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Reminiscence

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Heritage
Oba Ovonramwen n'Ogbaisi
By Leonard Oronsaye

Monday 24th June, 2024

Born Idugbowa to Oba Adolor in the 1850s or thereabouts, as the first son of the Oba, he bore the appellation 'Okoo n'Okhua' meaning 'Grand Prince.' He was placed under the tutelage of the legendary Ogagun, a famed mystic of the period renowned for his prowess and practice of the esoteric arts, at a period the learning of the art of mysticism was part of the educational comprehensive bundle for raising Princes.
As the Benin oral history attests, “He was of above average height, fair in complexion, stout and possessed a majestic voice.” His coming to the ancient throne of his fathers’ was a period characterized by underhanded maneuverings and even outright violence.
Prior to his ascension, the long reign of about 40 years or thereabouts of his father, the Oba Adolor, had been a turbulent period that saw the gradual decline of the once powerful socio-political influence the Benin Empire wielded in the Bight, for huge chunks of the Empire's territories were lost, as the succession wars between Princes, became permanent features in the kingdom’s political plane. These succession wars thus created distractions, which saw the much needed troops that once guaranteed the safety of the vast borders of the Empire now a divided force, with divided loyalty, turned on each other, bleeding itself white in attempts to achieve the objectives of a particular contender to the throne to whom their loyalty laid.
The period saw Vassals and client states alike beginning to assert their independence. This was the period too that witnessed the gradual incursions by the interloping British imperialists of the period, who under guise of combating the illicit Slave Trade appropriated the strategic port of Lagos in 1851. Lagos incidentally with its port facilities was of vital and strategic importance to the socio-economic wellbeing of the Benin Empire. And its loss was among the cumulative grievances that created the mutual distrust the Benin monarch of the period had for the British.
And this was the scenario that greeted the ascension of the Prince Idugbowa as Oba with the title ‘Ovonramwen n'Ogbaisi.’ His choice of title was one that bore a strong philosophical undertone, as its phrasing suggests, “Ovon r'amen n'Ogbaisi,” which loosely translates to “the blazing Sun that dries up the water of a debilitating flood,” being a clear message about the object of his mission as an Oba, which was aimed at restoring the lost political fortunes of the Empire as witnessed during the period, that is the extant myriad of problems that threatened the corporal existence of the ancient kingdom.
His first act as Emperor was the securing of his position from perceived internal threats. And in one lone swoop he instigated the virtual elimination of the Benin Chiefs that aligned with the pretender, Orokhoro, a half sibling of his, who had contended with him, in the struggle for the coveted ancient throne.
His next move, was the enactment of a decree that forbade socio-economic ties with the British, placing embargoes on economic products like Palm Oil and rubber, ingredients that were vital to the sustenance of the economic power wielded by the British industries, an act that did not go down well with the British, especially her businessmen of the period operating along the Bight.
And from then on, the British began to employ underhanded tactics aimed at undermining the political influence that the Benin Empire wielded in the region. They set about by employing non-Benins in the carrying out of illicit harvesting of economic crops in the Empire's territories. These activities, mostly clandestine, were many a time thwarted by the ever-watchful Benin espionage operatives, who used the cover of night time darkness to apprehend these nefarious collaborators who were usually armed with Revolvers by their British sponsors.
A typical example was one Thompson Oyibodudu, who was apprehended and later executed for his participation in this unwholesome act. It was this same Thompson Oyibodudu that prognosticated the eventual fall of the Empire and the subsequent exile of Oba Ovonramwen, some few moments before his decapitation.
The British now faced with frustration in their inability to curtail the trepidations among the non-Benins posed by their dread of the Benin' adopted confrontational approach aimed at incapacitating or curtailing the dominance of Benin power in the Bight. It was this option that cost James Philips life and that of his co-travelers in that ill-fated expedition of his on January 4, 1897, an incident that instigated the much-needed excuse for the British imperialists to pounce on the hapless kingdom that fateful February of 1897.
In a brutal assault that saw the employment of horrendous weapons of mass destruction, Maxim's, Rockets and 7 pounders, the Benin armies with their motley collection of antiquated weaponry stood no chance in the contest that was one sided. But their heroic display of valour in the face of the very obvious overwhelming odds, especially as exhibited by the assigned Benin army units that defended the Ughoton theatre of the war, who held out valiantly for 3 days, an action that enabled the evacuation of Oba Ovonramwen and his retinue of government from the beleaguered city, did not go unnoticed as it earned for them the eternal respect by their British foes.
With the fall of the city on the 17th of February, the vengeful victorious British army, and their auxiliaries, subjected the hapless city to an o**y of systematic looting and pillaging for 3 whole days.
The majestic palace of the ancient Emperors and the palatial mansions of the nobilities were not spared, neither was the abode of the citizenry nor the hovels of the lowly, spared. The city was stripped bare, with hundreds of thousands of items, mostly artworks and family heirlooms, were carted away. Not satiated even with the huge loot in their kitty, they torched the ancient City. Centuries old edifices were reduced to cinders, nothing was left. Special incendiary units were let loose on the countryside, all in the guise of going after the Oba and his retinue of government with scores of settlements, villages and hamlets falling prey to their wicked spree of rampaging and pillaging; hundreds lost their lives.
For six whole months the mayhem continued unabated. With several Benin villages and settlements destroyed in their vicious attempts to break the will of the people, Oba Ovonramwen, appalled at these atrocities of the invaders and anxious to put an end to the unending miseries being borne by the hapless citizenry, returned to the city and surrendered in good faith on July the 5th 1897.
But the vindictive British victors jettisoned the principles of magnanimity and subjected him to a sham trial which in spite of its kangaroo setting, found the Oba not culpable. Dissatisfied their antics refused to pay off, they resorted to criminal abduction, which they effected on the fateful night of September the 13th 1897.
Like Jesus before Pilate, the Oba was subjected to an array of indignities which he took philosophically, all aimed at humiliating his person especially with a series of photographic shots that they would show to the world, with him in shackles. But the shackles, rather than degrade him just like the crown of thorns intended to humiliate Jesus, magnified the aura of his eminence.
He would spend 16 long years in exile ending with his sunset; but his will remained unbroken because he knew as Virgil would opine, “come what may, all bad fortunes is to be conquered by endurance.”

