Don't Drag Me into the Obsession that Issele-Uku and Anioma are Monolithic or Only Benin Creations, Ifenna Azomani, Writer of History and Convener of Nri Descendants Conference - Part Two

Interview with Pen Master (Emeka Esogbue)

 ...continue from Part One

Don't Drag Me into the Obsession that Issele-Uku and Anioma are Monolithic or Only Benin Creations, Ifenna Azomani, Writer of History and Convener of Nri Descendants Conference - Part Two

Pen Master: Shouldn’t one wonder why Benin established its monarchical system in a society already in existence and thriving?

Azomani: The whole essence of establishing the Benin kind of monarchy in Issele-Uku was to establish the Benin strict kind of monarchy but to a large extent, I don’t think that this was achieved even with Obi Oligbo because there was still so much of the republican way of life. This republican way of life came with the migrants from Nri who had been in the area before the Benin migrants came. So, while that monarchical system was in place, Benin was also looking for the opportunity to strengthen its hold. That opportunity came following the death of Obi Odia in about 1730 and the Heir Apparent who was sent to Benin for training died mysteriously and it became an opportunity for Benin to install Obi Odia, the second son of Oba Akenzua I as the Obi of Issele-Uku. The objective was now to establish the Benin monarchical system and that happened in 1730. The implication was that it was bloody because Obi Odia was sent to Issele-Uku with 3 Brigade of soldiers with the aim of quelling any opposition. Even at that, there was still a conflict between monarchy and Okpala system of rule and administration. As we speak today, some people will give you a long list of monarchs but many of us know that the monarchy started under Obi Oligbo and that is what can be proved. Any other claim can hardly be substantiated. Nobody has a total claim of history because it evolves over time. One of the things that happened after the imposition of Obi Ediai in 1730 was the ‘strict’ ‘Beninization’ of cultures and customs in Issele-Uku and this happened with so many conflicts. With his coming, towns like Issele-Mkpitime and Issele-Azagba migrated from Issele-Uku to found new towns because of the fierce and harsh systems that came with the Obi Ediai reign. Issele-Mkpitime will tell you that they migrated from Issele-Uku when Obi Ada came. That Obi Ada was Obi Ediai because he came with ada (traditional staff of office) from Benin. Since 1730 when that reign was established, the Issele-Uku rulers have been the descendants of Obi Ediai, the second son of Oba Akenzua I of Benin. You can see the depth of Benin's influence on Issele-Uku.

Pen Master: Now, still on the problem of assigning Anioma history to a single ethnic group…

Azomani: …Yes, on this monolithic migration theory from Benin, Obi Osemene at the time, was trying to say that Ogboli-Issele-Uku came from Benin but this is not true. Ogboli-Issele-Uku, which is Agidi came from Nri. This is all part of creating hegemonic design. The Benin influence in Ogboli came much later through the proliferation of titles and settlements and intermarriage.     

Pen Master: Pastor Azomani, let us move away from the matters of history. Insecurity is high in your Issele-Uku community and your people recently resorted to traditional means to curtail it. What do you think has worsened this insecurity in the past few months?

Azomani: The Issele-Uku people are known for their hospitality and welcoming approach to visitors which appears to be taken advantage of by criminal-minded people to perpetuate crime and I also believe that our community life is fast losing its values. There were ways by which these communities protected themselves and came together to confront common enemies and challenges. All of these became erosive overtime. Security is not a one-person business but collective efforts and I believe strongly in community policing; community people coming together because there were ways by which community people came together to defend themselves from eternal influences or challenges. I think it is time to go back to those ways and strategies that can be found in our traditions and customs. This is where the leadership at all levels should come together to appreciate the fact that when they work together, they can achieve better results. For example, there is a traditional structure, there is the Obi and there is the Izu Ani, there are Diokpas of their respective villages. Everyone answers and knows who they answer to. I believe that if our traditional system is allowed to function as it used to be, some of these security challenges will be dealt with but basically, I think the community has to be more informed and involved. We need to do a lot of work together. If you see something, say something. We should cooperate at different levels because security is everyone’s business. Thank you, Pen Master.        

Pen Master: Pastor Ifenna Azomani, this time, let us look at the political side of your community. How much political gains has your Issele-Uku made from your political representatives in recent times?

