||NaijaObserver|| Popular Author Uncovers Indigenous Igbo People Carved into Kogi State During Creation Of States

[vin modebelu]

Yes ooo    

We know where they are

They are reaching back

Popular Author Uncovers Indigenous Igbo People Carved into Kogi State During Creation Of States 

by Ngozi Blessed November 11, 2021 

 Reading Time: 13 mins read  

By Maazị Ogbonnaya Okoro  

 

Let me usher this discourse by first clearing the air that the Igbo presently in Kogi are not migrants. The places they are settled had been their ancestral lands and never Ịgala land as erroneously portrayed over the years. The Ịgala are the ones who migrated from Wukari in Taraba State and settled at a place called Amagede before they moved to the Idah area. There are still the Ịgala tribe in Taraba State today. When they migrated, they met population of Yoruba, Benins and Igbo who already lived in the various places. These Wukari people emerged with them and through their influence produced the language known as Ịgala language.  

 

To cement this historical narrative, let us hear from the Attah of Ịgala himself, His Royal Majesty, Dr. Michael Idakwo Ameh Oboni on his interview with the Punch published on 26 August 2017. Regarding the history of the Ịgala people he said and I quote him verbatim:  

 

“Talking about the origin of the Ịgala people, a sizable group migrated from Wukari in Taraba State from where they came to Benue along the River Benue and continued very close to the confluence at a place called Amagede by River Benue and slightly down from Amagede downwards to Idah and they settled there. And there, they met a sizeable population of the Yorubas and the Benins and to some extent, some Igbo. So the migrant population from Wukari merged with them and produced a language called Ịgala as a people”.  

 

Before the migration of these Wukari people, they were some Igbo indigenous people in Ịda. That’s why we have Ụmụịda in Enugwu Ezike, Igbo Eze North Local Government Area, Enugwu State.  

 

Maazị Ogbonnaya Okoro posed for a picture with one of the village elders I traced the history to Ụmụịda and realised that there is a community called Ụmụshiene. They left Idah and settled in this place in Enugwu Ezike. Some fraction of the community left, leaving their land there. They didn’t just leave the land, some of them still remained there.  

 

When I interviewed a man called Ayọgụ who is 80 and Itodo who is 85, they said that annually, their brothers from Idah which is now in Kogi State bring to them resources from the land they left many years ago and settled in Enugwu-Ezike. Their brothers there take care of the land. Their wives prepare palm oil and other things. During Iri Ji Festival, they bring jars of palm oil to them as produce of the Ụmụshiene land in Ịda.  

 

There is Ụmụshiene in Ịda Kogi State and Ụmụshiene in Ụmụịda, Enugwu-Ezike in Enugwu State.  

 

They are the same blood. The Ụmụshiene in Enugwu-Ezike are the senior brothers. Any male child from there will first take kola nut before anyone from the Ida side of Kogi. 

 

 

The question is: who migrated from where to where? What was their original language and culture? Ụmụshiene in Ụmụịda Enugwu-Ezike migrated from Ịda now in Kogi State. Ịda was their ancestral land. Some left while some remained. Those who remained still bring goodies for their brothers in Enugwu Ezike.Their language spoken from time immemorial had been Igbo and not Ịgala. There are few other communities in Ịda which languages of communication is Igbo.  

 

Their pure culture is Igbo. You can also locate some in Ankpa Area but they are in the minority due to the high population of the Ịgala. Back to the Ịgala influence. When those people who migrated from Wukari touched the place known as Ịgala land today, they made Ịdah their center. That is why till now, Attah Ịgala lives in Ịdah. The Ịgala people scattered all over the state and beyond. Remember, during this period, there was nothing like state, local government etc.  

 

We know people by their community name which is basically clan. People can migrate and settle wherever they find themselves. Ịgala people extended their influence to the northern Igbo, especially the Nsụka area. They intermarried with the Igbo. Just to prove to you that Ịgala language is the combination of different tongues base on different people found in that settlement according to their Attah, there are many things in common linguistically, between the Ịgala language and the Igbo language. Our market days are almost the same. Some lexicons are the same.  

 

One of the markets in the village. Photo credit: Twitter/Mazi Ogbonnaya 

 

 Researchers and historians like Professor Afigbo and co had researched on the influence of the Ịgala people on the northern Igbo. There is acculturation amongst them. Intermarriage. Language. Names. Even the Igbo descendants found in those places could understand Ịgala and also Igbo. Some Ịgala people can also understand Igbo.  

 

An Ịgala man in his 70s by name Ọjọbọ told me:  

“Some of our mothers are Igbo from Nsụka. I speak both Igbo and Ịgala”.  

There are names the Igbo and Ịgala share in common.  

 

Such names as: Ọnọja, Itodo, Atama, Ozioko, etc. But from my finding and from the introductory remarks of the Attah of Ịgala cited in this article, you can believe me that some people the Wukari migrants met at Ịda area were Igbo before they emerged. This means, some we refer to as Ịgala in those axis are actually Igbo. You heard it from the mouth of Attah. Ha bịara abịa wee zute ndị nọ there. This is why it’s so easy to intermarry with the northern Igbo. Some left those axis and migrated to other parts. While others joined them. This is like the case of Ovoko who migrated before the war to Ikponkwụ in Okpuje area because their land was fertile.  