Edo 2024:
Obaseki’s third term Project
By Kassim Afegbua

He loudly told Edo people that he abhorred godfatherism and frowned at any attempt by anyone to input that he was a godfather. He blackmailed political leaders in the state that the reason they were against his politics of egocentricity was on account of his stance against godfatherism. He whipped up sentiments and led Edo people on the wrong narrative that some leaders wanted him to be sharing Edo money. Today, Governor Obaseki has easily shown his hypocritical persona by pushing his agenda to install a successor; a clear third term project that would further help him consolidate his acquisition of major investments in Edo state.
Governor Obaseki who was up in arms against his supposed godfathers is today the main character in the invidious plot to install his godson in continuation of his third term project. Asue Ighodalo has never voted in Edo state. He was never known to have registered as a voter in Edo state. He joined the list of Edo voters barely two weeks ago when INEC opened the opportunity for Continuous Voters' Registration. It has become a tradition for Lagos based business buccaneers to unleash their venom on Edo state in continuation of their occupation of Edo's collective patrimony. When their businesses fail, they fall back on Edo state to recoup their losses. Godwin Obaseki's Afri-Invest, a stock brokerage company was insolvent prior to 2008/2009 when Comrade Adams Oshiomhole assumed the mantle of leadership. It remained so till 2016, hemorrhaging on life support, until Godwin Obaseki assumed the leadership of the state.
Go and check out Afri-Invest today, a rather dead company with tangled relationship with Security and Exchange Commission, SEC- bouncing back and even going ahead to own a bank, GLOBUS BANK, as a subsidiary. That is how much Godwin Obaseki has dealt with Edo's money. He has gone to Lagos to fish out his friend and business partner, Asue Ighodalo, under whose chairmanship Nigeria Breweries lost N175b in 2023 alone, failed business associate, who wants to climb the rostrum of leadership in Edo in continuation of the plundering of our collective patrimony. Asue Ighodalo's aspiration is synonymous with Governor Obaseki's third term agenda. They have converted Edo state into a business enterprise, run like a profit and loss, public unlimited company, where Federal allocations are never applied in the most rational thought-through manner. We know those whose company was paid N1.6b for mere consultancy. They have no mercy for Edo people's money.
Edo people must wake up and say NO to THIRD TERM AGENDA of Godwin Obaseki. A vote for Asue Ighodalo, is a vote for Obaseki's THIRD TERM agenda; a third term that will further pauperise Edo people and create a colony of beggars across the Senatorial districts. Edo people say NO, to THIRD TERM. We say never again to Obaseki and his third term agenda. Our traditional rulers are lamenting, our youths are complaining, our women are gnashing their teeth over failed promises, burnt markets were to be fixed, but Governor Obaseki turned deaf ears, unemployment is high, our debts profile has risen to N549b, making it the third in the hierarchy of most indebted states in Nigeria. We cannot afford to reinforce failure in Edo state. We cannot afford Obaseki's third term agenda. Never again!

