At 5 o’clock this morning, the slitdrum (ogidigbo) sounded at the palace of the Ologidi of Ogidi, a sleepy community of about 15,000 people in Ijumu Local Government Area of Kogi State. Simultaneously, the gong (agogo) also pealed in the community’s ancient market square.
These two occurrences could only signal two things to the people of this largely agrarian community: it was either there was an emergency or some traditional festivity was at hand. Today, the pealing of the gong and the sounding of the slit drum were to announce to the locals and the hordes of tourists and visitors who had trooped to the town since yesterday that the Ogidi Day Festival, tagged by the people as Nigeria’s biggest culture event in June was at hand.
Every year since the festival commenced, local and foreign tourists had made it part of their yearly summer itinerary to stop over in Ogidi and join the people to relish the display of the best of their culture. From time immemorial, the people have, at the beginning of the harvest season, specifically June 15, every year, celebrated the New Yam Festival.
Usually, the traditional ruler, the Ologidi of Ogidi, holds his own festival seven days ahead of the community. Until then, tradition forbids any member of the community to eat the new yam, bring it to the town from the farm or put it on sale in the market. Yam takes the prime position among all crops in this community of great farmers. So its coming is marked with feasting and exchange of bowls of pounded yam, which is the staple food among them.
The reigning Ologidi of Ogidi, Oba Rabiu Oladimeji Sule said the new yam festival was a time of celebration and thanksgiving to the Creator for the miracle of creation as seen in the turning of slices of yam buried in mounds of earth but which soon sprouts and became whole.
The arrival of the new yam, according to Oba Sule, signifies a renewal of the covenant of life and its sustenance by the creator. The traditional ruler added that farming involved dangerous encounters with nature and other members of the animal kingdom, many of which are quite unfriendly to man.
Therefore, ending a farming season successfully with rich harvests of yams, he said, called for celebration and thanksgiving. In the olden days when Ogidi people were idol worshipers and Oluwo was their deity, the Ologidi said all the implements of farm work such as hoes and cutlasses were at the onset of the harvest season, washed, brought home and assembled in a wellappointed corner of the house where they are served with all the food that is prepared on emidin (new yam) day.
However, with most of the people now adherents of Christianity and Islam, Oba Oladimeji, himself a Moslem, said such practices had stopped and people now offer their thanks to God according to the established traditions of their different religious faiths.
That was the basis on which the Ogidi Day Festival was founded. In addition to celebrating the arrival of the new yam and offering thanks to God for the yield and for preserving their lives, the event has now been expanded to include the promotion the rich culture of the community as well as the mobilization of indigenes and their friends for development activities.
In 2011, it was decided to shift the Ogidi Day, which held on December 26, every year to the middle of June, while Boxing Day was reserved for the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the community’s umbrella body, the Ogidi Development Union (ODU).
Thus, it was decided that Ogidi Day would hold on June 15, each year if it falls on Saturday and if not, on the Saturday following it. The Director-General of the Ogidi Day Festival, Mr. Tunde Ipinmisho, who was the President of the Ogidi Development Union from 2006-2015, said Ogidi had just emerged from a bitter dispute over succession to the Ologidi stool following the demise of the late Oba Adeyemi Are Jegede.
He said the dispute created some wrong impressions about the community and that the decision to begin the Ogidi Day Festival was taken to draw attention to positive attributes of the town, such vast arable land, rich culture, accommodating nature of the people and the achievements of its sons and daughters in all fields of human endeavor.
According to him, Ogidi has many sons and daughters to be proud of, among them are the late Olympic gold medalist, Sunday Bada; world renowned batik artist, Nike Okundaye; the serving Yobe State Commisioner of Police, Mr. Sumonu Abdulmaliki Adeyemi; the nation’s Deputy Commissioner of Insurance, Mr. Olorundare Sunday Thomas; retired Executive Director, Nigerian Breweries Plc Chief Gabriel Bayode Mesaiyete; Mr. Gabriel Obando, a General Manager with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corpration and the Director, Technical Services, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Mr. Femi Oloruntoba among others.
