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Assault On Ijebu Agemo Statue

Something like a desecration of the culture and the definition of the Ijebu people of Nigeria occurred last weekend. And the entire Ijebu nation is understandably alarmed and angry, especially now that the next Agemo Festival is fast approaching. But, typical of their usually calm selves, the Ijebu have held their reactions in check. To know the extent of the assault on the Agemo, or Alagemo statue on the average Ijebu citizen, just imagine how nations with iconic emblems would react. The statue is a few yards from the Obanta cenotaph and less than 10 minutes’ walk from the Awujale Palace, in the centre of Ijebu Ode, headquarters of the Ijebu nation. Think of the reactions of Americans, the British, the French and indigenes of Lagos if there was a violation on iconic landmarks, like Statue of Liberty on Staten Island, Big Ben Clock in London, Eiffel Tower in Paris and the “Orisha Meta” statues on the drive-in from Ogun State into Lagos Metropolis. This is not about the spiritual potency, or otherwise, of the Agemo deity that the statue represents, or whether Moslems and Christians, who never assaulted the statue, approve or disapprove of the spiritual essence of the Agemo deity. But Nigerians should be wary of spreading the outlandish speculation that adherents of some other religions provided the inspiration for the assault. But until Jeremiah Okoye’s confession is made public, everyone should keep their fingers crossed. Nigeria is a constitutionally secular country and every Nigerian is allowed to practise any religion he may choose, be it Islam, Christianity or other religions. In the eye of the law, no religion is superior or inferior to any of the others, no matter the sentiment of adherents of any of the religions. So, one hopes that those who assaulted the statue, which is not a shrine anyway, are not making any religious statement by their action. Apart from being a breach of the Constitution, it can spark religious violence, which nobody wants. Section 38(1) of the Constitution provides that “Every person shall be entitled to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, including freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom… to manifest and propagate his religion or belief in worship, teaching, practice and observance.” Legend says that the Agemo deity, not the statue, accompanied the earliest waves of the Ijebus on their migration from Waddai to Ijebu Ode. Ijebu historians need to find out more about Waddai and bring news and photographs of their home country to the Ijebus. Today, there are claims that Waddai, a historical African Kingdom, with headquarters in Abeche, is in Quaddai Prefecture, east of Lake Chad within the Chad Republic, but west of South Sudan’s Darfur, to which it was subordinate, according to some historical records. Because the Republic of Chad and South Sudan share common borders, the Waddai people may have been split on both sides of the common border of the two countries. At the 1884-1885 Berlin Conference, European powers unilaterally divvied African nations into two or more and merged them with others in the artificial countries they created. The rest of the Yoruba, who claim that their progenitor, Oduduwa, migrated from Mecca in Saudi Arabia, should go back to trace and connect with their origin. But of course, there is another claim, or myth, that Oduduwa descended from the sky. But one thing is crystal clear. The unifying purpose of the Agemo deity and its festival to the Ijebu is signposted by the annual convergence from across Ijebuland of the 16 (or 17) Agemo priests, some of whom are kings in their own rights, on Ijebu Ode. Agemo Alofe comes from Ijesa-Ijebu, which claims to be part of Remoland, some parts of which deny being Ijebu. And Agemo Ogegbo, whose base is outside Ogun State, comes all the way from Ibowon, in Epe Division of Lagos State. The dangerous theory that the young man, Jeremiah Kosesochi Nwoke, a native of Abakaliki, in Ebonyi State, who was pinned down unconscious by the fallen statue, may be on an Igbo mission to assault the sensibilities of the Ijebu may be far-fetched. It should be treated with a pinch of salt. Nigerians should be slow to draw such conclusions so early because of the implications for the extremely divided situation of Nigeria’s politics today. Today, the Igbo are not exactly on a good run with their Yoruba compatriots of South-West Nigeria. Nigeria is sitting on a political tinderbox and anything could spark off violence, though the Ijebu are known to be tolerant of all religions and accommodating of all peoples. Everything should be done to maintain the albeit fragile inter-ethnic harmony in Nigeria. You will observe that the leadership of the Ijebu nation has refrained from making any negative statement on the matter. Though they are not unaware of what has happened or the extent or weight of its implications. The idea must be to avoid inciting the youths, who may take laws into their hands by physically assaulting individuals that really have nothing to do with the crime. Though one may understand the ordinary Ijebu citizens who have openly expressed disgust at the attempt to steal the statue. And those who suggest that Ohaneze Ndigbo should apologise to the Ijebu nation on behalf of the Igbo nation need to prove that the utterly irresponsible thieves, who embarked on this foolish mission, were sent by the Igbo nation. By the way, the family of the current Awujale of Ijebuland has in-laws from Onitsha, Anambra State. In any case, when Okoye begins to sing for the police, no one should be surprised if some Yoruba, or even Ijebu, are members of his gang. Nigerians only remember their tribe when playing politics. When money is involved, all ethnic considerations fizzle out, and everyone becomes momentarily united. Reports indicate that after Agemo priests, invited to the crime scene, were able to perform some rites to cast away the spell on bedraggled Nwoke, he woke up. The police then arrested and took him to their station, with the spanners, screwdrivers, handsaws and other hardware used for the premeditated assault. Nwoke, and his allies, probably just wanted to steal and sell the statue to those who could melt and convert it to jewellery or household items. But they obviously went too far. Think of someone stealing an Ikenga in Igboland. But you hear tales of wayward Nigerians who remove manhole covers from roads and latches from bridges, including those of the Second Niger Bridge even before it was officially dedicated, and streetlight poles to make cutlery. Some Nigerians have been caught knocking down pillars and removing the roofing sheets of newly built houses in isolated building sites to sell. Yet some bolder ones go to steal metal gates or railings of houses in residential areas. The criminals may just be misguided fellows who thought they saw an opportunity to make easy money. It may also be that the familiarity of the culprit(s) with the Ijebu bred the contempt for such a culturally symbolic emblem. But whatever happens, the law must be allowed to run its course. Even though the thieves could not successfully take the statue away, they must at least answer for the breach and damage done to it.

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