By Cletus Opukeme ( Reporting from Oporoza)
The grand finale of the famous Amaseikumor festival attracted visitors from far and near in Ijaw land. The ancient town of Oporoza, headquarters of Gbaramatu kingdom
had a beehive of activities during the grand finale of the Amaseikumor festival held in Warri South West Local Government area, Delta state.
Virtually, the Amaseikumor feast has tuned Ijaws and neighbouring tribes of Niger Delta to Oporoza as Muslims to Mecca and Christians to Jerusalem for both tourism and spiritual purposes annually.
The seven days feast has everyone talking about as it metamorphosed from a mere cultural feast to a global cultural carnival, where traditionalists ,tourists, media houses across the world, including Cable Network News (CNN) stayed in Oporoza for seven days till the grand finale of the Amaseikumor festival.
Many adherents, including top traditional rulers and their subjects converged at the ancient Oporoza town as various activities threw first time visitors with surprise as cultural dance groups symbolize wealth and prosperity from the sea goddess.
Nigerian top entertainers,Davido, Nigerian South Eastern young billionaires, Obi Cubana, E-money, Zenco as well as Nollywood stars Kanayo O. Kanayo and others were not left out.
The ancient masquerade masquerade festival of Southern Ijaw town of the coastal region, few kilometers to the Atlantic Ocean believed that the sea goddess brings joy, and smile on the faces of the Ijaw people because it is a time of veneration, supplication, celebration, appreciation, purification, unification, jubilation and also a time of sober reflection, and playful adventures of dancing, feasting together brings the people into renewing the covenant of deep bonding and kingship shared by common ancestry collective destiny.
Amaseikumo is an ancient sea goddess being worshipped from generation to generations. The adherents believed that the sea goddess means different things to different people. To some adherents the goddess represents fertility of the womb. To others it is the root of financial wealth, protection and longevity among the Gbaramatu people. Do not be surprised when the Niger Delta freedom fighter, High Chief Government Ekpemupolo aka Tompolo and other adherents danced in their best Ijaw cultural dancing steps to honour and worship the sea goddess to showcase the rich Ijaw cultural rich heritage.
The Gbaramatu kingdom spokesman for traditional matters High Chief ( Hon) McDonald Igbadiwei made some revelations to visiting. journalists in Oporoza on the first day of the festival that the media can cover everything about the Amaseikumo festival and tell the world about the rich Ijaw cultural heritage that there is no human sacrifice. That Amaseikumo festival is more like a carnival, no secrets, but sacred and full of fun and entertaining with various processions and masquerades electrifying ( leg works) dance steps of Ijaw masquerades kept from generation to generations.
He said no woman is barred from the temple too, except women in their flow. So,he added ”the female journalists if you are in your flow do not near the temple as there is spiritual consequence for disobedience” .
For the male journalists, he warned ” if you met woman last night (had sexual intercourse), you cannot enter the temple with your camera without being cleansed or purified”
He pointed out that there is nothing hiding in Amaseikumor festival as no human sacrifices. That the only sacrifice is cow, rams, food items and notes of cash to the sea goddess of love, wealth and protection.
The Amaseikumor festival beyond the mere fanfare and gyration, it goes beyond a mere festival. It is the feast of the souls and destinies of several Ijaw adherents. The believers in this faith had a total supplication and worshippers are being spared from calamities, financial prosperity, protection in time of danger, good health and so on. This same belief is held down from generations to generations. It stands strong despite the widespread and high threatening dominance of foreign religions in their midst. They had more converts as Chief Government Ekpemupolo aka Tompolo who came to the center stage as the priest of Amaseikumor who holds frequent holy feasts in the locality from time to time., spreading Amaseikumor around Ijaw nation as well as sponsorship of annual masquerade festivals across towns and villages in Bayelsa, Rivers state, Delta,Edo and Ondo state within the Ijaw enclaves in Niver Delta region.
