The Igala throne teeters on the edge of history, poised between cohesion and catastrophe. Fragmentation within the elders’ forum / council threatens not merely ritual succession, but the very architecture of political and cultural authority in Kogi. As 2027 approaches, the stakes transcend tradition: Kogi East, home to the majority Igala populace, risks seeing its historic claim to the Luggard House diluted or hijacked by political rivals from the West and North-Central zones, eager to stake artificial entitlement.
Disunity among Igala elders is no mere procedural quibble; it is a slow-acting poison corroding legitimacy. When factions debate endlessly, delaying consensus, the people’s confidence erodes. Authority, once revered, becomes negotiable, and tradition; the bedrock of societal cohesion, is rendered pliable to ambition and expedience. A divided council is a council without gravity, susceptible to manipulation from within and encroachment from without.
History offers stark lessons. Across Nigeria, polities that deferred unity succumbed to internecine rivalry, leaving power vacuums for opportunists and political predators. For the Igala, the majority in Kogi East, the stakes are existential. Occupying the Luggard House in 2027 is not a mere formality; it is a claim to political relevance and historical primacy. Without a singular, undivided house, the succession narrative fractures, creating a theatre of competing claims and escalating tensions that could erode the Igala’s majority influence.
The urgency is compounded by political currents beyond the luggard walls. As elections approach, external actors watch for fissures to exploit. Opponents from West and North-Central Kogi may seize any sign of division to challenge the Igala’s rightful claim. The elders’ unity is therefore both a shield and a sword: it preserves cultural sovereignty, fortifies the people’s collective voice, and ensures that the majority population cannot be sidelined in its own state.
Yet unity is neither automatic nor easily imposed. It demands deliberate dialogue, the setting aside of personal ambition, and the elevation of communal interest above self. The elders must act as architects of consensus, wielding wisdom honed through decades, not as combatants vying for temporal advantage. Failure to consolidate risks a succession crisis that could reverberate far beyond the luggard house, destabilizing communities and eroding trust in both traditional institutions and political representation.
Time is the crucible in which destiny is forged. The Igala people of Kogi East stand at a precipice, and 2027 is both deadline and reckoning. The path is clear: forge one undivided house, unify authority, and assert the historic claim to Luggard House before rivals distort the narrative. Anything less courts discord, invites opportunism, and diminishes the grandeur of an ancient heritage. In the theatre of power, unity is the only performance that commands respect, fragmentation, the surest prelude to chaos.
– Inah Boniface Ocholi writes from Ayah – Igalamela/Odolu LGA, Kogi state.
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