A Benue monarch, the Adirahu Ny’Igede, Chief Oga Ero, has said he did not confer any chieftaincy title on President Bola Tinubu and the Secretary to Government of the Federation (SGF), Sen. George Akume, during the Igede Agba yam festival.
Recall the Agba festival was trailed with controversy and loud media uproar over the conferment of chieftaincy titles on individuals by the Igede monarch.
Chief Oga Ero, in a chat with journalists, admitted the President’s name was never on the list of honourees, nor was a title ever placed on his head.
The Igede monarch, who presided over the annual Igede Agba festival, was categorical when he spoke with journalists:
“I did not give President Tinubu any chieftaincy title. I only dressed the SGF, Sen. George Akume, in Igede attire. That is normal for special guests. Nothing more.”
He echoed the clarification from the Idoma Area Traditional Council, whose Secretary, Adegbe Uloko, stated that the President and the SGF were never listed for conferment.
According to BASEMEDIA, a backlog of honorees eager for recognition turned into a power struggle between Idoma central command and Igede local pride as the Igede Agba festival resumed after years of interruption.
According to the Adirahu Ny’Igede, he sent a list of ten possible Igede chieftaincy title recipients to the Och’Idoma.
Invoking his authority under the Benue Chieftaincy Law, the Och’Idoma narrowed down the list, objected to a few names, and then ruled that the conferment as a whole should be suspended. Adirahu Ny’Igede, however, felt that tradition could not wait for bureaucracy and proceeded with selected honors, citing his own constitutional role.
As a result of that “defiance,” the Och’Idoma’s council publicly nullified it on September 7.
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