared a charm in the form of poison and poured it into Inachalo River because the invading Jukun soldiers cannot enter Idah until they cross the river.
“That made the river and the fish poisonous; whoever drank from it would not survive. Curiously, the poison did not kill the fish. Rather, it made them conspicuously large in size and attractive.”
This was again another trap for the invading enemy, unknown to them; they were caught in the trap.
“Expectedly, the invading Jukun armed men with their masquerades, war armaments stopped to drink water in the river out of exhaustion. They were also fascinated by the unusually big fish in the river. They settled there momentarily for what seems to them a time of refreshing before their final onslaught on Idah. Just as they finished drinking the water, they started stooling uncontrollably with many vomiting while others developed terrible abdominal upset. In the process, more than 70 percent of their men died instantly.
“The remaining few scampered back to Wukari and abandoned everything they came with. This is why till today, no one catches any fish from Inachalo River to cook and if anyone does, the fish can never be cooked. Even the water cannot be used for cooking because of the everlasting effect of that poison.
“In all of these, Attah Ayegba and his men did not use physical weapons against the enemy because, like I said earlier, it was not a physical war, but spiritual. Since Bebechi people were not pagans, they had nothing to do with the masquerades abandoned by Jukun warriors. Instead, they handed them over to Attah as spoils of war. That is why in Igala land today, only the Attah has exclusive custody of certain masquerades like ‘Ekwe’ ‘Agbanabo’ and others, handed over by Bebechi people. No other sub king in Igala land has right of custody to those masquerades,” he explained.
Is Oma Odoko’s sacrifice in vain?
As an honour for this young maiden and other virgins buried alive, Alhaji Danlami Angwar said annually, there are festivals like ‘Agbadu’, ‘Ogaganyi’ and ‘Ocho’ held in their honour. But for a while, all those festivals, he said, have been neglected.
“These ceremonies have long been neglected by the royal palace for inexplicable reasons. Normally, in those festivals, all the masquerades retrieved from Jukun warriors would come out to display around the stature of Oma Odoko and around Inachalo River here in Angwar while libations would be poured on the shrine located behind her statue. These ceremonies are necessary so that peace and order can prevail in the entire kingdom, but for a while, it has not been done. This is the reason there have been disagreements/disharmony among the people in the kingdom without any progress made.
“I am appealing to Igala sons and daughters to wake up and rally round to avert our fleeing culture. I am also appealing to the royal palace to look into the matter so that ‘Ane Igala’ can have peace and make progress. Under the late former Attah, Aliyu Obaje, all these cultures were held in high esteem. Let me use this opportunity to clarify that in remembrance of this princess, human sacrifice is not involved; there’s absolutely nothing like that. It was a wrong held notion to eliminate Igala culture and tradition. Let every tribe value their own culture because that is who we are,” he concluded.
According to an Igala historian and social media influencer, Ella Enemona, while speaking on the mysterious river, he said the name ‘Inachalo’ literally means ‘Insults flowing away’. In other words, that river was not originally called ‘Inachalo’ from the beginning, but probably got that name following the victory over Jukun warriors.
“I don’t think it was a mere coincidence that the name became synonymous with the incident surrounding the war; the river probably had an unpopular name or no identifiable name at all until the victory obtained by Igala over Jukun in that epic battle,” he said.
Watch out for Inikpi report in our next package.