Okpekpe
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Okpekpe is a town in Etsako East Local Government Area of Edo State, Nigeria. It is located about 25 kilometres (16 mi) northeast of Auchi. It has a population of 3155 inhabitants.[1] Its people belong to a large homogeneous group of people, called the Afemai.
Geography
Okpekpe is located at a latitude of 7.2 (7° 12' 0 N) and a longitude of 6.47 (6° 28' 0 E), about 354 kilometers south west (209°) of the approximate center of Nigeria and 240 kilometres (150 mi) south west (209°) of the capital Abuja. Okpekpe, due to its unique location and climate, has a huge potential for tourism, though not yet fully developed because of lack of direct investment. Okpekpe is surrounded by hills and big rocks, which makes its weather very friendly. It is rumoured that the rocks hold vast amount of rare mineral resources, though yet to be explored. Okpekpe, is in North Ibie, belongs to a large homogenous group of people, the Ibie found in Afemai land, which is at the northern part of Edo State. The Ibie are bordered by River Niger to the east, Etsako West to the west, Auchi to the south, and Kwara State & Kogi State to the north. Okpepke is surrounded by other towns and villages like Imiegba, Itsukwi, Imiakebu, Ebelle, Ukhomedokhai, Okeko, Ikphelli, Ukho, etc. The population of the Ibie people has been estimated to be about a 100,000 people according to the 2006 population Census.
History
The Okpekpe people are believed to have descended from Ogogo (father) and Atuegbe (mother)'s children, who later migrated to their present location from the old Benin Kingdom during the ‘tyranny' of Oba Ewuare, the great, the then Oba of Benin. Oral history has it that, the reason for the migration was because the Oba had decreed that all communities within the Kingdom must mourn the death of his (Oba Ewuare) son for a long period, without going to farm or hunting. This led to starvation and death among the Okpekpe people, thus forcing them to migrate to their current location, a mountainous topography that could serve as defence against any likely invasion by the Oba. The oral history further goes on to say that the present settlement of Okpekpe was occupied by very dangerous thorn bushes, called "Ugba-Okpekpe", meaning "the thorn of Okpekpe".
Culture
Every society has its own culture, which is its way of life. Okpekpe people are no exception.
Associations
There are several groups and associations that are operating within and outside the town of Okpekpe. One of such is the Okpekpe Peoples Association, National Association of Okpekpe Student (NAOS) which is a sociocultural group of indigenes of Okpekpe, both within and outside of Nigeria.
Language
The people of Okpekpe speak the "Ibie Language", an homogeneous language generally spoken by the "Ibie" people. Most English words have Ibie variants, where such English words are not readily available, phrases are used to describe them or caricature version is coined e.g. "motor" becomes "imoto" or "bicycle" becomes "ibasiko", and "aeroplane" becomes "Anupalay" etc.
Justice
Minor cases are settled by family elders from both contending parties. Cases may also be settled by members of the age grades. While major cases are settled by the chief and his council of advisers.
Religion
The people are predominantly traditional religion worshippers, but a significant number of them have embraced Christianity and Islam.
Village Head
The village head and "clan head" is called Onwueweko of Okpepke. The clan headship rotates between Apa and Ede title holders. The current Onwueweko is HRH (Apa) Peter Abalume Osigbemeh.[2]
Education
They have one primary school, "Otsele primary school" which was founded in 1914, and one secondary school, "Okpekpe Grammar School" which was founded in 1980.
Economy
The Okpekpe people are mostly subsistence farmers producing crops like yam, cassava, cocoa and rice. Some are engage in hunting games and fishing
Marriage
Marriage is usually contracted by the families of the spouses and it is mostly done during the marriage season which is during harvest when there is plenty of food.
Festivals
They have several festivals, notably Beans and New Yam Festival locally called Eshile and Ukphakpha respectively. It marks the beginning of the harvest season. Another notable festival in Okpekpe is the National Day celebration.[3][4]
International Exposure
Idigenes of Okpekpe were actively involved in the recently concluded maiden edition of Okpekpe International Road Race which was won by Moses Masai from Kenya, with a time of 29 mins 39 seconds. This maiden edition of Okpekpe International Road Race was inaugurated by the present governor of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomole, who was the former president of Nigeria Labour Congress and also a participant in the Okpekpe International Road Race as seen in this YouTube clips Participants.
References
- ^ "Edo State Population, World Gazetteer, 2010". WikiMapia.org. Retrieved 2011-06-17.
- ^ "Okpekpe Community Marks Maiden National Day". The Nigerian Observer. Retrieved 2011-06-17.
- ^ "Attend Okpekpe National Day". The Nation. Retrieved 2011-06-17.
- ^ "Nigeria: FCT's Okpekpe Indigenes Urged to Unite". AllAfrican.com. Retrieved 2011-06-17.
External links