Mkpa Nwaotam Unites For Jaja
• Opobo set for sacred Mkpa Nwaotam rites ahead of the burial of Jeki V
By PHC Telegraph
With barely 24 hours left to the burial of a treaty King, King Dandeson Jaja, Jeki V and natural ruler of Opobo, all is now set for the performance of the sacred Mkpa Nwaotam rites.
According to an itinerary, all Uke Groups operating within the Kingdom are to unite later this evening for Mkpa Nwaotam. Our information is that they will be gathered by 6pm.
At 5.00am, Saturday morning, the Nwaotam masquerade display would commence.
The atmosphere in Opobo, we hear, is already electric as more sons and daughters of Opobo Kingdom and their friends return home to pay homage to King Jaja.
“We are ready to honour our own and reflect on our journey as a people” a native told this publication. “”We are a people with a long history not only of kingship, but of an organised system that has enhanced our social organisation.”
The Mkpa Nwaotam is much more than a cultural display.
It is part of the people’s acknowledgement of their rich culture and tradition, and the place of the ancient stool in the life of the Opobo people which began with the reign of King Jaja, Jeki I who has been referred to in history as “The Bar Boy”
King Jaja founded Opobo along the Eastern Estuaries of the Delta, a strategic position that gave Opobo access to trade with the early Europeans, particularly the British.
The Kingdom’s elite ably led by Governor Siminalayi Fubara have worked round the clock to ensure a befitting burial for a monarch whose voice was heard among Nigeria’s most respected natural rulers and whose reign brought prosperity to Opobo.
Although his emergence as King was preceded by fierce disputes and legal battles, King Dandeson Jaja who would later become the Chairman of the Rivers State Council of Traditional Rulers and Chiefs left Opobo more peaceful and united before death came knocking.
His Majesty the King was born on 28 April 1942. He was the first son of His Majesty King (Dr.) Douglas Jaja, the fourth Amayanabo of Opobo.
He attended St. Paul’s Primary School, Opobo Town, National Grammer School, Nike in Enugu and Hull College of Higher Education (now Humberside University) in the United Kingdom.
By 1977, the grooming of King Dandeson Douglas Jaja in Ibani culture and the intricate protocol of its traditional institution began.
On the 3rd of January, 2004, he was officially coronated as King Dandeson Douglas Jaja, Jeki V
He will be laid to rest on Saturday.
