Emeka Esogbue

  Famous Ibusa Family: The Historical Wealth of the Chigbue By Emeka Esogbue The story of the Chigbue family shows that from time immemorial, the Ibusa community is known to be rich in human resources. The Isieke family especially, to which this author ancestrally belongs, connected by the long, thin piece of land and divided by the narrow path called "Isieke High Street", is known for the great number of men and women famoused for achievements in their particular fields.  On the other hand, as typical of most  African societies, the people of Ibusa are rarely known to document biographies, autobiographies or provide documented family histories for the study of such families hence, the greater part of this story is derived from oral sources available to the author. The Chigbue family of Isieke in Umuekea Quarters of Ibusa enjoys fame within and outside the community. However, like the Ajufo family of Umuehea of the same community, the Chigbue family seems more to many a '...

 Omuship in Ibusa: The Crisis and End of a Beautiful Traditional Phase - Emeka Esogbue Since foundation, Omuship has always been the beauty of the Anioma people. The institution reigned in several parts of Anioma particularly the Enuani and Igbodo, a community of the Ika people. The presence of the institution also extended to Onitsha and Ogbaru, two other Anioma communities outside the present Delta State where it was also in place. In Onitsha, Omu Nwagboka Egwuata, the Onye Isi Ikporo of Onitsha who died in 1886 was the last known Omu of the community. For some unclear reasons, the Onitsha traditional leadership could not get a successor to the once viable throne which ended the institution. Omu Okwei was a well-known Omu of Osomari, another settlement of Anioma lineage.  The Anioma historians described her as a powerful female merchant of her time which though was not strange considering that the Omu stayed in charge of markets and were spiritually held as the 'goddess of t...

 OMU MARTHA DUNKWU SET TO ESTABLISH CENTRE FOR OMUSHIP IN OKPANAM. The Omu of Okpanam/Anioma, HRM Obi Dr Martha Dunkwu has made her intention known to institute 'Centre for Omu in Anioma Nation'.  Please read the below:  I must continue to commend and appreciate our own Anioma Historian, Emeka Esogbue for his patriotism to Anioma Nation and his devotion to the Omu Institution, in particular, the book he wrote on Omuship. I have humbly requested Emeka Esogbue to do a second comprehensive book that will be a reference point to omuship. About two to three pages will be devoted to each Omu from our Anioma, interviews from experienced elders who are conversant with Omuship and Omu-friendly Traditional Rulers will also feature in the proposed Omu history book. Already, he is in touch with researchers from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka and is trying to reach out to researchers at the Cambridge University, England and University of London. At the moment, I am trying to regist...

 ANIWALO: ONE PIECE OF LAND, CONTESTED BY THREE ANIOMA COMMUNITIES  By Emeka Esogbue Have you heard of Aniwalo, properly pronounced as "Ani-Nwalo?" The "Aniwalo" name defines "The Land of the Child of Alo" yet, the children of the Alo that should own the land are not known giving rise to the current conflict. It is for this reason that a number of three Anioma communities are currently at loggerheads over the ownership of the land of the Child of Alo - Aniwalo. However, claims of ownership are stronger between Akwukwu-Igbo and Illah, two neighbouring communities that now seek the judgement of the court to determine the rightful owner. By this judicial venture, Ezi Kingdom, the third claimant has gone out of the full picture. Information available to Pen Master shows Aniwalo to be a large portion of land that geographically connects Illah to Akwukwu-Igbo community. It was originally a camp that acted as a temporary accommodation with tents and other makeshi...

 Omuship in Ibusa: The Crisis and End of a Beautiful Traditional Phase - Emeka Esogbue Since foundation, Omuship has always been the beauty of the Anioma people. The institution reigned in several parts of Anioma particularly the Enuani and Igbodo, a community of the Ika people. The presence of the institution also extended to Onitsha and Ogbaru, two other Anioma communities outside the present Delta State where it was also in place. In Onitsha, Omu Nwagboka Egwuata, the Onye Isi Ikporo of Onitsha who died in 1886 was the last known Omu of the community. For some unclear reasons, the Onitsha traditional leadership could not get a successor to the once viable throne which ended the institution. Omu Okwei was a well-known Omu of Osomari, another settlement of Anioma lineage.  The Anioma historians described her as a powerful female merchant of her time which though was not strange considering that the Omu stayed in charge of markets and were spiritually held as the 'goddess of t...

 Famous Ibusa Family: The Historical Wealth of the Chigbue By Emeka Esogbue (Pen Master) The story of the Chigbue family shows that from time immemorial, the Ibusa community is known to be rich in human resources. The Isieke family especially, to which this author ancestrally belongs, connected by the long, thin piece of land and divided by the narrow path called "Isieke High Street", is known for the great number of men and women famoused for achievements in their particular fields.  On the other hand, as typical of most  African societies, the people of Ibusa are rarely known to document biographies, autobiographies or provide documented family histories for the study of such families hence, the greater part of this story is derived from oral sources available to the author. The Chigbue family of Isieke in Umuekea Quarters of Ibusa enjoys fame within and outside the community. However, like the Ajufo family of Umuehea of the same community, the Chigbue family seems more...

 "Africans Did Not Resist Colonialism": In Response to Ken Henshaw - Emeka Esogbue It is wrong, misleading and a clear absence of knowledge of African colonial history to avouch that Africans have no culture of resistance and to go ahead to ignorantly spread the implication to be the reason slave trade lasted for 400 years without resistance and colonialism lasting 200 years without resistance. Mr. Ken Henshaw never demonstrated clear sense of history of the resistance to slave trade and imperialism by Africans. Slave trade and colonialism are to be separated from oppressive tendencies reasoned in the Nigerian type of democracy. This was what he failed to consider. The former involves foreign relations while the latter is about internal relations - foreign oppression and internal oppression differentially. In 1854, in the Tokolor Empire of Senegal, Umar raised thousands of army against the French. Although he was killed in the battle of Medina in 1684, he had resisted the Fre...

 BETWEEN AWASIA AND NWANZE VERSIONS: A CRITICAL VIEW OF THE ORIGIN OF OKO CLAN OF DELTA STATE By Emeka Esogbue (Pen Master) The Oko clan of today, geographically situated in Oshimili South Local Government Area of Delta State, is one of the Anioma communities with its history rarely in print or in public assessment for researchers interested in the history of the clan to take scholarly advantage of, amounting to controversies, one of which is that which raged between both analysts of clan as discoursed in this piece. The people are located close to Asaba and Ibusa that are neighbouring communities but Odifulu shares boundary with Abala-Oshimili in Ndokwa East. The Oko people are riverine, lying exactly on the mouth of  the River Niger and they speak Enuani version of Igbo being a dialectic categorization of Asaba, Ibusa and Akwukwu-Igbo communities in near exactness. All the Oko communities are ancestrally related and also share homogeneous culture in every respect.  Alth...