Asagba Prof Azinge Rights the Wrong in Asaba History As He Commissions Kainebisi Statue 

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The Asagba of Asaba, His Royal Majesty, Prof Epiphany Azinge, SAN, OON, has altered the history of Asaba with the change of the name of the acclaimed progenitor of the community from Nnebisi to Kainebisi.

Asagba Prof Azinge, the 14th Asagba of Asaba, announced the change on Thursday while commissioning the new statue of the progenitor, as part of activities to mark his 1st coronation anniversary.

He said the erection of the historic statue was one of those things he believed Asaba people could do for themselves and commended the state government for the one earlier constructed, but damaged by the vagaries of the weather.

Explaining the purpose of the event, the Asagba said: “We are gathered here to commission the statue of the founding father of Asaba, our progenitor and source of our beginning. Asaba has always been there for the past 1000 years. There were other people in Asaba as at the time our now acclaimed founding father came into the ancient town, but he emerged after a period of contestation, if I may have to use that expression.

“And to that extent everything that is done in Asaba, for it to have the validity it requires, there must be a trace to the man that stands as the statue, our founding father; and that is KAINEBISI. In many historical documents, we’ve gotten it wrong because you will find progressively, NNEBISI.

“It is a distortion of history. The correct historical proposition is that when he was born, the acclamation was KAINEBISI MALI IFE NWAA GA ABU, literarily meaning “Let’s Watch and See What this Child Will Be”. So, there’s no way that the short form could have been NNEBISI. And you have heard today that from that proposition of NNEBISI people believe that Asaba people are matrilineal, but we are actually patrilineal; we claim according to our father line, not our mother line.

“And to that extent, it is KAINEBISI. The father of our founding father was, undoubtedly, from Igala and his mother hailed from Nteje. His mother was not from Asaba, so she cannot be our progenitor. But his father was and, to that extent, we are traceable to him.

“So, we are here today to pay homage to our founding father. The statue has been there repeatedly. One by a late great son of Asaba, Ogbueshi John Onwufuju; which fell down and another one was done by the Delta State Government, through the instrumentality of the Delta Capital Territory Development Agency, which also had issues and could not stand.

“We cannot allow this place to lie fallow, and we cannot rely on government alone to do things for us. We decided to source the money and we’ve been able to achieve this. And today we are happy that, as part of the event for my 1st coronation anniversary, we are here to commission this. 

“We are not unmindful of the strategic nature of this location because leaving Asaba towards Onitsha, you will see the huge statue of our founding father, which obviously becomes an inspirational spectrum for Asaba people that whenever you move around here you remember our history, you remember our founding father, and we will always continue to reverence and pay homage to the man that made Asaba what it is today.

“He has always been hovering around us, blessing Asaba and giving us the peace that has endured over a period of time”.

While thanking the Anniversary Planning, Tourism, Welfare and Endowment Fund Committees, as well as sons and daughters of Asaba at home and in the diaspora, for their roles in making the project a reality, and assuring that the statue would be regularly maintained to continually keep it in shape, the Monarch urged the relevant authorities to effect the change accordingly.

In their separate remarks, the Chairman of the Coronation Anniversary Planning Committee, Chief Peter Ejiofor and the Tourism Committee Chairman, Engr Chief Chris Chukwurah, commended Asagba Prof Azinge for his vision for Asaba and pledged their support for his leadership at all times.

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