 

After the war, Ovoko migrated back. The question is, where is Ikponkwụ today? 

  

This question will lead us to the following subtopic: State Creation as Divide-and-Rule System of Dispersing Brothers. State creation is a major tool causing identity crisis. When a people are being carved away from their brothers to join others who subject them as the minorities. But then, every sincere human devoid of political selfishness and spirit of self denial knows exactly his or her root no matter how long the truth behind the history has been distorted. In Kogi State, apart from the Igbo communities mixed with the Ịgala, there are aboriginals and indigenous Igbo communities without mixture. They are fully Igbo.  

 

Take for instance, Avurugo. 

1. Avurugo: This community is fully an Igbo community. This place had been their ancestral land before some individuals from other parts of Nsụka joined them. How do one locate Avurugo? If you are going through Nsụka, you will pass through Ịbagwa Anị and connect to Okpuje. You can also access there through Okutu.  

 

While interviewing a 75 years old man here, he said: 

 “All of us here are Igbo but we are now in Kogi State”. 

  

 They have a market square called Eke Avurugo. This market makes some people misconstrue the name of the community as Eke Avurugo. No. Eke Avurugo is the market located in a community called Avurugo. The market is open only in Eke market days. The language of transaction is purely Igbo. There is no mixture of Ịgala and Igbo in the market. There is no speaking of English in the market. I understand whatever they speak. Their dialect is Nsụka dialect and some parts also have relationship with a few villages in Ụzọ Ụwanị and Okpuje area.  

 

Sitting amongst three elderly people I heard them interact: 

 “Ụnụ abọọ?  

Ị bọọ?  

Ị dị agaa?  

Deeje 

Ala nụ” I 

n Nsụka dialect of Igbo which I am highly conversant with, “ụnụ abọọ?” is a morning greeting just as saying “ụnụ abọọla chi?” if loosely translated into the English language it means— have you waken up?  

“Ụnụ” is the plural form of “you”.  

When one says: “Ị bọọ?”, it’s a singular form, meaning: “have you waken up?”  

“Ị dị agaa” means how are you?  

Other Igbo dialects could have it as:  

“i mere aṅaa, ị dị aṅaa, ọlịa, kedụ, olee otú, kee ka i mere” etc.  

Deeje is the Nsụka’s greeting inform of daalụ, Ndeewo.  

Salutation.  

While in Nsụka dialect, “ala nụ” means welcome just as “nnọọ” in standard Igbo.  

People of Avurugo speak this way. Undiluted Igbo dialect.  

 

Their location as well have no much outside influence.  

They are neighboring town with Okpuje and Okutu.  

There is another market called Ahọ Ekwurugbo.  

Remember that in Nsụka dialect, Ahọ is Afọ.  

This market is open only on the Afọ days of the Igbo week.  

I saw some people going to the market and I decided to follow them.  

 

The market is far from Eke Avurugo. A community signpost When I got to the market, my jaw dropped. Language of communication is purely Igbo without any other linguistic interjection. I went to price yam, cocoyam, pepper in Igbo. 

 “Ego ole ka ị ga-akwụ?” (How much will you pay) They’d ask. Interesting.  

These are farmers. They produce everything they eat.  

They look healthy because they eat natural food. 

  

In this afọ Ekwurugbo, you will see that food items they sell are coming straight from the farm. Their fresh pepper and tomatoes are not coming from the north. They grow them in abundance themselves and sell to each other. Such perishable goods look very neat and healthy. Sparkling red colour. Everything is original. They do not import food instead they produce food and consume within.  

Their ọkpa tastes like that of original Nsụka ọkpa. They cook ọkpa-cup and nylon ọkpa. I must confirm whether it’s the same. I bought some and devoured. I confirmed my curiosity.  

 

Remember, everyone in the market communicate in Igbo. I use general Igbo, they still understand me. Yes, every Igbo who can converse in any dialect of Igbo understands the general Igbo known as Igbo izugbe. The people of Avurugo are happy people. They are peaceful and welcoming.  

Another interesting Igbo trait characterised in the prism of ile ọbịa. The Igbo welcome strangers and treat them well.  

Passing through this compound, an old man approaching 80 years smiled and waved at me.  

I had to stop. I greeted him. He offered me a seat. Conversation had began. He told me a lot. He said they are all Igbo carved to Kogi and put under Ịgala’s leadership. They have their kin in Igbo-Nsụka. Another interesting finding about the Avurugo is the names of their villages. All are Igbo.  

The following are the villages in Avurugo.  

