Historical Assessment Of Ekuechi Festival From Pre-Colonial Era To Date

INTRODUCTION
Background of study
The human society is as old as the universe itself. Society consists of people who interact with one another in such a way to share common culture. Culture according to Edward Brunett Taylor in one of his renowned work titled “Primitive Culture”1 which was published in 1871 is “a complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom and many other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society”. In other words, culture consists of the beliefs, behaviours, objects, technology and other characteristics common to the members of a particular group or society. Through culture, people and groups define themselves, conform to society’s shared values and contribute to society. Thus, culture includes many societal aspects: language, customs, mores, rules, products, organization and institutions. The term institution in this study refers to conglomeration of rules and cultural meaning associated with specific social activities such as family, political, religion, marriage among others. In a nut shell, culture is total way of life. In view of the foregoing, the study intends to look into historical assessment of Ekuechi festival in Ebiraland which is usually celebrated by Ebira-Tao people of Kogi state from pre-colonial era to 2015.
The Ebira (also spelt Igbira or Igbirra) are an ethno-linguistic group of Nigeria. Ebira (Tao) is a tribe in Kogi state in the Northern part of Nigeria with a population of 1.5milllions inhabitants. Many Ebira people are from Kogi State, Kwara State, Nasarawa State, Federal Capital Territory – Abuja, Edo, Okene, Okehi, Adavi and Ajaokuta. Okene is said to be the administrative centre of the Ebira-speaking people in Kogi state, not far from the Niger-Benue confluence. The word Ebira means behavior when translated literally, with ethics and hospitality as compliments1.
Linguistically, Ebira-Igu or Koto, Ebira-Etuno, Ebira-Panda, Ebira-Oje, Ebira-Tao and Ebira-Agatu belong to the same language group with dialectal variations. What binds them together perhaps is their claim to a common cultural ancestry. My focus is basically on the Ebira-Taos whose territory lies southwest of the confluence of the rivers Niger and Benue 2.
As a popular festival, Ekuechi is full of pomp and pageantry, with a dynamic integration of poetry, chants, mimicry, mime, dance, song, music, drumming, mask, make-up, costume and significant cultural symbols. All these cohere vibrantly to attest to Ehusani (1991)’s claim that “it is in Eku that the vitality and vivacity, and also the artistic genius of Ebiras find the highest expression.” Eku is ancestral masquerade. Eku, which represents the ancestors, is believed to ‘descend’ (Chi) from the world beyond during Ekuechi festival. Eku and Chi thus respectively form the prefix and suffix in Eku e Chi. Literally translated, it means, “the ancestors are descending.” This partly explains how the name of the festival is derived 3.

Statement of Problem
Human traditions are always evolving. Culture itself as a people’s way of life, or the sum total of
their language, customs, values, ethos festivals, music and dance, is not a static entity. Culture responds to changes in the human society which come through education and enlightenment, intercultural exchange and developments in economics, politics, religion, and information technology. Even if before now one claimed that one’s culture was immutable, the modern trends in globalization which seeks to make the entire human society a global village, will belie such a claim. In an enlightened and dynamic society such as ours therefore, the quasi-religious taboos and social restrictions that surround our major festivals of “Ekwuechi,” in addition to the minimum of violence that traditionally accompanied the entertainment process, need to be subjected to critical evaluation towards the much desired reformation and modernisation.
In recent times, the festivals have been marked by a desecration and bastardisation of Ebira
traditional values rather than a celebration of cultural ethos. The spiritual and moral contents
of the traditional festivals have been thrown to the dogs, leaving behind a celebration of violence, banditry and anomie. The traditionally exalted ‘Ekuechi’ festival of song and dance, has, along with other similar festivals degenerated into occasions for experimenting on the use of sophisticated fire arms and the testing of charms and amulets assembled from all parts of this country. The open display of pistols, daggers, bows and arrows and other dangerous items displeases the on-looker and is a source of embarrassment to the cultural heritage of the land. Thus, it is pertinent to examine the historical assessment of Ekuechi festival from pre-colonial era to date.

Aim and Objectives of the Study
The Africans encounter with Europeans and Arabs had led to the emergence of alien religious practices which have to a great extent eroded the traditional ways of life of most African countries including Nigeria; if not for the presence of some aged individuals in the society, proper documentation of some ancient cultural practices would have been long forgotten. Hence, the salient aim of this study is to explore the historical assessment of Ekuechi festival from pre-colonial era to 2015 for proper documentation, general enlightenment as well as reawakening peoples’ interest in the cultural practices of Ebira-Tao people.