Azomani: I think our representatives are doing their best under the present circumstances. Though politics is what politicians do, under this circumstance, they are doing their best. But can they do better? Yes! Can they bring dividends of democracy and representation? Yes, they can do better. Even though they have done their best, they can do more to represent their people. They can deal with the issues of poverty in the lives of the people because ignorance, disease and poverty are the biggest problems of man. It lies with them to ensure that under their representation, the people in darkness see great light. Yes, they may be seeing some light now, but the people can see greater light. They can do more in terms of representatives and attract the dividends of representative governance to Issele-Uku. But have they done well? Yes, but they can do more.     

Pen Master: One might think that not many books are available on Issele-Uku history though I have read you and Prince Chris Afumata Akeh-Osu thoroughly. Why are there not too many attempts in documenting the history of your people?

Azomani: Why there are not too many attempts to document the history of our people is still part of the problem of the black man. Somebody said if you want to hide something from a black man, you put in a book. These days, people don’t want to read particularly when the internet or social media is there and people Google and read what they want to read or listen to anything. I think that kudos must be given to people who have the time to sit down, research and write history. We will continue to build. The problem is that our people hardly read books. And when you hardly read, anything that anybody puts out there becomes the narrative until you can proffer another worthy narrative. Yes, I commend Akeh-Osu for his beautiful articulation of Issele-Uku history. He has done very well because it is very beautiful work. But like I said before, there are many sides to a story, many sides to a coin. The descendants of Akeh-Osu are Benin and he wrote as much as he wrote with a Benin mindset. Now, my own descendants are Nri and as much as possible, we told our story because for a very long time the story accepted is that the Benin came and did this and that and if I didn’t write my own piece, you would not know about Ani Isi Enwei. There is a reason why Ani Isi Enwei is the oldest in Issele-Uku and that is a story you will never find. If I didn’t write my own piece, you would not know that the proliferation of Benin titles in Issele-Uku began in 1730. For example, my own ancestor, Osodi Izomo became the first Osodi of Issele-Uku so there was no Osodi, an important title in Issele-Uku until 1730. That was my ancestor. 

Pen Master: I should curiously ask to know any implication of Benin monarchical system on the Issele-Uku society at the time. 

Azomani: One of the things Obi Ediai did when he came here was the proliferation of Benin titles. Of course, under the monarchical system, titles don’t get scarce. The Oba or Obi can sit down and manufacture titles and put anybody there but we also have a historical fact that there are seven original titles in Issele-Uku and other ones are creations over time but this is a discussion for another time. Interest is another thing. 

Pen Master: Maybe this is the reason the importance of historical documentation should be understood to Issele-Uku

Azomani: (Interjects) 

Pen Master, if somebody comes tomorrow and wants to write the Igala account, how the Yorubas are coming to Issele-Uku, or how the Hausas are coming because Issele-Uku is cosmopolitan community with thriving Yoruba and Hausa communities, he will not attribute everyone to a single group. All kinds of people are there now and you cannot say that over time, these ones cannot write their history as to how they came. At the end of the day, you cannot say they all came from Benin. People have the way they came and how they came. What I don’t want to be dragged into is the obsession that Issele-Uku, or Anioma has a monolithic history. Benin founded or created it or that the Oba of Benin decreed it into existence. My dear brother; empires are not built from up to down. They are built from down to up. There are some gaps particularly in that Benin claims but I am not here to dwell on that. If you come to Issele-Uku, people know who is who. 

Pen Master: Looking at the Benin dominance as you make it seem here, are there any historical gains for Enwei and his Ogboli people in this new political arrangement? Pastor Azomani, please answer this question in all sincerity.