Ụmụọchịna  

Ekwurugbo  

Ụkpabiogbo  

Ụkpabioko  

Obinagụ  

Amaọhụrụ  

Nwa-Olieze  

Ere-Ane  

Ọzara  

Iheobune 

 Nnọkwa  

Ekproko  

Alọme  

Agbataebiri 

 Abụtaogbe 

 Ọla Ị 

gabada  

Ọdọlụ 

 Amaokwe 

 Please kindly read through these villages again. Check their names. Igbo or not? Before you conclude, let me also tell you that I visited all and confirmed my curiosity and shock that they are all Igbo people pushed into Kogi State. Their worldview, daily communication is purely Igbo. Just as every other Igbo villages, they do their thing. They have large expanse of land as well. Their vegetation is greenish. Their forests are neat. Fresh air and beautiful shed left and right. 

 

 2. Ikponkwụ Ikponkwụ was once a community within Okpuje area in Nsụka but now a community in Kogi State. Because of their beautiful land for agricultural activities, Ovoko moved there and would finally return after the war. Ovoko is located in Igbo-Eze South L.G.A of Enugwu State. Some who could not return stayed back, some even extend to Avurugo and settled amongst them.  

 

3. Akpanya This community is fully an Igbo community. If you want to access Akpanya you can easily do so through Enugwu-Ezike. Assuming you are coming from Obolo-Afọ, you will pass Ụda, Amụfie before getting to Ogrute.  

From Ogrute, take the roundabout as if you are going to Ịbagwa-Aka, then take the first right turn leading to Ụmụịda. These places are located under Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area of Enugwu State. Immediately you pass through these places, you will get to Ụnadụ in Igbo-Eze South L.G.A which has the same topography with Akpanya which is now under Kogi State.  

 

The first village by the boundary is called Agbedo Akpanya. I remembered the name of my professor in Nsụka, Professor C.U Agbedo immediately I got to this village and found out its name. He is from Enugwu-Ezike. The proximity between Enugwu-Ezike and Agbedo Akpanya as well as sharing the same dialectal similarities got me thinking. But then, that’s not the bone of contention here. I targeted the market day. It’s called Orie Akpanya. The market is always full in Orie market day of Igbo week. People from different parts of Nsụka do visit the market. The language of communication in the market is Igbo. Not just the market, the entire village. They converse in Igbo. They think in Igbo. When I interviewed some group of young men, about 6 of them, they told me plainly that all their parents are Igbo. Some for political reasons told me they are Kogi. As we continued discussion and  

 

it was getting interesting, one of them said: “Forget that we are in the north central, our mothers are from Nsụka. All of them. Some married to Ịgala men that is why some speak both Igbo and Ịgala”. 

 One going by the name Amos Ọnụ said: “my ancestor was from Ngwuru Nsụka. He lived here”. From the valuables and the elders I interviewed, I found out that while some Igbo were aboriginals, some Igbo also visited from other parts, migrate and joined them. As discussed from the outset, there was nothing like state or local government in the past but clans. The people of Akpanya are Igbo. If going deeper, entering into the heart of Kogi, you will see pure Ịgala communities and some having mixtures of Ịgala and Igbo. The reason for such mixture is as a result of proximity and intermarriage. Most people in those places are bilinguals. They speak both Ịgala and Igbo accurately and respectively.  

The pure Igbo villages within Akpanya include:  

Agbedo  

Oji  

Akpanya 

 Ogboligbo  

Ịjagudu  

Ajịobi  

Ojiela  

Akpanya  

Akpabirikpo (Igbo/Ịgala)  

Ajịkele  

Oju  

Ogboligbo  

Ajekele  

Ogboligbo  

Agbọkete  

Apata  

Igudu  

Ọdụmọgwụ, etc.  

These are Igbo speaking villages that can be found under Akpanya. Akpanya share boundary with Ụnadụ, Agụ Ịbagwa, Ichi under old Nsụka region. They have the same traits. A man in his 40s whom I interviewed said: “My grandfather’s mother was from Ịbagwa Aka; my direct father is from Ngwuru Nsụka.  

All the women in this place are married from Igbo land. All our fathers are born from Igbo women from Igbo land. But as you can see, we are in Kogi. North Central”. Oji Akpanya was the first place the missionaries visited in the olden days while Ogboligbo is in the center. Agbedo is the getaway of the community. If you leave Akpanya and go further, you will get to another community called: Amaka  

 

4. Amaka Just as the name implies, you already know the language it belongs to. Amaka is an indigenous Igbo people whose language and culture is Igbo. But as a result of state creation, they have been carved into Kogi State. Church services are conducted in Igbo language just as every other communities I have previously mentioned. Their land had been their ancestral land and never Ịgala land as erroneously portrayed. They are just victims of state creation due to their location. They are pushed into Kogi State.  

 

5. Ọnịcha Igo This is another Igbo speaking community which can be found in Ofu L.G.A of Kogi State. There are different villages here. They mix with Ịgala too and intermarry. Some individuals here are bilingual speakers—Igbo and Ịgala.  

