From Femi Folaranmi, Yenagoa
Ijaw leaders from all walks of life on March 4 and 5, 2022, gathered in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, the Jerusalem of Ijaw nation to honour late King Geoffrey Filinti Aganaba, the Ibedaowei of Kolokuma, Kalo Kun II (Aluku dogodogodogo Kaingha Kaingha Sei Bide) who became immortal 25 years ago.
Guest lecturer, Ambassador Godknows Boaldei Igali, Pro- Chancellor, Federal University of Technology Akure (FUTA), Ondo State, called on the people to institute the culture of celebrating Ijaw heroes like Aganaba, who contributed to the creation and development of the state:
“The role of King Aganaba must be ventilated and written on. I have not seen it in any of the literature. I have seen a lot of writings on who are the founding fathers of Bayelsa State.
“For those who will write the history of Bayelsa State, you must put it on record that in taking a decision on the final course on what the new Bayelsa State will be, General Sani Abacha called King Aganaba before taking that decision on the creation of Bayelsa State.
“For the founding fathers, Aganaba has a special place in the creation of Bayelsa State, He and late Senator Amatari Zuofa were neighbours with Abacha on Abana Street in old GRA while he lived in Port Harcourt as Brigade Commander. That relationship continued and played a part during the creation of the state.
“We have to do a little bit more on the memory of our heroes, of our fathers. People like King Aganaba did not sleep thinking how the Ijaw man can move forward. I do know the history of the 25 years of celebration in Ijaw culture. I don’t know if the family even knows the cultural value of what we are doing today.
“Twenty five years signify goodness, beginning of abundance but to the Ijaw culture after 25years, there was a special celebration of great men and that celebration though it was some years ago but the intention was to remind the other generations to celebrate them and the family has the biggest celebration for a man that has gone 25years ago.
“King Aganaba was a great man. The history of Rivers State cannot be told without him and in those days in Port Harcourt, Bayelsa are people that dominated and made it what it is in Rivers State”.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan, represented by former deputy governor, Rear Admiral John Jonah (retd), said: “Succeeding generations will come and judge us with standards far higher than what we have now.
“What Aganaba has done, you learn these things so that the children will know that these things are possible. Most of our children didn’t grow from home. They stayed in Lagos, Abuja; so they don’t actually know.
“But it is by studying what people of this calibre of his time have done; the self sacrifices they have made to get us to this point that we can actually know that yes, we have a duty to this state.
“All of us have a duty to this state to ensure that this state gets to a point that succeeding generations will come and judge us with standards far higher than what we have now. Things are changing, it is a computer age; they will scrutinize us. But if they do that, can you stand out? He, Aganaba, has actually passed that test.”
Governor Douye Diri said: “The creation of Bayelsa State is not the end of it; it is indeed the beginning of it. We still have other two states that we proposed that have not been created and we must make that clear to the Nigerian government that the Ijaws are still craving for the creation of two additional homogenous Ijaw states.
“We are indisputably the fourth largest ethnic nationality in Nigeria but yet we have been balkanised into four, five states and in each of these states, the Ijaw have become minorities and I am sure that the new executive of the Ijaw National Congress (INC) will continue to take that as one of their battles that they will continue to fight and as your government, we will stand behind you to give you that support.
“For some of us in the history of our existence, we have never seen a man dead for 25 years and the family gathered together and said we have to honour our father, our uncle; our brother.
“This man has touched lives; his legacy is speaking for him today.
Not only was he the King of the Kolokuma clan but this man was in the forefront of the liberation of the Ijaw people.
“He was so patriotic that his house in the old GRA became the centre of the meetings for the creation of states for the Ijaw people; not only Bayelsa as at that time. We proposed about three Ijaw homogeneous states. We as the younger ones would also go there to become messengers; his own house and that of the late Amaitari Zuofa.
“One of his greatest desires was to see the birth of prosperous Ijaw states that will be able to stand shoulder to shoulder with the rest of states in Nigeria and as that time, he fought relentlessly, he left every other thing and became one of those who spoke and who stood for
the creation of Bayelsa State.
“Today, most of us; governors, past and including myself serving, permanent secretaries, heads of service, speakers of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly, members of the state House of Assembly, commissioners are all enjoying the sweats of people like Geoffery Filinti Aganaba. We cannot but honour and recognise our heroes’ past.
“We are consulting, we are compiling names of our heroes including Filinti Aganaba and we will continue to name and recognise our heroes’ past. Not only in the past, we will also recognise our heroes living.
“We cannot continue in disunity and acrimony, we cannot prosper when brothers are rising against brothers, we cannot prosper where petty jealousy is heightened to the point of wars. Our fathers fought wars to defend us and their territories.
“Today by God’s grace we have a territory of ours called Bayelsa State and we must all come together, put our hands together and work together to develop this state.”
Chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council, King Dandeson Douglas Jaja JP, Amayanabo of Opobo said: “Bayelsa State is taking a lead in this because from time to time, they remember that this state did not come by accident, that people worked for it and they do the right thing by remembering them. I still know that there are those who fought for this state who are still alive, let us celebrate our heroes when they are alive and not when they die.
“King Geoffery Filinti Aganaba, the name alone tells a story, the name alone signifies a man who was born to liberate his people and he never looked back. In 1895, King Fredrick Koko fought a war with Britain. Apart from yearly celebrations in Nembe, I wonder if there is any national or state celebration because that man fought a war and not a riot like the British historians will call it.”
Amayanbo of Town Brass, King Alfred Papapreye Diete-Spiff said:
“The late Aganaba was born at a time when it was difficult to go to school, when he took 28 days to get to Lagos by canoe and then later when he took three days to get to Lagos by engine boat. In spite of all these odds, he was able to make it to primary school, secondary school and university.
“He also has children numbered as many as 24 and all of them got to the level of getting a university education and they are contributing to the development of this world in diverse fields.
“I am underscoring these facts because today there are people with two children, three children and none of them could go to school. If he never had the quality of children, I doubt if there would have been any event like this that is so pioneering.”