The Significance of Study
Unequivocally, one cannot over emphasize the fact that the late coming of written form of knowledge and information preservation has left Africa behind in the world of philosophical development, as major events whose origin and evolution in this part of the world were no sufficiently documented thus were attributed to other sources. It is in view of this that Europeans referred to Africa as a dark continent. This claim is in consonance with the words Sarkozy, speaking in Dakar in 2007, where he described Africa as a continent that has “not fully entered into history”, who’s people live in an “imaginary world” devoid of “human adventure or the idea of progress”, wallowing in a “static order where everything seems to have been written beforehand” and who need to realize that the “golden age that Africa is forever recalling will not return because it has never existed”, betraying the startling grip of the colonial conception of Africa.
Barrack Obama in his presidential remarks at National Museum of African American History and Culture postulated that “a good is a good foundation for a better present and future”1. Thus, it is pertinent to carry out this study which seeks to explore the historical trend of Ekuechi festival from pre-colonial era to 2015 so as to have well-documented Ekuechi festival practices. This research will also apparently contribute to human knowledge. Besides serving as an archive of history for finished information, the study hopes to serve as a baseline for future researchers.

Research Methodology and Problems
In actualizing a correct construction or reconstruction of the past, historians must go through specialized materials as research sources; it involves the collection of data from historical documents such as printed textbooks, thesis, publications, journals, newspapers and magazines which are known as secondary source of data. Also, primary sources are of very importance, in fact according to prominent historians; the rate at which a research is dependent on primary shows how reliable such work is, because, it involves eye witness accounts and autobiographies.
Oral history and tradition for a very long time has been the foundation upon which the history of Africa is built; this is due to the late coming of the knowledge of arts and keeping written records. In the light of the foregoing, the study will rely on primary source of data such that it can be juxtapose it with the available secondary data in order to arrive at credible conclusions. Thus, the research method that will be adopted for this study is historical method. The instruments of data collection that will be employed in this study are Key Informant Interview (KII), In-depth Interview (IDI) and Participant observation.

The Scope of the Study
The core of this study will be the historical trend of Ekuechi festival among the Ebira-Tao people of Kogi State from pre-colonial era to 2015. However, it is pertinent to state from the onset that scarce resources at our disposal especially money and time would not allow us to embarked on a full historical study of the festival; this is due to the fact that the study is meant to cover a period of six (6) months. More so, in spite of all these shortcomings; the researcher hopes that this study will be a useful guide to familiarizing the readers with events that lead to emergence of Ekuechi festival as well as its social and spiritual significance to Ebira people and their environment.

Literature Review
Literature review is one of the salient aspects of any empirical work as it helps in surveying what is known and what is unknown. Jankowitz (2001) postulated that “Knowledge does not exist in a vacuum. Your knowledge only has value in relation to other peoples’ work”2. Hence, it would be erroneous to directly affirm that there are no written materials to guide this study. However, it is a fact there is no adequate research on historical assessment of Ekuechi festival from pre-colonial era till date which is the focus of this study.
In view of the significant of literature review to research work, the researcher visited libraries (both public and private) to acquire necessary information on the subject matter. Books that were consulted include “The Cultural and Identity Crisis Amongst Ebira Adolescents: A Psychological Perspective”, by Abdullahi O. K3., this work is useful to my study in the sense that it shed light how the emergence of Western education has affected Ekuechi festival in Ebiraland. In this work the author submitted that the pressure for educational expansion could perhaps be attributed to the interpretation of the function of education as an individual path to the acquisition of status and as a social path to the removal of social inequality. Crisis arose particularly amongst the youths in the transition from secondary to tertiary education, and the crisis was manifested through cultural identity. The identification with the cultural festivals brought about changes best described as “cultural and identity crisis” of the adolescents in Ebira land. Crisis in the sense that, what used to be a peacefully celebration for leisure purposes became a scene of crime.” Hence, the traditionally peaceful nature and tone of these festivals have been completely lost such that the masquerades, which used to be treated as sacred, could now be brought out on any occasion and at any time. The paper enlightened us on what led to the bastardization of the festival celebration by youths, however, it failed to address social factors such as family institution that have nearly collapse in discharging her roles effectively towards ensuring a better a society for all. According to functionalist theorist in the field of sociology “family is the backbone of society”.