 

6. Ịbaji There are concentrated Igbo communities in Ịbaji. They don’t deny their Igboness especially those who never allowed state creation to demarcate them from their bloodline. The headquarters of Ịbaji is located at Odeke. Odeke has an ancestral connection with Agụleri now in Anambra State. They live close and share common boundary. How do we confirm this? During festivals, just as some would shout: “Igbo kwenụ!”, the Odeke people will say: “Odeke-Agụlụ Kwenụ! Odeke-Agụlụ Kwenụ!”  

But these people are now in Kogi State because state creation say: “Okeke you are Anambra, Okafọ you are now in Kogi”.  

But they still say till date: “Odeke-Agụlụ Kwenụ!” Other Igbo settlements in Ịbaji include:  

Uchuchu  

Anaọcha  

Uchuchu  

Anapịtị 

 Echọwa 

 which they now corrupted as Echeño Ọbale, Omabo, etc.  

These places are said to be originally farmlands of the Odeke people. The Ịbaji live and connected to the Ogurugu and Ụzọ Ụwanị in Enugwu State and even share common boundaries with them.  

 

There are three major clans of the Echọwa now called Echeño. These clans are: Ịkana Olugo and Nyagba. The village called Ụmụọnụra in Echeño Ịbaji originated from Ezeawụrụ.  

Some clan migrated from Ifite Ọka (Awka) and settled there in Echọwa which was one of the farm settlements of the Odeke people who have root and bloodline with the Agụleri. Their oral tradition and citation during festivals say it all. These Igbo communities in Ịbaji also connect to the Anam people of Anambra, then extend to Ịga, Ugbela, Ahịa of Ụzọ Ụwanị Enugwu State and Ojo Ogurugu in Enugwu State as well. Picture of the women going to the market These communities lived together because there was nothing like state or territory.  

They interacted. They are bloodlines until statism happened and they are carved to the north central. Till date, their culture is Igbo. They still have four Igbo market days, but then, the mixture with the Ịgala changed afọ to ede especially in the Echeño side but others as Eke, Orie, Nkwọ are in tact. Their masquerades are Igbo masquerades: They have Ijele. They have Akpaakụ. Ofe nsala is their native soup and they still maintain the name—ofe nsala. They speak Igbo. But then, there is Ịbaji dialect. It is a creolized language as a result of mixture of Igbo and the Ịgala. Not everyone in Ịbaji is Igbo. Some are Ịgala. They mixed with Igbo and created Ịbaji language. That’s why Echọwa changed to Echeño. Some other unaffected Igbo villages in Ịbaji which are strictly Igbo and now regard as Kogi people include: 

 Ụmụọbụ  

Ụmụoye  

Anapịtị  

Nwajala  

Eweli,  

Ubulie- 

Ụmụeze, etc.  

 

Echeño people of Ịbaji bear Igbo name as Ujumma, Egwuatụ, Ifemere etc. Many I interviewed did not deny their origin.  

 

7. Akolo The full name of the community is Akolo Ukwueze— indigenous Igbo people community in Kogi State. You can easily access here through Okutu, Nsụka Local Government Area of Enugwu State. They are predominantly Igbo. No migration. Their location had been their ancestral land before they were said to be Kogi. These people are farmers. Note: I have mentioned Amaka before. The full name of the community is Amaka Okpodu. They are pure Igbo. Other Igbo communities in Kogi State include:  

Ugwuebonyi  

Ebokwe  

Ọzara  

Amaokwu  

Amadịefiọha  

Amaụfụlụ  

Amaụwanị  

Amankpo etc.  

In conclusion, we have seen the effect of state creation as well as the migration of the Wukari people from Taraba state who came down to the lower Benue through Amagede and mixed with others then became what we know today as the Ịgala. They met some Igbo in the land especially those in Ịdah area. The blend and intermarriage has affected both languages to have similarities. State creation has moved some Igbo land to join Kogi. We have pointed out those people who still maintain their language and culture. But the question is, why is it that the indigenous Igbo carved to Kogi are not even recognised as an ethnic group just as others? There is a ploy to hide this identity and push some narratives. Tales of lies have been told for some to believe that those Igbo living in Kogi are the Ịgala who learnt Igbo language because of their interactions, intermarriage and proximity with the Igbo people. 

 

 BIG LIE. They know their identity. They have kinsmen in different part of Nsụka. They breathe Igbo. They live Igbo. They eat Igbo. They dream Igbo. They had been in their ancestral land before they were told to be Kogi immediately Kogi State was created. Even Kogi government knows that these Igbo communities are purely Igbo; could it be the reason for absence of government intervention and development? The Igbo spirit in them help them to create their own world without being totally dependent on government. Nigerian factor has made them to neither feel the presence of Enugwu and Anambra government nor Kogi State government. These territories are like displaced people. But they have decided to make life out of everything.  

 

They created their own world and happily living in it. Only Ịbaji area where oil was discovered that government of Kogi State began to drag the territory with Anambra; Enugwu also joined hand. This shows that treasure is priority for recognition of people’s identity. That settlement is Igbo speaking part and Igbo land. Finally, these are indigenous Igbo people who have been in their ancestral land before Kogi was created and they were pushed into it under the Ịgala leadership. They are not Ịgala people who speak Igbo because they are on the boundary side but Igbo people who through Nigerian definition of things carved out of their land to join others for the purpose of divide-and-rule system hidden under state creation. This history should be preserved for posterity. I paused! 