Azomani: There is a reason why the Ogboli people are the people who crown the Obi. Until the Onishe crowns the Obi, he cannot become the Obi. Who does that? It is the Ogboli people in Issele-Uku and there is a reason why it is done. There is also reason in Enuani, we say “Onihea ka Eze” or “Onishe ka Eze” (Onishe is greater than the King). Even though some funny people try to distort it to “Onishe na eke Eze.” ‘Onishe adia ke Eze, ona echi be Eze” (the Onishe crowns the King). And because he crowns the king, we say he is greater than the king. But these things are part of evolvements and in all of these, you see some hegemonic design for dominance and influence peddling. Basically, people’s history is better told by them. Like us in Ogboli, there is a reason why the Onishe is the kingmaker. And because he is the Onishe, there are certain rights Ogboli people enjoy to the exclusion of every other village in Issele-Uku. For example, the Onishe of Issele-Uku does not remove his cap to greet the Obi and that right does not only apply to him. It applies to every Ogboli person who is from Ogboli-Issele-Uku even though some people are trying to be funny about it now. The Onishe does not kneel down to greet the Obi. That’s why we say in our culture that “Onishe bu okwusi otor kene eze.” “Onishe hu nete, eze agbaa nkiri” All these are accolades and ways of acknowledging the importance of the Onishe title. The Onishe or his descendants cannot hold the tray for the Obi to break the kola nut. The Onishe and Ogboli people do not do manual labour in the labour. Others can do it but not the Ogboli people. It is not the customs but you see, times are changing. The thinking is why will the Onishe not remove his cap. We are the ones crowning you. We cannot finish crowning you and still remove our cap to greet you. 

Pen Master: Are there a few more things people don’t know about you?

Azomani: Well, I live a simple life as much as possible and like I told you earlier, I am a lawyer. My late father was a lawyer who rose to become a High Court judge in the old Bendel State. He retired and came back home then rose through the traditional ranks to become the Onishe of Issele-Uku and to the glory of God he was the one who crowned Obi Nduka, the current Obi of Issele-Uku in 2016. About me, I love education, I love to acquire knowledge. I am also an ordained Minister, a part of the body of clergy and as a servant of God, I am also on the pulpit. By the grace of God, I will soon be a PhD holder in Law to make it 6 academic degrees in all, out of which two are masters. I have a Master’s degree in Business Administration and M.BA in Business administration from the university of Benin in the year 2000. I have LL.M in Law. Many people don’t also know that I didn’t start my life as a lawyer. My first degree was in Botany (Plant Science) so I am close to nature and also an agriculturalist. I farm and get involved in environmental issues because of my background. I like to seek and impart knowledge. I research and study. I write books outside history and have actually authored religious books. By the grace of God, I have authored over 25 books on different Christian subject. Some of my books are bestsellers. You can call me a man of many parts. Yes, I am. I serve humanity with integrity by the grace of God. 

Pen Master: How was growing up for you? 

Azomani: Yeah! Growing up was a very wonderful experience and thank God for the kind of parents I had. My father was a strict disciplinarian, a man who paid so much attention to details. He was a no sense man and non-compromising and until he transited in 2018, he was a disciplinarian to the core. Once he believed in a cause, he followed it to the end. He raised us by the hand, and strict rules and I thank God for that kind of training he gave us. If I am able to achieve anything today, I attribute more than 80% of those achievements to my father. He was a man who would instill into his children the value of hard work, discipline and able to stand on one’s ground. It doesn’t matter who is in the opposition. Once you are convinced, stand by it and don’t be swayed by anything in the wind. There was no room in my father’s arrangement to pamper anybody. He was strict to the core and not afraid to tell truth to power or anybody. My father could dare anybody in the face and tell you as it is. When you see my father, what you see, is what you get. And that value is what has helped to mold me and his children into what we are today. That “never say die’ spirit of the Azomanis is there which of course, if you come to Issele-Uku and inquire, they know about the Azomani spirit. Everybody knows it. We have integrity, and honour and we have a clan of very proud people because of the spirit we have with us

Pen Master: Any regrets in life for you?

Azomani: (Laughs) Yeah! Do I really have any regret in life? No, I am happy about the family I am born into. I am happy about the parents I have. I am happy about the siblings I have. I am happy to belong to the Ogboli community in Issele-Uku. Yes, if there is any regret, that is about not becoming a lawyer early enough. Being a lawyer was a natural calling and that was what I would have done instead of going into the sciences but more importantly, I still became a lawyer much later in life and I am almost going to be a PhD holder in couple of months and as the grace of God leads. I am happy serving the Lord as a Minister in his house and that is the greatest thing anyone would wish for. So, do I have any regret? No. I think I am happy, and fulfilled about how my life has turned out. Yes, delay is not denial but fundamentally, I think it has been good for me. I have every reason to thank God for all the grace and mercies over my life.  

Pen Master: Again, Pastor Ifenna Azomani, I must thank you very much sir, for your time. 

Azomani: Thank you very much, Pen Master for this opportunity to talk to you. God bless you.