By Aherhoke Okioma
Yenagoa
Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa state has continued to express shock over the demise of the Izon Music Icon, King Robert Ebizimor, even as he assured the family of the Ijaw music maestro a befitting state burial.
This, the governor said when he paid a condolence visit to the family of the legendary singer at his hometown, Angalabiri in the Sagbama local government area of the state.
Dickson, who recalled the sad incident, described the late singer as a proud, committed and loving Ijaw man, who used his God-given talent to project, propagate and give greater meaning and appreciation for the culture and tradition of the Ijaw people.
While praying God Almighty to grant his immediate family and community the strength and courage to bear the loss, he noted that, King Ebizimor’s untimely death has created a big vacuum in the musical and cultural arena of the Ijaw nation.
He said: “As a government and as a people, Bayelsa state and the Ijaw nation are pained by the untimely passing of the Ijaw music folklorists, King Ebizimor. He was our hero in every respect, because there was hardly any Ijaw man, woman, boy and girl that, did not appreciate his music or the message that came with his songs in one way or the other.
“In addition, he was very knowledgeable about the culture and tradition of our land and people and the majority of his songs were of general purpose in nature and that was what made him stand out in the crowd and was rightly regarded as the ‘Numo Pere’, meaning King of music of Izonlan.”
To this end, Dickson reiterated that government would put structures in place to always keep the memory of his good works to Bayelsa state, the Ijaw nation and Nigeria in general.
In his remarks, the Commissioner for Culture and Ijaw National Affairs, Dr. Felix Tuodolo, said King Ebizimor would be greatly missed, “because he has left a legacy on the sand of time.”
