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Find Out About Nimo

When the Hummingbird started the current series on Nimocentric cultural values and symbols, I did hint that by the time we are done with the subjects involved and all the issues that would be thrown up along the way, together, we would have been able to write/rewrite the history of Nimo. Soon after that, Oliibie encouragingly stepped forward to help research some of the issues raised in Nimo. Taking cognizance of the above premise and in doing my treatise on Ibu Nkwu nwadiana and Nzeamalu,I spoke of my years of absence from Nimo and asked for response to any errors of omission and commission. Happily, Ik Gbulie like Oliibie, stepped forward to decently fill-in the gaps.In today’s presentation, we shall be examining Uta Ebo-na-Ebo. Ebo in a literal sense means village.
In Nimo, there are a total of twenty-eight (28) villages broken down as follows among the four (4) quarters in order of seniority:

　　　　
Did you see Uruegbe in the above list? Of course not! This is because it was fully ‘assimilated’ by Uruokpalabani unlike Uruezebo na-Uruanyiugani and Uruokpolanu -na-Umuanwua which still retained their partial identities in the amalgamation or union. Anyway, Uta Ebo -na-Ebo alias village local festivals in Nimo come up for a reason and in a season. Again, years of my absence in Nimo have taken all this information away, but I must tell you that some are celebrated in dry, wet, or harmattan season in the respective villages in honor of the local deities which each Ebo worships. Igbos are strongly making claims to the effect that they are Jewish descendants of the Gad lineage who begat Eri, supposedly the father of Umueri, Aguleri, Oraeri and Umunri whose offspring now spread to all the nooks and corners of Igbo land and even beyond. For this reason, I think that these deities in Nimo seemed to me like the wooden editions of carved images the ancient Biblical Jews made for themselves when Moses left them in care of Joshua to get the Ten Commandments on the mountain.

Nimo town has its major general festivals (Ede oye, et cetra) but the villages also have theirs too. Let us take the celebration of ‘Ihe Udo’ of Uruokokwe for an example. Once fixed and announced with the local gong and drum, the chief priest (Ezemuo) and other celebrants begin a period of flesh mortification in readiness for this big event. Male children, especially those who have been initiated into the ‘mmmanwu cult’, begin to wave ‘agu-muo’ in the air at nights while the adult female folks beautify themselves, the shrines and the evil forest for this event. For some curious reasons, the music of choice on the D-day for Uruokokwe has always been ‘abia’ in which the odd-looking chief priest would dance around the Okokwe Square with the statue of the Shrine on his shoulder. It would be recalled that I pointed out on my treatise on Nzeamalu that Abia is basically played at funerals especially an Nze or Dike. But for Urukokwe, it is different. ‘Igba Abia na Udo’ is a popular slang in Obodo okolo.

Other events at this occasion are the killing of, sometimes by strangling of lambs, fowls, goats, or cows by the devout worshippers, cooking of porridge yams, serving of fresh palm-wine of all sorts, breaking of kolanuts and offerings of all these as sacrifices to the god who they claim protects them.

The activities marking this event could last as long as 4-8 market days. But usually on the first two days, there would displays of masquerades of strength (Ekeudo) which, in a spirit of healthy rivalry flog each other with strong seasoned native canes. Whoever wins is challenged to compete again at the next or an upcoming local festival village elsewhere until they go full circle.

During our times, we had very popular and reigning kingpins (Ikeudo) like that of Nwoye-nwa, Zorrow for Ejoor Okochi, Ononoliono for Joseph Igboka, et cetra.

A contribution from the Nest of the Hummingbird

Nimo Culture: Ime eme mmuo, Ichiechichi – na – Ichieze

The taking of chieftaincy titles (Ichi echichi) and getting initiated into cultural cults (Ime emem muo) are part and parcel of Nimo cultural values, norms and symbols except that the latter seems older than the former in the Hummingbird’s reckoning.

Whereas cultural cult membership is more of status symbols, acquisition or conferment of chieftaincy title on an indigene or otherwise – a prerogative of the sitting traditional ruler of Nimo – is supposed to be based on the meritorious standing of the conferee in the base community. The meeting point between cult title and chieftaincy title lies in their order of precedence. To be conferred with a chieftaincy title, one must have attained the highest point of cult membership (Ozo) which begins with the following major native

Ritualistic stages:

• Ibu Amanwulu -Primary stage
• Isa Ekwu – Secondary stage
• Igbubi Alo-Tertiary 1
• Ichi Ozo – Tertiary 11

Every quarter of Nimo have their own binding rules and to begin any of these processes, an aspirant found eligible (after preliminary initiation screening exercise) to be admitted into any of the above cult groups needs to meet with the head of each group (Ndisiokolo or Onyeisi Ndi Amanwulu, Onyeisi Ndiekwu, Onyeisi NdiOzo, Onye Isi NdiAlo) of his locality in order to get a listing of all the materials and financial involvements, if it is something he can afford, he would then be served a notice of when to start this capital-intensive series of other minor events and this may take several native days, as the case maybe. ‘Ichi Ozo’ ceremony is for the men’s fraternity while ‘Ichi Iyom’ is the female gender.

Ndiekwu and Ndiozo which are considered elitist groups form the core of the NdiNze-Nimo grouping.

Conferment of a title by Nimo community begins with the Chieftaincy Council and the Owelle cabinet and the recommended candidates receive a nod from the national Executive Council before the sitting Owelle-Nimo confers the title, being according to the government-approved Nimo Chieftancy rules and orders.

