By Joseph Makafan
The 9th of February 2017 would remain fresh like the mangrove tree with the good people of Magongo as they celebrate in grand style the epoch event of the Eya festival which marked the beginning of a new calendar year in the traditional council. This culture is only peculiar with few countries and religion that don’t celebrate with the conventional gregorian calendar which begins the new year in January and ends the year in the month of December.
Magongo is known for its rich traditions and cultural heritage which usually attracts dignitaries from within and outside the country hence, the Eya festival is not an exception as sons and daughters of Magongo came home to celebrate with their clan and the people in general.
An intriguing investigation reveals that, there is something unique and special about this year Eya and that is the undeniable fact that all the three clans in the community celebrated it on the same day which is unprecedented. It took the wisdom and effort of traditional head, the OluMagongo of Magongo, Chief Sam Bola Ojo Ojibo I, to collectively resolve that the three clans in Magongo to celebrate on the same date.
The significance of celebrating together according to the traditional head is to invigorate and foster unison, promote peace and oneness amongst its citizen and also help economically reduce the cost of a particular clan spend heavily during the celebration of the Eya festival, since no man is an Island and one hand cannot wash itself clean, that is the reason why the idea of celebrating together was birthed.
Seemingly, this happened to be a welcome idea by the people, as different age groups in the community came out in their large numbers to celebrate in their attires showcasing the rich culture of the community and the women looked glowing in their colorful attires that is only synonymous to the people of Magongo, while they sing and danced, displaying their cultural heritage.
In an exclusive chat with OluMagongo, he said “we inherited this cultural festival from our forefathers and by implication, it is an event that is set to begin a new year in the traditional Council of Magongo. It is imperative to note that, there is no one in the community who considers January as the beginning of a new year”
“Hence this has a great impact in the society, which plays a reasonable position in the scheme of things in Magongo, and by this, we are prophesying into the new year with the hope of getting to a better end of the year, the end of the year may not been known to anybody, that is why more emphasis is placed on the beginning of the new year and by that implication we are just starting the new year.
He further said that “Magongo is known to be very outstanding in the observation of our traditional festivals and cultural heritage, we have made efforts to collaborate with the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and some other private organizations to nurture and promote some of these rich cultural heritage that are only peculiar to the good people of Magongo, and concerted effort is being made to make it tourist and global attraction”
“In the light of this, we call on the state government to look outward to take advantage of these cultures, he concluded”.
Speaking also to the former Majority Leader of Kogi State House of Assembly Major Albert Soje who is also a member of the Traditional Council said “the significance of this celebration is one that is hereditary and it marks the beginning of a new calendar year in the traditional council of Magongo, the Eya is celebrated every year and one thing you will appreciate about it is that, it brings people within and outside the country to celebrate together”.
In a separate remark, a former Council Leader who was recently installed into the Traditional Council, Chief Wadala Eriki said “the celebration is one that foster and promote peace, there is no discrimination, we all eat, wine and dine together regardless of our religion or political affiliation”.
The Local Government Administrator Hon. Moses Akande disclosed that “the traditions and culture of the community must be guided jealously because it is the only legacy that is left of our forefathers, so effort must be made to nurture and promote it, in order for us still have something we can call our own”.
At the end of the celebration, the Obin who is the traditional head of the community in company of the Chiefs, elders and youths prayed for the community to continuing to experience peace and progress.