In addition, Ipinmisho said the community was once strategically located along what used to be the Trunk “A” Kabba- Owo road, which gave it many advantages in terms of access, trade and commerce. However, with the construction of the new Ipele-Kabba Road which bypassed the town, he said the community had for long been largely isolated.
The Ogidi Day Festival, he said was to draw attention to the infrastructure deficit in the town and to get people, who otherwise would not come to Ogidi to visit the community. Ogidi Day usually opens with prayers in all churches and mosques in the community for peace in the land and successful celebration. This is followed by football matches among the youths of the various quarters in the town culminating in the finals of the Ologidi Cup.
The eve of Ogidi Day itself begins with a medical outreach which commences at 7am at the Cottage Hospital in the community. For many of the town’s folk, Ogidi Day begins and ends with the medical outreach which includes free basic medical tests and the dispensing of over the counter drugs. Tests for blood sugar, hypertension and other diseases are conducted during the programme.
The outreach, a collaborative effort between the ODU and a United States based charity, Ripples Foundation, has grown in leaps and bounds since it was first held seven years ago.
With Ms. Anne Toba as Global Chief Executive and Mrs. Olufunke Owonubi as head of its Nigerian operation, Ripples Foundation has since expanded its engagements with the community.
For example, the organization single-handedly provided world class medical equipment for the Ogidi Cottage Hospital at a cost of several millions of Naira. Also, the success of the outreach has attracted further intervention from friends of Ogidi. Last year, Chief Michael Ajayi, the retired General Manager, Public Relations at the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) sent a team of ophthalmologists to conduct eye tests in the community following which free eye glasses were given to members of the community. Similar tests have again been conducted this year at the behest of Ajayi, now the General Manager of Agura Hotel, Abuja’s pioneer 5-star hospitality facility. The eye glasses were again distributed to the beneficiaries yesterday.
The expedition to the peak of the Oroke Oda, an imposing mountain overlooking the community like a guardian angel also holds on the eve of Ogidi Day after the medical outreach.
This event is particularly popular among the youths and tourists. Ogidi people hold the Oroke Oda in awe and virtually all of them have sentimental attachment to it. It was the observatory from which members of the community watch out for the Nupe invaders during the bitter wars between Ogidi and the Nupe in the 19th century.
On sighting the approaching Nupe cavalry, Ogidi watchmen would pass secret signals to their folks who would then take shelter on the many hills and mountains surrounding the town.
The way to the peak is winding, treacherous and not for the faint hearted. However, those who are able to brave it are assured of sumptuous meals, barbeques, music and entertainment. Trophies will, this year be presented to the oldest climber who makes it first to the peak as well as the first woman to brave it.
Ogidi Day revolves around the traditional ruler more than anything else. It is an occasion for one of the rare outings of the Oba who usually would be decked in ancient robes and the full paraphernalia of his office. Members of the Ologidi-in- Council and other chiefs begin to assemble at the palace early in the morning, and are soon joined by visiting traditional rulers and other dignitaries.
The Oba fetes them with pounded yam (the meal of the day) and assorted drinks. The entire courtyard of the palace is in the meantime agog with performances by various cultural troupes.
Soon the Oba begins the symbolic walk from his palace to the Community Hall Grounds not more than 500 meters to his palace. As short as that distance may appear to be, it takes no less than 45 minutes to cover. It is a walk at which the living and the dead (represented by ancient masquerades of various descriptions) are united in ecstasy.
Surrounded by his wives (Oloris), visiting traditional rulers, chiefs and prominent guests, the trip to the area is indeed more of an artistic performance than a walk. The hunters guild take the lead with their scary manoeuvres, followed by the Olaga troupe (the maidens dance), the Agbo Olode (the beloved raffia draped masquerade of Ogidi) and various groups.
The arrival of the Oba at the arena is heralded by the beating of the split-drum (ogidigbo), firing of guns by hunters and the singing of both the national and the Ogidi anthems. Following that is a parade of the members of the various chieftaincy grades,social clubs and groups, male and female age grades, trade groups and other associations who come before the Oba and prostrate (men) or kneel down(women) in obeisance to their traditional ruler who in return pronounces royal blessings on them. Performances by cultural troupes follow with various Ogidi groups such as the Olaga, Agbo Olode, Are Iyawo, hunters’ troupe and others taking the lead.