 

 

 Researched and written by Maazị Ogbonnaya Okoro  

Linguist, Writer, Researcher and Historian. 

 Got Any News Or Advert For Us? Send Email: abaci...@gmail.com WhatsApp https://wa.me/2347038111972

Read more at: https://abacityblog.com/the-indigenous-igbo-people-carved-into-kogi-state-exposing-the-hidden-history/?fbclid=IwAR1zWpVQ5Hf8_SoyUJ7sdFHP8k34FznmjTuXnlvu0O7hih5-1mLPymux9_g 

 

[olaka...@aol.com]

Brother Vin:

Sorry to bust your bubble on this revelation.

There is nothing new under the sun in this story-

considering human beings have always been on

the move since the first pair of the Homo sapiens sapiens

emerged on planet earth approx. 200 to 220,000 years ago.

Human beings including our earliest African ancestors have always been

on the move in search of food, water, abode and hospitable

climate.

If some of today's Igala did not move from Wukari to Kogi state, they could

have alternately moved to other locations both near and far from

Wukari to distant places within and outside of today's Nigeria.

The more important issue is this one:

Are these folks flourishing and happy

in their location in Kogi state? 

Would they have been better

off if they and their original lands had they been carved within

anyone of the SE states?

Depending on how strictly we define the origins of different

ethnic and sub ethnic groups throughout the world

we would likely find that there are no more ethnic groups that

could be defined as purely Igbo, Yoruba, Igala etc. as the passage

of time has allowed the opportunities for different related and

unrelated ethnic groups to procreate and make 'hybrid' babies

who in turn in their adulthood chose as their life partners folks

they believe are purely from their own ethnic groups when in fact

these partners are no longer strictly from their own clans or ethnic

groups-- if the DNA tests were considered as the gold standard.

There is also the matter of how much of who we are as a individual

human beings are conditioned primarily on our genome and how much
does the environment we grow up in influence who we are and the

particular ethnic group we identify with.

I can bet even without ever meeting any of the Igbo in Kogi state that the

Igbo they speak would be of a different accent from the accent of the region

of Igboland they hailed from. The language of commerce and for everyday activity

would most likely be Igala or a variant of the Igbo language--which may be as different

as the French spoken by the Quebecois in Quebec Canada is from Parisian French.

I wouldn't be too concerned about finding an Igbo, Yoruba or Igala community any

where else outside of their original homelands in Nigeria or elsewhere in the world.

About ten years ago a colleague from Philippines shared a picture of an Igbo man

in his late 70s wearing a shirt and and full length wrapper standing in front of his house

in a village in the Phillipines. The man had reportedly been living and

farming in a village near his own ancestral village for over 50 years.

If we follow the principle of patrilineal ancestral designation--would the children

of this man be purely Igbo considering their mother is Filipino?

What would be the ethnic or national designation of the grand and great grand grand children

of this early Igbo Diasporan --two, three or more generations in the future?

It's time to start thinking about more global citizenship and worrying less about ethnic citizenship.

Bye,

Ola

 

