The media in the past recent days have gone into frenzy due to a seeming misunderstanding between the Deji of Akure, apparently the paramount traditional ruler in Akure, the capital city of Ondo State, Nigeria and Eze Ndi Igbo in Akure, the leader and spokesperson for the Igbos therein. The Igbos are a widely travelled tribe in Nigeria that could be found in virtually all parts of the country.
Aside the catchy headline in the media that the Deji of Akure flogged Eze Ndi Igbo and de-robed him after an altercation, Afenifere, the pan-Yoruba soci-cultural organisation, through one of its operative units, the Afenifere Renewal Group (ARG), in a well-publicised communiqué, asked South-West governors and Obas to de-recognise Eze Ndigbos in Yorubaland. In fact, the statement authored by Kunle Famoriyo, its Publicity Secretary has a ‘serious’ accusation levelled against the Igbos and their Eze Ndi Igbos -“The evolution of this structure has forced us to consider it as an expansionist agenda as the structure is only rampant in Yorubaland,”.
Without going too far, let’s find out: what and who is Eze Ndi Igbo?
Eze Ndi Igbo is simply a representative of Igbo people living in any enclave outside their Igbo homeland. Historically, Igbos were republican and operated through a network of autonomous settlements. The Igbo popular phrase, Igbo ewe eze, (Igbos have no king) captures the long standing historical origin of Igbo societies that were not built around monarchies and theocracies as found in the northern and western parts on Nigeria through the Emirs and Obas respectively. This was why the indirect rule of the colonial British that worked well in the two regions failed in the East, the domain of Igbos.
That’s the history. Now, zoom to modern day Igboland. Yes, in the contemporary power settings, there are traditional rulers, the ‘Igwes’ and ‘Ezes’, ‘ruling’ over autonomous communities of Igboland, even though they are more of symbolic heads rather than rulers and local authorities. The strongest authorities in most Igbo communities are the town development unions while the traditional rulers are confined to serves as custodians of native tradition and customs, and play some roles in alternative dispute resolution in the communities.
Outside Igboland, the many Igbos in Diaspora, be it overseas, or in various parts of Nigeria are known to cluster together through a web of community and town-hall meetings and associations. This fully conforms with the right to freedom of association guaranteed by the Constitution of the Federal republic of Nigeria (1999 as amended). Wherever it is present, an Eze Ndi Igbo or Eze Igbo is a selected, elected or appointed leader and spokesperson for the Igbo community in the particular location. He may not have any legally conferred authority but retains certain level of recognition and influence which is limited to Igbo dwellers in the area. There is no ambition for an Eze Ndi Igbo to ‘rule’ over more than his kith and kin, the Igbos or to extend his ‘territory’. There is really no territory over which an Eze Ndi Igbo supritends. This is universal. The Eze Ndi Igbo, Toronto does not have any particular geo-teritory. So are the many other Ezes Ndi Igbo all over the world.
The position of Ohaneze Ndi Igbo, the pan-Igbo socio-cultural organisation is that the function performed by the Ezes Ndi Igbo as they exist outside Igbo homeland are needed and actually work with and through them to reach the Igbos away from home. But Ohaneze had also pleaded with the diaspora Ezes to change their titles to ‘Onye Ndu Ndi Igbo’ which better translates the role as leader and spokesperson of Igbos in the particular setting. Ohaneze also requested them not to use ‘His Royal Highness’ or ‘His Royal Majesty’ titles in another man’s land, which could affect or hurt the sensibilities of their hosts. The absolute truth is that the Eze Ndi Igbos are on their own and independent of Ohaneze or any form of authority in Igboland. They are not bound to obey Ohaneze. That is the truth. Simply said, they are not linked to the home land Igbo in any form. It is a child of circumstance occasioned by the need for the Igbos to have a focal point while in foreign land.
In Igboland and other parts of the nation, there are Sarkin Hausa and Sarakin Fulani as leaders and spokespersons of the tribesmen and women dwelling in the various parts of Igboland. There is also the Yoruba community which will usually have an association head that are welcome and recognised by the officialdom and authorities, just as such.
It is a well know fact that Igbos thrive on trade and commerce. An essential factor for Igbo progress, wherever, they find themselves, is the goodwill of and peaceable coexistence with their hosts. They need that to ply their trade and carry on their businesses in a conducive atmosphere. No Igbo will deliberately stoke violence because it is their stalls that will be broken into by hoodlums; it is their businesses that will suffer from downtime. Many Igbos hardly find time to participate in political activities because of the demands of their businesses. These are actually the matters the Eze Ndi Igbo should be concerned about for that is the raison d’etre of the Eze Ndi Igbo arrangement.
Against the foregoing, first, there is no way the Eze Ndi Igbo, who simply duties to look after the wellbeing and welfare of his fellow Igbo men and women, and their business interests, who individually are reminded too often that they are ‘settlers’, can ever compete for power and influence with the Lords and rulers of the land who have a much wider span of authority. The day the President of Federal Republic of Nigeria begins to be afraid of powers and influence of the President of Nigerian Bar Association or President of National Union of Teachers, it is either the president lacks understanding of his office and powers, or some sinister power game is at play. Whichever it is, the Deji of Akura need not feel threatened by a mere Eze Ndi Igbo in Akure to merit the conflagration, de-robing, de-throning, and all the brouhaha which the Afenifere, has instead chosen to magnify through a hasty public announcement.
Secondly, if it is established that the Eze Ndi Igbo in Akure was manhandled, and his robes and ‘crown’ removed in humiliation at the palace of Deji of Akure, then it is clearly in breach of the fundamental human rights of the Eze Ndi Igbo which the Nigerian constitution upholds. Specifically, Section 34(1) (a) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999 as amended) states that “Every individual is entitled to respect for the dignity of his person, and accordingly – (a) no person shall be subject to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment.
All should therefore know that Eze Ndi Igbo is protected by the Constitution of Federal Republic of Nigeria which overrides all traditional norms, cultures or all other laws, in fact. While we are in support of a peaceable and speedy resolution of the matter in Akure, it should never remain in doubt that, should those whose fundamental human rights, as stipulated in the Constitution, have been trampled upon, choose to press forward with charges, the laws of the land shall listen to them and such an uncouth behaviour as experienced in the palace of the Deji of Akure truly amounts to self-help in law and an obvious breach of the constitution, and these could have serious repercussions.
Emmanuel Ejinima, a Nigerian diaspora social commentator writes from Forest Gate, London
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ( +44 74 3684 9189)
