THE NATION WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 9, 2013
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The Midweek Magazine E-mail:- ozoluauhakheme@yahoo.com
•The Iroko tree
Ever heard of Nteje, a community in Oyi Local Government Area of Anambra State? In that rustic town is a unique natural phenomenon , a 200-year-old mysterious Iroko tree. ODOGWU EMEKA ODOGWU reports from Nnewi.
A mysterious tree of ‘life’
T
HE rustic town of Nteje in Oyi Local Government Area of Anambra State is noted for its largeness. It comprises 48 minor villages created out of the three major villages — Ezi, Ikenga and Ifite. But its size is not its only unique feature. The place boasts of a 200year-old mysterious Iroko tree. Although there are five Iroko trees in one place housing the moribund water project by the Anambra State Agricultural Development Programme, they are regarded as one. The tree bears many local names. At times, it is called Ogbo, Okwolo. Other times, it is Okpo Ama Urukabi. The tree has many mysterious tales sorrounding it. Among others, it is reputed for sweeping its surrounding unaided. Residents of Nteje also believe that if a woman wants a child, the mysterious Okpo tree is capable of giving her.
Its history and myths To guard the 200-year-old tree is its custodian, the over 130-year-old Chief Priest, who is also the oldest man in Nteje, Chief Samuel Ikefuna Okafor. The priest calls it Ogbo rather than Okwolo. On the day this reporter met him at his abode near the tree, he spoke passionately about the many myths surrounding the tree. Pa Okafor, who feeds the land of Ogbo (Iroko), was a well-known welder in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, before he returned home. He said: “You can never see any branch or leaf of the Iroko tree fall on the road. I give the Ogbo land food. I am the head of the clan while Chukwudi Diobi is the spiritual head. My duty is to pray in the traditional way to live a good life. If anybody does evil and it is reported to us, we will urge the person to go and appease Ogbo but if the person refuses, then the person will die mysteriously. ‘’The Iroko helped us very well during the war, this fact is very celebrated among our people. Nobody will consider cutting the Ogbo.
•200-year-old tree stirs emotion in Anambra MONUMENT If anybody tries it, Ogbo will hang a rope on his neck. If I try to do any evil intentionally, in less than one week, I will be a dead man. This room contain the property of Ogbo and I am the custodian. Nobody tries anything funny with Ogbo –the great Iroko tree in Nteje. People don’t stay there in the morning except in the evening or during meetings and full moon.” Beyond all that, he said, the tree is a “giver of children”. “In this community, if our women are giving birth to female children and they want the other sex, we summon the elders to complain to the tree, and once they do that, the Okpo would become generous after our presentations. And if witches are disturbing people, the person can comfortably come and sleep under this mysterious Iroko tree and his or her problems will be over,” he said.
‘The Iroko tree helped us very well during the war... Nobody will consider cutting the Ogbo. If anybody tries it, Ogbo will hang a rope on his neck. If I try to do any evil intentionally, in less than one week, I will be a dead man. This room is containing the property of Ogbo and I am the custodian. Nobody tries anything funny with Ogbo – the great Iroko tree in Nteje’
• Pa Okafor
Igwe Rowland Odegbo, Abogu II of Nteje said the tree plays several roles in the community. “The Iroko tree has been here for over 100 years. It is the oldest tree in Nteje; and has a rich history and lots of merits. Story has it that when Nteje was at war with Awkuzu , they engaged the services of the white men with guns while the Nteje people engaged the services of Ada people from Uzuakoli. During the
war, all the women and their children were housed on the Iroko tree for protection while the men and Ada engaged the enemies. We prevailed in that war. “But in these modern days, the Iroko has served the purpose of being a social gathering place where people gather regardless of the village they come from, creed or religion. It •Continued on page 37