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Check out these missives from the culture war (h/t @bernybelvedere): And, of course: “He did something about it.” And two people are dead. The culture war has already turned bloody, and Vance is here to cheer it on. In today’s Bulwark, Ryan Busse warns about the “flashing red lights” of a growing culture of violence that openly wonders, “When can we use the guns?” “[What] non-gun owners may not understand is that these men are not your average gun-owning Americans. They are people who have fallen into a cult where it is normal to organize your entire culture around weapons of war.” Armed men in Georgia pursued and killed Ahmaud Arbery believing that they were justified in making a “citizen’s arrest.” In Illinois, a 17-year old boy was inspired to grab his AR-15, drive to a neighboring state, and take the law—and the lives of others—into his own hands. At which point Kyle Rittenhouse was viewed on the right not as a cautionary tale, but a hero. Conservative media personalities celebrated that he had “a couple of pelts on the wall” and was “gonna have to fight off conservative chicks with a bat.” ** Let’s put this into some context. The NYT is reporting on the wave of threats aimed at Republican legislators who voted for the infrastructure package. WASHINGTON — One caller instructed Representative Adam Kinzinger of Illinois to slit his wrists and “rot in hell.” Another hoped Representative Don Bacon of Nebraska would slip and fall down a staircase. The office of Representative Nicole Malliotakis of New York has been inundated with angry messages tagging her as a “traitor.” Via NBC: WASHINGTON — Republican Rep. Fred Upton of Michigan received a profanity-laced voicemail threatening his life and that of his family and staff, criticizing his support for the bipartisan infrastructure bill last week. In the voicemail, obtained by NBC News from his office, a caller told Upton, "I hope you die. I hope everybody in your f------ family dies," while labeling him a "traitor." Meanwhile, DHS has a warning. WASHINGTON — Domestic extremists continue to exploit false narratives to promote violence online, calling for attacks on members of Congress and public health and school officials, even as they share information about how to build bombs, according to a new intelligence bulletin by the Department of Homeland Security that paints a picture of persistent danger. Exit take: It seems dangerously naïve to think that the demagogues can continue to stoke the flames without mortal consequences. Join now The Velociraptors have figured it out. Matt Lewis @mattklewis “I'm really worried about a return of Donald Trump this time, because this time, the Velociraptors have figured out how to work the doorknobs." - @davidfrum on why Trump's second term would be even worse. youtube.com/watch?v=XjOQMa… November 10th 2021 319 Retweets1,333 Likes Some thoughts on “bothsidesism” Spend any time at all on social media and you’ll probably hear attacks on any argument that suggests that both sides of the political divide bear some responsibility for our political toxic waste dump. Usually, the argument is deployed by someone on the left rejecting any hint that progressives have contributed to the current polarization. Unfortunately, this tends to shut down suggestions that perhaps the left — like the right — needs to engage in serious introspection. Matt Labash has some thoughts: ““Bothsidesism” is, of course, one of those annoyingly smug internet creations that pretends as though it’s making an honest argument when it’s actually foreclosing all possibility of having one.” [When] the term is invoked by hard political partisans – and it’s always invoked by hard partisans -  it carries the accusation that people who see both sides of an argument, or who believe that there is plenty of blame to go around, or who think that life is grey more often than it is black or white, are blinkered, or naive, or morally inferior.  Charges of bothsidesism virtually never take into account that life is complicated. Rarely are our heroes pure or our villains pure evil. It is helpful to remember that the world rarely sits still long enough for us to make complete sense of it.  Labash offers this cautionary note: Just because we might feel morally superior, doesn’t always mean we are.  And even if we are, such superiority is often short-lived.  If you think the other side has committed unspeakable war crimes, just wait until your side is back in power. It’s only a matter of time. The only way to be clear-eyed, judicious, and fair, is not merely seeing the faults of the people you dislike – which is easy and satisfying – but the people you have a natural affinity for, which is harder and more uncomfortable. And as a pure matter of political advantage, keeping your own side as honest as possible is the best remedy for throwing the dishonesty of the other side into sharp relief.  If you’re not finding disagreement with all sides on occasion, then you’re probably not the fearless teller of truths you congratulate yourself for being. ** This leads to Ruy Texeira’s warnings about what he called the Fox News Fallacy. This is the idea that if Fox News (substitute here the conservative bête noire of your choice if you prefer) criticizes the Democrats for X then there must be absolutely nothing to X and the job of Democrats is to assert that loudly and often. The problem is that an issue is not necessarily completely invalid just because Fox News mentions it. That depends on the issue. If there is something to the issue and persuadable voters have real concerns, you will not allay those concerns by embracing the Fox News Fallacy. In fact, you'll probably intensify them by giving such voters the impression that Democrats simply don't care about their concerns and will do nothing to address them. That will undermine the Democrats’ ability to respond to predictable attacks against their candidates….and raise the likelihood of a midterm debacle. He offers a number of examples, including the debate over CRT, border security, and crime. Start with crime. Initially dismissed as simply an artifact of the Covid shutdown that was being vastly exaggerated by Fox News and the like for their nefarious purposes, it is now apparent that the spike in violent crime is quite real and that voters are very, very concerned about it. This very definitely includes black and Hispanic voters, as indicated by polling data and confirmed by Eric Adams’ support base in the New York mayoral contest. No wonder more and more Democratic politicians are running as fast as they can away from any hint of “defund the police”, the slogan beloved of the activist left that was actually put on the ballot in Minneapolis…and soundly defeated, especially by black voters. Consistent with this, a recent Pew poll found that black and Hispanic Democrats are significantly more likely than white Democrats to favor more police funding in their area. And yet….Democrats still seem very far from former UK prime minister Tony Blair’s felicitous slogan: “Tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime”. Fox News may exaggerate but voters really do want law and order—done fairly and humanely, but law and order just the same. Democrats, with some exceptions like Eric Adams, still seem reluctant to highlight their commitment to cracking down on crime and criminals because that is something that, well, Fox News would say. Given this, it is no surprise Republicans, according to a recent NBC poll are favored over Democrats on the crime issue by 22 points. ** This thread seems related to Texeira’s point. (I’ve unrolled it below): Ben Yelin @byelin A kind of funny pattern has emerged as it relates to liberal acceptance of inconvenient facts. First, there is widespread denial of the alleged problem. The only ones raising the issue are bad-faith right-wingers! November 10th 2021 53 Retweets252 Likes A kind of funny pattern has emerged as it relates to liberal acceptance of inconvenient facts. First, there is widespread denial of the alleged problem. The only ones raising the issue are bad-faith right-wingers! Then, one EXTREMELY annoying person who is vaguely associated with the left (Carville, Larry Summers) will say “liberals need to take this problem seriously.” Then the political indicators start to show that this thing is actually a problem. First, it’s polls. Then it is a bad election result or two. Now the frustration is that this right-wing BS talking point has gone mainstream. At this point, the Professional Center-Left Contrarians come in (thinking @mattyglesias and @jonathanchait) to tell us we really do need to start taking this problem seriously. It’s not just right-wing BS. That convinces maybe half of Twitter (myself included) to grudgingly admit that the problem exists, but also be extremely annoyed at having to give credit to the legitimately awful people who were right in the first place. The final stage of acceptance is when a less contrarian influential center-left voice, like @chrislhayes or @ezraklein admits that this thing is a problem. For examples of this dynamic, see: -Inflation -CRT/related issues in public schools. Join now Quick Hits Meanwhile, in San Francisco… James Hohmann in today’s Wapo: Consider San Francisco. Mayor London Breed (D) just endorsed the recall of three far-left school board members in a February special election, including someone she appointed in 2018. Other Democratic officeholders and donors also back their removal, and recall organizers submitted 80,000 signatures to remove the commissioners, undercutting the argument that this is some right-wing conspiracy. The recall has been a long time coming. Anger boiled over in the Bay Area as schools stayed closed months after most districts restarted classes. The San Francisco board voted in January to rename 44 schools, including those that honored George Washington, Paul Revere and Abraham Lincoln, before reversing itself amid national mockery in April. But the board’s most fateful mistake may have been messing around with Lowell High School. Lowell has long been one of the United States’ most prestigious public schools. Alumni include three Nobel laureates and Supreme Court Justice Stephen G. Breyer. Rather than try to make other schools as great as Lowell, the school board voted to start admitting students there by lottery — and no longer consider grade-point average, essays and test scores. Eliminating gifted and talented programs has become fashionable on the left, based on well-intentioned desires to close the achievement gap for African American and Latino students, but it’s alienating many parents — as well as graduates — who prospered under higher standards…. Complicating matters is the fact that, as of 2018, roughly a quarter of San Francisco’s children already attend private schools, compared to 9 percent in California. Any parent who can afford to do so will likely consider private school if they believe a public system is lowering standards. “Sadly, our school board’s priorities have often been severely misplaced,” Breed said in a statement. “And parents feel members of the board aren’t listening.” Breed’s warning is a reminder that national Democrats risk being branded as the anti-education party if they don’t speak out more forcefully against continuing assaults on gifted and talented programs. Join now Cheap Shots What could go wrong? I’m going to need more popcorn. David Freedlander @freedlander "I'm not gonna get into a back-and-forth with Donald Trump. But what I will say is this: When I ran for reelection in 2013, I got 60% of the vote. When he ran for reelection, he lost to Joe Biden." “Axios on HBO” exclusive: Chris Christie taunts Trump for losingThis is the opening clash of the 2024 Republican presidential race.axios.com November 11th 2021 133 Retweets744 Likes You’re a free subscriber to Morning Shots. For the full experience, become a paid subscriber. Subscribe © 2021 The Bulwark Unsubscribe 925 15th Street Northwest, Washington DC