A Judge beaten in his own Court! God help us
By Reuben Abati

Monday 24th June, 2024

A recent incident reported by The Punch newspaper ought to attract public outrage but in the absence of this in a society that is already shocked beyond further shock, the implications of the developments for the health of society and its moral fibre should not be allowed to pass unremarked. What exactly is wrong with us in this country? Is our country a large mental ward or just another land?
See The Punch, May 30, pp. 3 and 20, an interview titled: “While policemen beat me in court, their senior officers laughed - Wilberforce Meigbope, the magistrate beaten by Lagos policemen for granting suspects bail.” Mr. Wilberforce Meigbope, the Presiding Magistrate of Court 8, Botannical Garden, Ebute Meta, Lagos, alleges in the newspaper interview that on May 19, he was beaten up in his court by policemen, while their senior officers laughed. He had made in the eyes of the police the terrible and unforgivable mistake of granting bail to 25 suspects who had been brought in on a three-count charge of conspiracy, allegation of demanding N15 million and being members of an unlawful society known as the Niger Delta Coastal Security.
These are bailable offences under Nigerian law and the duty of the judex is to apply the law. But the police had insisted on influencing the judge. When he refused, they resorted to self-help. The tragedy of it is that police men are part of the justice administration system with the court of law at the apex. The police have no powers to issue judgments: the role of all players within the justice dispensation system is well outlined. But when policemen begin to behave like thugs in a court of law, then the entire machinery of justice is derailed. The idea of policemen beating judges is preposterous. I guess it points to the continuing failure of Nigeria as a state. Mr. Meigbope's experience had all the elements of the bizarre.
The facts of the case as reported by the Magistrate are as follows: On April 14, the accused persons had been granted bail, but only one of them was yet to perfect her bail conditions. The police prosecutors had registered their objection to the bail on the grounds that “the matter is serious.” On April 28, the police applied to withdraw the case, but the magistrate refused to grant the application. On May 19 when the case was called again in court, the police requested that the case should be adjourned till July 27 at 12 noon. The magistrate granted both requests. Meanwhile the bail that had been granted by the court on April 14 was still in effect. But as soon as the magistrate moved on to “other matters,” hell broke loose.
The magistrate paints the picture himself: “About 10 minutes later, some lawyers just broke into the proceedings and said that despite the court order, the police had been arresting the 25 accused persons, because on that day, the lady that was not able to meet her bail condition also came from Kirikiri. After listening to them, I rose and went out. I met with the policemen and said: 'Please comply with the court order.' They ignored me. They refused to stop. One of them even told me that he would shoot me. Before I knew what was going on, the accused persons started jumping down from the two buses which had been hijacked for the purpose of re-arresting them. Some jumped through the window and landed on my shoulder, some rushed out through the door. They held my hands and legs and started pleading, ‘Sir, help us, you must help us.’ The policemen started punching them against me, and in a twinkle of an eye, I felt all manner of blows over my body. In the melee, my shirt was torn and three buttons fell off my suit.”
His Lordship was eventually rescued by “judiciary staff.” “All the senior police officers that came to court that day were inside their cars within the court premises. It was raining. They saw the scene but they did not do anything. I believe they gave the order that led to the mayhem....Before I went to the buses that they hijacked, I told them (officers) to talk to their boys to comply with the court order. They did not even do as if they heard me. They were just laughing.”
Commenting further on police behaviour, His Lordship says one Inspector Julius Okoedo during the arraignment of the matter kept making noise in court and although the magistrate told him to stay where the lawyers were, the policeman told the magistrate that “he had no right.” Meigbope reports that the Inspector, “the one who called himself a lawyer” had advised him not to grant the suspects bail, but “I refused to play police game? That means you are already dead...I am here to maintain justice even at the point of death.” For standing firm, Mr. Meigbope now suffers a lot of pains. “Now if I want to sleep at night, my heart would be throbbing. Whether it is broken, I don't know. Then my shoulder, my hips, my thigh where those people held me and they were beating them and beating me.”