As for the office of the Owelle himself, this office has mutually transformed lately from SUCCESSION to ROTATION among the four quarters of Nimo in order of seniority – EtitiNimo, Ifiteani, Egbengwu, and Ifitenu after several generations or years of trading carrots for sticks. If NdiNimo finds any quarter choice for an Owelle acceptable in character, influence, and affluence, that person receives the crown and the staff of office from the State Government Executive of the day. The present reigning Owelle-Nimo hails from EtitiNimo.

Nimo History

Let us begin this edition of our continued dialogue on ‘Nimo History’ with the following two pieces of verifiable information as we try as much as possible to make some sense out of them:

According to Chief B.O Omile in his piece,’Nimo, My Town’ (Nimo Family Times 2004), the eponymous father of Umuowelle lineage (Nimo, Abagana, Abba and Eziowelle) was known as ‘Owelle’. It is said that Nimo is the ‘diokpala’, a point Eziowelle still disputes till date.

On the other hand, late Chief Akpatalu of Uruolioke, much older than B.O. (then touted as the oldest man as of 1986 in Nimo) shared with the Hummingbird (Recorded Personal Communication, 1986) claimed that the real father of Nimo was ‘Owe’ and his wife was ‘Imo’. By the way, there is a certain farm area in Nimo territory known as ‘Owe’, and we can extrapolate from this fact that, perhaps ‘Owelle’ probably got its name from this ‘Owe’ just as ‘Imo’ gave rise to ‘Nimo’. With these derivations, their son was named ‘Nimo Owelle’ as first and last names respectively.

Chief B.O then went on to say that Owelle-Nimo then had four children namely Okpaladinwenu (Etiti-Nimo), Ezenebo (Ifiteani), Ojideleke (Egbengwu) and Ezeabani (Ifitenu). These off springs by virtue of their settlement locations then constituted the administrative quarters of Nimo. Each had traditional rulers (NdiEze) assisted by NdIsiokolo and NdiEkwu-na-NdiNze namely:

• Analiukwu (Egbengwu),
• Ibekwe (Egbengwu),
• Achuamaokwa Onyiuke (Ifitenu),
• Aro Ezeamii (Ifiteani), Obiwelozo(Ifiteani),
• Akunatu Nwaelom (Etiti-Nimo), and Okafor Oji Agbakwuogu (Etiti-Nimo).

It was actually an unnamed white man who settled at Oliakwukwo area of Nimo that requested NdiNimo to send a community leader to be crowned a Warrant chief for the entire town and this person turned out to be Chief Analiukwu (the forefather of the present generation of the Ibida family of Egebengwu). Prior to being picked as the Owelle of Nimo (Zero), he had already endeared himself to this white man with free supplies of rare oranges, a tradition continued with his son, Muoka who SUCCEEDED him after his death. Unfortunately, this white man had a knack for indiscriminate shooting of cows and livestock which angered Ndi Nimo. Rather than taking the path of open confrontation, they advisedly resorted to the subtle use of native charms on this white man. A worst-case scenario resulted when Muoka was proven to have sent poisoned oranges to the white man! He went to jail for this and Chief Ibekwe was chosen to act as the interim Owelle during Muoka’s incarceration. However, the use of charms by the NdiNimo and Muoka’s poisoning were said to have culminated in the eventual un-ceremonial departure of the white man from Nimo. After serving out his term, Muoka could not reclaim his Owelle stool being, as it were, an ex-convict. It was also decreed by the quarter chiefs that only one person could function as the Owelle of Nimo at any one time.

Above events finally led to the rise of Achuamaokwa Onyiuke to the status of the new substantive Warrant chief and of course, the Owelle of Nimo (One).The other chiefs now served as associate adjudicators in the Nimo Native Court newly established by the then Colonial administration. Achuamaokwa continued with Analiukwu’s military exploits and territorial ambitions that led to the sacking and assimilation of the peoples and lands of NdiOwa, NkeOkpo, Ozalla, NdiEzike, among a few remaining others.

Nearing the end of his tenure, the much-admired but aging Achuamaokwa began to fiddle with the idea of perpetual stool of the Owelle (Obi Okputolokpu). Sensing potential opposition from other quarter chiefs and to ensure he actualized this ambition in his lifetime, Achuamaokwa stepped aside from his throne thereby paving way for the ascension of or SUCCESSION by his son, Michael Muoyekwu Onyiuke to the throne of Owelle (Two). Let us share a hypothesis on this: The Hummingbird reckons that this concept of ‘perpetual succession’ first initiated by Analiukwu (but later overturned by Nimo Quarter chiefs) may have been informed by both parties’ claims to filial linkage to the royal ‘Umunri’ clan via the Tabansi family. Recall that it is now becoming almost obvious that ‘Umunri’ and ‘Umueri’ clans were the original descendants of Eri, the acclaimed Biblical father of Ndigbo.

Be that as it may, Chief Michael Onyiuke, Owelle of Nimo (Two) joined his forefathers in 1937 only to be SUCEEDED by his brother, Owelle Alfred Nkwocha Onyiuke, an experienced and a foremost Minister of Local Government in the then Eastern Nigeria(1957-1959). Nkwocha continued in his late father’s footsteps by using his government connection along with a supportive NBS Secretary-General and Cabinet chiefs in attracting most of the modern amenities we see today in Nimo. This Owelle of Nimo (Three), a paramount chief and a man for all seasons went the way of all flesh in 1983 but not without officially returning the contentious Nimo Chieftancy back to Nimo since Achuamaokwa. With this historic decision, he became the father of ROTATIONAL leadership in Nimo, a legacy the current Owelle of Nimo (Four), Chief J.C Okafor-Agilo is now a beneficiary for Etiti-Nimo.

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