[JEROME NIANG YAKUBU]

Dr. Ola Kassim,

It is true that there are IGBO people DEEP-DEEP in IKWE forest of Benue State and some parts of ADORU forest of the present-day Kogi state. They are all REFUGEES ..... VICTIMS of the uncivil Biafra war of the late 1960s.

You know, I am are does is a BUNUE STATE by blood,  raised as a KWARAN due to the OGUN OJUKWU, Baba Soja, my adopted father (May his soul rest in perfect peace) told me how those IGBO people ended up in the IKWE forest in Benue State and the ADORU forest in the Igala Local Government of the old Kwara State before the Igala people were carved out of Kwara State.

Let's all blame their existence in those two forests on BENJAMIN ADEKULE'S "IF IT MOVES, SHOOT IT, IF IT DOESN'T MOVE, SHOOT IT" tactics during the war.

When the 3rd Marine Commando guys entered some IGBO villages, Oro di bi o o lo, dakun ya fun mi .... If you no go run, please comout road for me make I run.

The IGBO Biafrans who witnessed how the 3rd Marine Commando guys were mowing down every Biafran on their paths, both young and old, male and female, north of Igboland where the war was being fought became REFUGEES who tried as much as they could to run away from Benjamin Adekunle boys. .... They all ran up north of their Igboland and HIDE deep-deep in IKWE FOREST in Benue State and the ADORU forest including the farmland of the Igala and Dekina LGA, of Kwara state then.

THEY'VE BEEN HIDING IN THOSE LOCATIONS SINCE THEN UP TILL TODAY.

You should know that if a leaf wraps a soap for a long time, the leaf becomes soapy too .... Those IGBO refugees have been farming those VIRGIN forests (which were never touched by any tribe before) for a long time, they should be allowed to claim indigeneship of the land.

The people and the governments of both BENUE and KOGI states dare NOT mess with them, because those IGBO REFUGEES OF BIAFRA WAR were the first set of human beings to ever dwell in the area where they are found today.