We sympathise with His Lordship. His story should be read by all judges and magistrates for it raises not just the obvious issue of the lawlessness of the police, but also the conduct of the judex. The Honourable Magistrate in this instance abandoned his Bench and jumped into the arena with his hands and feet and mouth, and hence he found himself in the undignified position of being assaulted and threatened. He should have stayed on his Bench. And who are those jankara lawyers who rushed in to plead with the magistrate to come out and physically enforce his own order? And he too rushed out of the court, like a militant, to meet with the policemen to tell them ‘please comply with the court order!’ And he got beaten in the process, and he lost three buttons and his shirt was torn. He should thank his stars he didn't lose some teeth.
His Lordship could have been shot and the police would have reported the matter as a case of accidental discharge. Strange things happen in the Nigerian magistracy, but this must go down as one of the funniest. The magistrate became a policeman, threatening to enforce his own orders “at the point of death,” and the police whose original duty is to enforce the law became law breakers in court premises. What happened in front of Magistrate Meigbope's court on May 19 is a complete breakdown of law and order, with His Lordship as the protagonist of a sordid drama. It could have been really sad still if the learned Magistrate had also tried to retaliate by hitting a policeman in return. Judges must realise that the best protection that they have is within the province of the law not physical exertion.
When the lawyers came to His Lordship, he should have told them to take the appropriate steps to ensure compliance with court order. Those lawyers should know what to do and if they don't, it is not the duty of the presiding judge to act on their behalf by embarking on a rescue mission. Meigbope is a very articulate man and the interview that he has granted The Punch newspaper is quite entertaining; but he must be told that it is not in the place of judges to behave like village chiefs. He has brought the Bench to great ridicule and he lays himself open to charges of partisanship. He says he has reported the incident to the Lagos State Judiciary. The first response from above should be to take the case away from him, to prevent the absurd situation of further physical conflict in his court in this matter.
In the same interview, Meigbope points out that the Lagos State judiciary can boast of “well certificated judges, experienced and learned judges who are prepared to make sure that justice is done.” Yes, but not through physical involvement, and certainly not through newspaper interviews! Meigbope's experience confirms the need for the training and retraining of the judex at all levels. Now, he says he will submit the bill for his medical treatment to the state for reimbursement.
But there is no doubt that the police in this case are useless and that their conduct, including the senior officers, who laughed as the law was being broken, is reprehensible. We have a police force, as Meigbope points out, where many of the officers are lawyers, and yet the police is the leading law-breaking institution in Nigeria. This points to the general collapse of values and standards in the land, and the failure of the police as an institution. When lawyers and judges exchange altercations in the court room and the police insist on over-ruling judges, with the accused clinging to the trousers of the judge for physical help, it means that our society is lost. The judiciary fails in its function as the last hope of the common man and the reign of impunity is encouraged. We are unfortunately growing a society where there is widespread disregard for the law at all levels.
As I read Meigbope's interview and the accompanying Lagos State Police PRO's dismissal of the incident as mere “rumour,” I thought of the riotous behaviour by voters, electoral officials and the police in the recent election in Ekiti State, the alleged ex*****on of suspects in police cells, the number of awaiting trial persons in Nigerian prisons, and the well-reported menace of policemen on Nigerian roads... all in a country where the incumbent President says his primary ambition is to enforce the rule of law.
The Inspector General of Police and the Lagos State Police Commissioner, both of whom are lawyers, should take personal interest in Magistrate Meigbope's case. Who are those policemen who threatened to shoot the learned magistrate? Was there a breakdown of communication on the bail process and why, if so? And is it possible that the accused persons were being arrested for another offence different from the case already before the court? It is about time the Nigerian Bar Association and the Body of Benchers began to take a keen interest also in cases of this nature: errant lawyers, who turn court premises into an arena for combat, should have their names struck off the register, be they men of uniform or not. The Nigerian judiciary must also invest in the training of its officers, with special emphasis on decorum.