Sunday E. O. in his work titled “Theatrical Aesthetics and Functinal Values of Ekuechi Masquerade Ensemble of the Ebira People”4, this work dwell on the activities that affect the artistic outing of Eku’rahu (the nocturnal raconteur masquerader); who is a composite actor who sings, chants, dances and directs the drumming ensemble and the audience on the general performative outlook of the Ekuechi festival. The aesthetic analysis in this case is informed by folk imagination, which is the imaginative collaboration of the virile artistic resources, anchored by the raconteur masquerade, to produce the Ekuechi performance. Ekuechi festival is a ritualistic enactment of myth, legend and traditional social events meant to mark the end of the year and usher in a new one. It begins from late November, runs through December and ends in early January. The long duration is due to the fact that its period of celebration differs from one community to another in Ebira land. This work contributed extensively to the study of Ekuechi festival which is usually celebrated by Ebira Tao people of Kogi State.

“Colonial Conquest and Resistance: The Case of Ebiraland 1886 – 1917 A. D.” by Okene A. A. 5, This work provide the background information on how the Europeans invaded the Northern region as well as Ebiraland in the pre-colonial era. For instance, the paper discussed how the British and other European countries became aware of Northern Nigeria through trans-Sahara trading. The paper further added that it was one of the major reasons for expeditions and voyage exploration; however, it was in only in the mid-19th century that British became more interested in developing a close commercial relationship with Niger-Benue territory where their traders had been operating. The book also discussed how the British conquer Ebiraland through internal help and sophisticated weapons and the naked show of power by British on May 1903 engendered social disorderliness and political disequilibrium in which the then Division Officer (D.O.) Mr. Greaves said”. . .not each community, not each district or town but each family was a law to itself”. This book contributed significantly to the matter of discourse and it exposes the researchers to why we are where are in Ebira today.

Benson O. I. in his work “Colonialism and African Cultural Values”6, this work provide information on how African values which is a vital to this study due to fact that one of the salient aspect of any society. In this study the author said that the universe from the African understanding is a composite one; a blending of the divine, spirit, human, animate and inanimate beings, which constantly interact with one another. These visible and invisible elements that comprise the African cosmology are what have been referred to as the “forces of life” or “vital forces”. The vital forces are hierarchically structured in such a way that God, the creator of the universe is at the top. In the pyramidic structure where God is at the top, invisible forces of life, like the divinities, spirits and ancestors, form part of the hierarchy. In the mythical sense, the Africans transmit their experience of God in couched stories that are held to be sacred. Such stories tell us about the beginning of human life – creation. He further said that colonial rule disrupted the traditional machinery of moral homogeneity and practice. The method of moral inculcation was vitiated, which resulted in the abandonment of traditional norms and values through a systematic depersonalization of the African and paganisation of its values. Instead of the cherished communalism which defined the life of the African, for example, a burgeoning societal construct was introduced which alienates and destroys the organic fabric of the spirit of we-feeling. However, apart from the economic exploitative agenda, colonialism expressed “the ethnocentric belief that the morals and values of the colonizer were superior to those of the colonized”. This belief was programmatically achieved through the establishment of schools, which curricula were tailored to achieve the goals of the colonizer rather than train the colonised to be independent, and the missionary ventures, which helped a great deal in vitrifying the religious concept and inclination of the colonized.

The belief that the ancestors played prominent roles in the maintenance of morality in the community hardly dies, even today. However, it is true that colonialism altered the belief and values of the Africans significantly, just as its structure was almost completely eroded. Today, the argument oscillates between a return to the ‘glorious’ pre-colonial past as the minimum requirement for moral rearmament and a total break with the past.

“Towards Peace in Ebiraland”7 by Ibrahim A., focused on to proffer a lasting solution to clannish and other vices in Ebiraland. For instance, in this paper he pointed out that the name “Ebira” means “good manner” blended with rich cultural heritage that could hardly be enclipsed by any standard culture in the Nigerian society. This implies that they were not born with culture of violence. This paper went further to say that the negative effects of the political quagmire cast its telling results on both the culture and psyche of the people. Today, many people do not talk of the cherished culture of the people of Ebira land any more but the prevalence of political violence and thuggery which is a negative phenomenon that dwarfed the positive side of the people.