As a matter of fact,

People of both states believe that they are POWERFUL people who can't be messed with because they are BRAVE enough to dwell in the forests where their Idoma and Igala grandfathers were never brave enough to miss-road and go into.

Those IGBO refugees became farmers, they were so tolerated by all non-IGBO tribes around them because they sold their own farm produce CHEAPER in the market (in those days) in exchange for PEACEFUL and HARMONIOUS LIVING together in the forests near the locals as refugees.

They HIDE themselves so well, they made no contact with anyone outside the forests where they were hiding for a long, long time.

They didn't even know when the war was over at all. It was until 1975, (5 years after the end of the war) that they later knew the war was over.

Before then, whenever the Idoma people wanted to tease them, they used to yell ..... THIRD MARINE COMMANDO IS COMING .... and those IGBO people would run kira-kitah into their forest hiding.

Honestly speaking,

IGBO people are wonderfully SUCCESSFUL and industrious people, they formed villages in those hideouts in IKWE forests, developed their villages well, today, most of the villages they developed and called their own are better and more livable than most cities in Benue and Kogi States.

Once beaten, twice shy.

Those IGBO people in Benue and Kogi States are the most PEACEFUL people in Nigeria, very humble, very hardworking, they grow the best-known YAM in that region, (which the Igboland always claim to be IGBO YAM falsely).

They run their own family government and worry less about what any state or federal government could do for them.

As a matter of fact, they are GREAT people.

They remain very indigenous, by marrying among themselves and multiplying rapidly. They keep all marriages in their Igbo tribe.

Politicians in both Kogi and Benue states never care about them, because those Igbo refugees never delve into politics, they NEVER come out and vote for anybody neither .... THEY ARE VERY SELF-SUFFICIENT IN THEIR VILLAGES.

There's also a tribe from the Benin Republic whose villages are on the land of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the international boundary runs through their villages, but deep into Kwara State's former Borgu local government.

They don't claim to be Nigerians, but they live on at least ONE MILE away from their Benin Republic boundary.

When I was growing up in Kwara State, we were warned not to mess with those people, because they will kill and run into the Benin Republic where nobody can find them. They speak a very funny language.

Na so it is oo.

.....JNY

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/naijaobserver/1855672627.62586.1636678659284%40mail.yahoo.com.

[Kayode Adebayo]

Fellow Nigerians:

The Igbo people are suffering from psychological defeatism and inferiority complex. Unfortunately, there is no medicine for their sickness. 

It's sheer stupidity.

Kayode

On Thu, Nov 11, 2021 at 10:52 PM, Kayode Adebayo

<kayu...@yahoo.com> wrote:

The discombobulated people called Igbo migrated from Futa Jallon in North West Africa. The Igbo people wandered into the present day Nigeria and settled in Eastern Nigeria. The Igbo don't know their history. They are the most confused people in the world. They claim they originated from Israel, Egypt and Japan. What they failed to realize is that they don't look Jewish, Egyptian or Japanese. The discombobulated Igbo have big nose and kinky hair like typical black people. They were Fulani neighbors of Futa Toro in North West Africa. That's why they wander about like the Fulani. They wear rapper like the Fulani. The use sticks to walk like the Fulani. They have so many similarities with the Fulani till today. Yet they hate their Fulani neighbors.

The Igbo are the most confused human beings in the world. Because of their small population, they are laying claims to other ethnic groups in Nigeria in order to increase their population. That's why now claim the Ikwerre people of Rivers State and the Igala people of Benue State that don't look or talk like them. 

Unfortunately for the Igbo people, they will remain minority in Nigeria till the end of time.

Hahaha!

Kayode

[Kayode Adebayo]

The discombobulated people called Igbo migrated from Futa Jallon in North West Africa. The Igbo people wandered into the present day Nigeria and settled in Eastern Nigeria. The Igbo don't know their history. They are the most confused people in the world. They claim they originated from Israel, Egypt and Japan. What they failed to realize is that they don't look Jewish, Egyptian or Japanese. The discombobulated Igbo have big nose and kinky hair like typical black people. They were Fulani neighbors of Futa Toro in North West Africa. That's why they wander about like the Fulani. They wear rapper like the Fulani. The use sticks to walk like the Fulani. They have so many similarities with the Fulani till today. Yet they hate their Fulani neighbors.

The Igbo are the most confused human beings in the world. Because of their small population, they are laying claims to other ethnic groups in Nigeria in order to increase their population. That's why now claim the Ikwerre people of Rivers State and the Igala people of Benue State that don't look or talk like them. 

Unfortunately for the Igbo people, they will remain minority in Nigeria till the end of time.

Hahaha!

Kayode

On Thu, Nov 11, 2021 at 9:34 PM, JEROME NIANG YAKUBU

<jeromey...@gmail.com> wrote:

[JEROME NIANG YAKUBU]

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/naijaobserver/CA%2BN74a12LKZYHWoj12f58cCEf-S0P-VjH9zZzZzpB6BfhO7kNA%40mail.gmail.com.