Obaseki’s needless war of attrition on the Palace
By Hon. Josef Omorotionmwan

Monday 24th June, 2024

We have maintained that when an organization loses focus and is bereft of ideas on what to do, it resorts to doing everything. That is where the loss of one genuine purpose invariably leads to the pursuit of a dozen pseudo purposes. That, exactly, is where Governor Godwin Enogheghase Obaseki is, at this point. From the very inception of the current administration in Edo State, Obaseki has been at war with himself.
In what is clearly a hide and seek game, Obaseki has done everything to drag the highly revered Monarch, His Imperial Majesty, Omo N’ Oba N’ Edo, Uku Akpolokpolo, Ewuare II, Oba of Benin, into the murky waters of Nigerian politics, without success.
The red ink on his inauguration papers had hardly dried when he embarked on what clearly looks like stealing by trick on the issue of the repatriation of the Benin artifacts. We shall attempt to summarize some of the bold missteps of Obaseki’s in this regard.
In 2021, the then Minister of Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, announced the expected repatriation of stolen Benin artifacts from Germany and the United Kingdom, following successful negotiations between both governments and representatives of the Benin Palace. In the same year, Oba Ewuare ll proclaimed the dreams and designs of a Benin Royal Museum, opposite the Palace by his father, Oba Erediauwa of blessed memory, with Governor Godwin Obaseki in agreement.
In spite of the foregoing, Governor Godwin Obaseki secretly registered Legacy Restoration Trust with a non-indigene as Chairman of his Board of Trustees, to amongst others, coordinate the return and supervise the use of the repatriated Benin artifacts at a different location determined and being built by Obaseki as Edo Museum of West Africa Arts (EMOWAA). This is the former site of the Benin Central Hospital now demolished.
Oba Ewuare ll showed his resentment at Obaseki’s attempt to usurp the powers of the Palace in a BBC Report in 2022: “We were never a party to this concept of LRT, or any other privately constituted group formed in Nigeria to negotiate the return of our artifacts. It is baffling to discover that such a group was incorporated in Nigeria without the knowledge or representation of the Royal Court of Benin”.
At this point, Obaseki declared full-scale war by sealing off the Oba Akenzua Cultural Centre proposed by the Oba to temporarily warehouse the Benin artifacts before the completion of the Benin Royal Museum. The center is now a shadow of itself with overgrown bushes and trees.
Obaseki scaled up his war by instructing the Ministry of Lands not to approve any design for the Benin Royal Museum or any other such building at the proposed site of the Benin Royal Museum.
Obaseki’s war with the palace is being waged on multi-dimensional fronts. For lack of adequate space, we shall attempt to look at the latest of these diabolical designs.
Suddenly, he realizes the need to promote his divide and rule system of administration, all in an attempt to whittle down the powers of Oba Ewuare II, the Oba of Benin. Obaseki met with selected Enigie in Edo South in Government House, led by Professor Greg Akenzua, the Enogie of Evbuobanosa and Abudu, to agree on the mode of implementation of the 1979 Edict (Traditional Rulers and Chieftaincy Law).
By the interpretation of Obaseki and Akenzua, the law grants Enigie independence from the Oba of Benin in the seven (7) Local Government Areas of Edo South. The allocation to the Enigie, hitherto tied to the Palace of the Oba, must now be withdrawn from the Oba and paid directly to them by the State Government. By this, Obaseki has taken it upon himself to grant financial autonomy to the Enigie – an action that is both legislative and executive.
Obaseki did not stop there. He proceeded to brainwash the Enigie that they are now under the State Government and not the Oba of Benin. Essentially, they can only be disciplined, enthroned and dethroned by the State Government. The Enigie have thus been emboldened.
Outraged by the behaviour of the Enigie, Oba Ewuare II reprimanded Professor Greg Akenzua and Edomwonyi Iduoze, the Enigie of Evbuobanosa and Egbaen respectively, for leading government orchestrated rebellion against the palace. They were suspended. The Enigie dragged the Oba to court for suspending them, arguing that it is only the governor that can suspend them.
