By Afam Echi
Oh yes, you read me well. All the noise about chieftaincy in Igbo land has no bearing to its tradition and culture. The word chief as an authority in the governance structure of modern day Igbo society is a creation of the white man who colonized our land during their invasion. In the Igbo system of government there is nothing like chief.
There is no doubt that this will sound very strange to many people especially those who have no knowledge of our tradition and the pre-colonial governance structure in Igbo land. Little wonder so much noise is made of the bastardized chieftaincy institution and which has left many clamouring for honours by hook or crook as well as losing their lives untimely in the process
This is the reason it is said that “Igbo enweghi eze’’ meaning that Igbo has no king. And that is the actual reality. We ran a republican system. No one man gets up to dictate what happens to the others. Everything was done by mutual consensus of the various levels of government from the chief priest, to the elders, to the youths, to the umuada etc. The Igbo system was purely democratic. They didn’t bring democracy to us as we had since practiced and lived with it.
The white man came and in their quest for easy ways to exploit the opportunities that they met created chiefs as part of its indirect rule system of government to administer the people and secure their loyalty. Their appointment of chiefs had no bearing to what we were doing before their arrival. It was an imposition to meet their exploitative tendencies and commercial interest.
Check out the word chief in the ordinary English meaning of it. It denotes ranking and expressive of the highest position occupied by the bearer. This is the reason we have chief executive officer, commander in chief, chief of staff, chief librarian, chief of this and that. They are mere titles.
The chieftaincy institution or Ezeship system was a clear evidence of how they destroyed Igbo culture and values. The roles of the chief priests of the communities were relegated and this was how the clamour for chiefs gradually stole in to become our culture of throwing up Igbo natural rulers. There was an enactment in the parliament legislating the role of chiefs, thus we had Council of Chiefs. They had more powers and relevance then than has been watered down now.
Today, the chieftaincy institution is so bastardized that criminal elements have invaded it courtesy of the governors and their cronies who manage the states. It is a tool of political patronage. To maintain their stranglehold on the people, corrupt government officials create autonomous communities and populate it with chiefs that they impose on their people.
This has created rifts in many communities. Where existing chiefs do not align himself with the policies of government they de-stool him. The so called chiefs became errand boys of the government with no real political power except to sing government praises and applaud their incompetence. They are rewarded with peanuts not enough to buy kola to run their kingdoms
It is not surprising the chiefs in their bid to survive began indulging in honouring people they call illustrious sons of the land who have distinguished themselves in one endeavor or another. Money bags and criminal elements undeserving of such honours have used it to confer legitimacy on their illicit activities just because the society is title conscious and bows to men of title. With money chieftaincy titles are bought at the highest bidder.
Sadly again the chiefs we have in Igbo land many of them hardly know their left from their right as far as Igbo culture is concerned and yet they are referred to as custodians of culture. Majority of them are straddling between two cultures-the Christian faith to which they long and their native tradition which their role expects them to give reverence.
On two occasions I have interacted with two natural rulers who are strong Christian faithfuls on how they navigate some of their customs which may be in conflict with their faiths. One boldly said that he avoids Igbo customs that will require him to sacrifice animals because according to him Jesus Christ has made the supreme sacrifice. The other said that he performs some and leave some.
It is sad. It hurts to see how Igbo tradition is desecrated on the altar of faith by supposed leaders who should be protecting and preserving it. Little wonder the society is upside down, full of evil because there is no longer any control system.
Back in the days, the chief priests interacted with the Gods, heard from them and related to them messages warning of any irregular conduct and the consequences. Any untoward behavior was appropriately sanctioned with the necessary fines or sacrifices to appease the Gods in terms of gross immoral conducts that desecrated the land.
There was stability. There was sanity. There was love. There was protection. We had no prisons. Just naming and shaming put everyone in check. Wrong signals that threatened the peace of the society was picked up by the priests and addressed. Today things have fallen apart and the centre can no longer hold. The thieves and bad people have become the leaders.
