Emeka Esogbue

 Music Development in Ibusa: A Personal Account - Part One By Emeka Esogbue "Egwu na sor nwa ogalanya, egwu na sor nwa ogbei" - Chief Ogbogu Okonji   The above quote which literarily translates to "The rich and poor enjoy music" illustrates the relevance of music to man's society irrespective of class, status or situation of the individual. Everyone enjoys music including the dead who the living rolls out drums to mourn.  Like the late Robert Nester Marley (Bob Marley) also said "Music is food to the soul." Gideon Chukwumaliobim Ikenwe in his book, "Akwukwu-Igbo Kingdom Culture: Ancient and Present Perspective" further illustrates this with the saying, "Every culture in this planet earth loves music and has it incorporated in its rituals both in time of sorrow and in time of joy."  He feels that "man's thought is inspired by music to reach out for solace, spiritual growth, and transformation." Music is the psychologica...

  Tribute: Honouring Obi Martha Dunkwu for Her Revolution of Anioma's Omuship As a professional historian who has dedicated the last 29 years of my life to bringing the culture of the Anioma people to the attention of the world, I feel that I was at least somewhat qualified to collaborate closely on Anioma advocacy with the late Omu revolutionist, HRM Obi Martha Dunkwu, the Omu of Anioma, and that is exactly what happened in the end. December 14, 2014, was a routine day for us. At the time, the Anioma Personality of the Year Planning Committee was run by the Anioma Trust publi cation, and I served as its chairman. However, the Committee had already chosen HRM Obi Martha Dunkwu as the recipient of the year's prestigious award, and it allowed me to meet her for the first time. With warm familiarity created, we began to enjoy close relationships subsequently. In 2016, I followed it up with the authorship of a history book on the institution, titled "A Short History of O...

Ibusa: The Multiplicity of Names, Identity Crisis Creation and the Way Forward     - Emeka Esogbue As I write this article, my community does not only remain colonially tied to the British administration but suffers a terrible 'identity sickness.' No one has seen any community with as many conflicting pronunciations, claims, facts, and spellings of its name as my community and a rise by the leadership to invoke a symmetric correspondence among these constituent components and immediately involve the government of the day-to-gazette it seems more difficult a feat to achieve in the present era. It stands to the truth that a name is the first characteristic by which a person, thing, or place is known, and where a name carries crisis, everything soon goes wrong. The identity of a people begins with the name that they bear. Ibusa is located in Delta State and is one of the important communities in the state due to its human resources, population, and strategic location...

  * IBUSA AGE-GRADE (OTU-OGBOR) SYSTEM * 1. Ogbor Umunna (1923-1925) 2. Tax/Dokita (1926-1930) 3. Ukwuu (1931-1933) 4. Aho Mmili Li Umuaka Ibusa (1934-1936) 5. Ikpe Ogboli (1937-1939) 6. Aya Jamani (1930-1942) 7. Aho Nnukor (1943-1945) 8. Aho Chi Ji Eshishe Ji (1946-1948) 9. Umejei Transport (1949-1951) 10. Nche Onwuachi (1952-1954) 11. Town Hall (1955-1957) 12. Nwaezeapu (1958-1959) 13. Independence (1960-1962) 14. Midwest State (1963-1965) 15. Mbido Aya Biafra (1966-1968) 16. Osor Aya (1969-1971) 17. Unor Ogwu (1972-1974) 18. Ego Naira (1975-1977) 19. Kobo e-Dey (1978-1980) 20. Olinzelle Mpukor (1981-1983) 21. Nsogbu CEC Lagos (1984-1986) 22. Nkewa ICDU (1987-1989) 23. Okike Delta State (1990-1992) 24. Obi Mgbodo (1993-1994) 25. Ogbor Obuzor (1995-1997) 26. Minister Olisemeka (1998-2000)

Mungo Park and the River Niger: How Fela Anikulapo-Kuti Threw Nigerian Historical Intelligence off Balance - Emeka Esogbue Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, dubbed the "King of Afrobeat," is arguably the greatest artist in Nigeria. His status as a political activist and Pan Africanist gave him practically all advantages. In this sense, he was a respected sociopolitical voice, and all those who heard him learned something.  Fela spent his whole career as a musician denouncing the injustices that afflicted African society. His vocalization was an outspoken and perhaps even angry denunciation of colonialism, which he saw as the source of the sociocultural, political, and economic difficulties that Africans continue to face. It was this mindset he encountered at Mungo Park, which is currently being adopted by perhaps half of Nigerians. A satirical song by Fela about Mungo Park's purported "discovery" of the River Niger led to a great deal of misconception among Nigerians about t...

Preserving Monuments; Preserving the Tomorrow of our Ibusa - Emeka Esogbue The Ibusa community has a rich history, cultural legacy, values, artwork, architecture, and possible historical sites, but none of them appear to have been preserved. The Ani Oshe is the original location of habitation for the Igbuzo people. There is also the Ani Udo site, which is thought to be the initial settlement of Edini, Ogboli's founder, and is now part of the Ibusa community. In contrast, both hallowed places, spiritually exalted by divine sanction and holding the utmost devotion and entitled to tremendous reverence since they are inviolable, consecrated, and devoted to sanctity as the oldest Igbuzo points of settlement, are utterly neglected. The late Philip Ngozi Kwusike photographed and reported on the Ani Oshe, Umejei's first home, where his pot of charm was said to have dropped, leading to the foundation of the Igbuzo settlement, a few years ago, and readers were shocked to discover that th...

 You Have Elevated Anioma Educationally: Anioma Watch Rejoices With Prof Egwunyenga on His Birthday Anioma Watch, the socio-cultural Organization of the Anioma people of Delta State, Nigeria felicitates with Prof Andy Egwunyenga on his birthday. We recall that Prof Egwunyenga was one of the Anioma leaders who consented to chair our first Annual Anioma Lecture program in 2023, as well as providing us with the appropriate assistance at the time. Beyond that, Prof Egwunyenga, as Vice-Chancellor of Delta State University, has elevated the Anioma man's educational hope, belief, and promises in his administration of the university, and we are proud to stand with him on this occasion. With the institute's enhanced academic standards and the University Vice-Chancellor's affiliation with the youths, the Anioma people may lift their heads high in acknowledgment of their shared achievements. We are glad that our region has contributed an indigene of his caliber to the world of scholar...

 Leo Nkeaka, an Ibusa Politician, Donates N2 Million to Constituents - Emeka Esogbue  In a recent act of altruism, prominent Ibusa Politician, Businessman, and Estate Realtor, Hon. Leo Nkeaka, on Tuesday, gave away money to 100 people in Ward 8 of the Umueze Quarters of the Ibusa community, totaling approximately two million naira. When PEN MASTER contacted Hon. Nkeaka, also referred to as "Ohamadike" in the community, he stated, "The move is to support our people and alleviate the level of suffering in our society." "I still give back to the underprivileged members of our society, widows, the impoverished, the needy, and my people," he said. It was further learnt that the philanthropic initiative started as far back as 2007 when he contested and won the councilorship election in the community, a position he held until 2011, with the initiative lasting for about 17 years now.  Hon Leo Nkeaka, one of the most popular youth figures in politics from the commu...