When the news of this outrage came out, a storm of indignation burst forth. Benin sons and daughters at home and in the Diaspora stood solidly behind their monarch. They were solidly against the idea of the balkanization of the Benin Kingdom for Obaseki’s personal interest. Obaseki and his co-travelers suddenly realize that they are embarked on the path of self-destruct.
In their panic measures, they must quickly embark on telling lies even from the pit of hell. They say Obaseki had no hand on their going to court. Afterall, Obaseki is also a defendant in their suit.
Who the gods want to kill, they first make mad. Besides, the Bible makes it abundantly clear, “God uses the most foolish things to confound the wise.” (1 Corinthians 1:27). Even before firing the first salvo, Obaseki and his co-travelers have become unbelievably naive and incoherent. Otherwise, why would Obaseki and his co-travelers want a case in which Obaseki is a defendant withdrawn and brought to him for settlement? Let him keep denying. For all we know, the more he denies, the more he gets implicated.
And what gives Obaseki the right to believe that he can sit in judgment, in his rented apartment, in a case involving His Imperial Majesty? What a raw audacity! Obaseki is not done yet. He is still fighting like a wounded lion, and we hear that there’s no stopping him until the palace of the Oba is totally desecrated. For instance, our source says that he is planning the imminent ban of the Okaighele, an age-long institution created by the great Obas of Benin and a potent instrument of administration in the palace. That may be Obaseki’s very albatross! In this war of attrition against the Palace, it is instructive that Obaseki is using what the Oba has to fight the Oba.
It bears repeating that the artifacts in question were the properties of the Palace. A bulk of them was carted away from the Palace during the Benin invasion of 1897 under the reign of Oba Ovonramwen N’Ogbaisi. It has taken this long and years of intense negotiations for reason to begin to prevail on the looters to bend backwards to start repatriating some of the artifacts.
In the reckoning of people of goodwill, it makes sense to expect these artifacts to be returned to the Palace from where they were removed. That is simply what Oba Ewuare II is saying. But in the twisted minds of Obaseki’s and his cohorts’, dangerous manoeuvre must be embarked upon to divert the artifacts and expropriating same to themselves. If this is not stealing by trick, what is it? Take a look again at Section 41(9) of Nigeria’s Criminal Code and see what the law says about reaping where you did not sow!
Again, in Benin Kingdom, Dukedoms are creations of the Oba and the Dukes (Enigie) are appointees of the Oba. This is one area where His Imperial Majesty, Oba Erediauwa, was most benevolent. He created many Dukedoms and sent his brothers to be his eyes in those Dukedoms. In the turn of events, these are the same people that Obaseki has brainwashed and put on his front line in the fight against the Oba.
Luckily, the Oba cannot be swayed into doing wrong. Otherwise, he might begin to think twice about doing good! It might begin to appear like pocketing a small snake out of kindness, and one would soon find that there are limits to kindness!
To us, the Benin Monarch is untouchable. Like the British Monarch, he does no wrong. History is replete with the fact that those who touch him invariably have their fingers burnt. Afterall, he is God’s representative on earth.
Some governors are known to have existed peacefully with their Monarchs. Yet, with others, it has been a cat and rat race all through. The reasons for the latter should be a good subject for further investigation. Meanwhile, we work on a hypothesis which sees the towering image of the monarchs as a potential threat to politicians. The reaction of such governors is, in this light, seen as a defense mechanism.
The monarchs are the hubs around which the generality of the citizenry must revolve. At the slightest opposition, attacking the king is like reaching for the moon; and if you miss, you get at the stars. On balance, jaw-jaw is better than war-war. Why can’t we live together?
In any case, there is no escaping the inevitable conclusion that there is life after Service. In the end, nobody will be credited with the number of institutions he pulled down or the number of souls he destroyed. Rather, people will be judged by the improvement they brought to humanity while their tenures lasted.
We make bold to say that Edo is not Kano. In the particular case of the Benin Kingdom, we have come a long way from 1897 when virtually everything was possible. Banishment today can only be likened to a chicken - it comes home to roost! No shaking!