They are soon followed by visiting troupes. Such troupes have in the past included Adunni and Nefertiti, Nigeria’s leading all women folk singers, the Nike Cultural Troupe of the world renowned home girl and icon of art and culture, Chief (Mrs.) Nike Okundaye, the Yeyeoba of Ogidi. Other prominent groups in the past include the Ondo State Cultural Troupe, Ekiti troupe, Epa Masquerade from Iyah-Gbedde, the Swanghe group from Benue State, the Efik and Bini troupes.
The climax of the day is the presentation of the new yam by Nike Okundaye. Nike emerges from the rear with the yam which is wrapped in beautiful attire and is soon joined by all the cultural troupes in attendance as she make her way in dance and music to the dais where the Oba and the dignitaries are seated in high expectation of that moment. The presentation is greeted by ululation among the women.
The Oba receives it and begins to pray for his people for long life, prosperity and general wellness. He then proclaims that the people could now begin to consume the new yam as well as bring it to the market for sale. The raising of funds for identified development projects then follows.
The projects identified for this year are the supply of an ambulance and power generating set for the Cottage Hospital, completion of water reticulation in the town and the relocation of the Community Hall to make room for its expansion.
The community is relying on its friends to assist in raising the N250 million budgeted for the projects. Already, help has come as a Lagos based company; IHS Nigeria has, ahead of Ogidi Day, delivered a 45KVA generator to the hospital as part of its corporate social responsibility project for the year.
The traditional ruler also uses the occasion to present chieftaincy titles, mostly to friends of the community who are deemed to be deserving of such honour. On its part, the ODU gives out different categories of awards to deserving sons and daughters of Ogidi as well as non-members of the community. Kudos must go to Nike Okundaye for her efforts in internationalizing the festival.
Her friends and associates nationwide and around the world, by her influence, consider Ogidi a must be place during the festival. It is the practice to appoint a Father of the Day for Ogidi Day each yea,r who embodies the best values of the festival.
The Father of the Day this year is the Oliha of Ogidi and Baale of Idawero, Chief Abiodun Ehindero, a retired General Manager with the West African Portland Cement Company Limited (now Lafarge), who has an enviable record of philanthropy and contribution to development efforts in the community. Ehindero, who arrived with his wife, Ibilola from their United States base for the event last week is not sparing any effort to make the day a great outing. Among those to be honoured with chieftaincy titles this year are the Managing Director, Explicit Communications Ltd, Lagos, Mr. Tunde Thanni, who is the Chairman of today’s event, top executive of Zenith Bank, Mr. Victor Adoji and the Administrator, Ijumu Local Government and Chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, Kogi State branch, Alhaji Taufiq Isah.
A long standing friend of the community and National Publicity Secretary of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) is being honoured with an Excellence in Service Award by the Ogidi community. Ologbondiyon will be the Most Honoured Guest at today’s gathering while one of the nation’s most seasoned diplomats and immediate past Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye will be a special guest of honour. National President of the ODU, Mr. Kayode Eniolorunda said the Ogidi Day Festival has played positive roles in the lives of his people.
Eniolorunda, who is the Comptroller of Immigration in Edo State, said the event, apart from drawing national and international attention to Ogidi had also helped in attracting development to the town. Particularly, he said Ogidi Day was helpful in attracting government participation in the construction of the Cottage Hospital in the town and in the completion of a water project initiated in the community over 40 years ago by a Canadian Catholic priest. Eniolorunda said many other projects were already underway in the town which he said would frontally tackle youth unemployment in the town.
Such projects, he said include the Ripples Integrated Farm Project for which about 100 hectares of land have been acquired. Others are Mills and Nuts Industry and VV Four Industries, wood and cashew processing concerns for which the Chinese promoter had acquired about 12 hectares of land and in which the installation of machines is progressing. There is also an American group which has acquired vast tracts of land for agriculture, health and educational facilities. Eniolorunda said that in the words of the town’s anthem, Ogidi has indeed risen.
– Tunde Ipinmisho, a former Editor of the Sunday Times lives in Abuja.
