Interesting Facts You Should Know about The Igala People: A Documentary
- Olori Tana
- May 21, 2021
- 21 min read
Updated: May 24, 2021
Some years ago, I was a freelance writer for Connect Nigeria where I wrote on topics covering people and lifestyle. In the course of my stint with them, I wrote articles on Kabba, Okun and Ebira, all ethnic tribes in Kogi State. Not once did it cross my mind that I would physically visit the state. As fate worked itself out, the year 2021 led me all the way to Kogi State and landed me in a kingdom I had only heard about but did not get the chance to write about.
The trip to Idah in Igala Kingdom was circumstantial, being that it was primarily to attend my closest friend’s traditional wedding ceremony. It was as if pre-planned by the Universe for me to experientially learn certain lessons, but I digress.
Geographical Location
The Igala Kingdom is located on the eastern side of the confluence of rivers Niger and Benue. It can pass for an island, bordered by Enugu, river Niger, Anambra and Benue states on the west, east, south and north respectively. The kingdom consists of Bassa, Igalamela/Odolu, Ofu, Idah, Ankpa, Omala, Dekina, Olamaboro and Ibaji local government areas with their headquarters situated in Idah - the town that I visited.
History/Origin of the Igala People
As it is with several other legends, there is not one historical account agreed upon as the sole, authentic history of the Igalas. From experience both as a professional writer and student of history, origin histories, when not documented, usually get lost through the passage of years and the natural human inability to repeat a narration exactly how it was told to them - there would either be some additions or deletions. Therefore, what we do is juxtapose every single account that narrates similar facts, poses a strong sense of viability and can be proved.
Interestingly though, I was able to find one journal by an indigene that met the above criteria and I would be basing my account majorly on his write-up. On an aside, the gentleman must have been pretty upset when he was writing the journal. He must have been worn and torn from hearing incorrect narrations of the descent of his precious pedigree. I do not fault him. As you will soon see, the Igalas protect their ancestry strictly.
There are historical accounts that suggest that the Igalas came from the Wukari tribe in Taraba State. Other legends posit that they have their ancestry culled out of Benin, Yoruba, Jukun, Igbo and Nupe tribes. However, (Adojoh, 253) clearly proves that the Igalas have their origin from ancient Egypt and have been in existence from the beginning of the world. They were originally called ‘Gala/Galla’ (an ancient Egyptian word), meaning ‘free men’ or ‘children of the soil’. The new name ‘Igala’ is a lexical change that occurred due to the language’s morphological rule - to place the ‘i’ vowel before words beginning with a consonant letter.
The Igalas, being indigenes in ancient Egypt, were heavily involved in nation building. In 3150 BC, they took part in unifying lower Egypt (where they resided close to the River Nile) and upper Egypt, and were a part of the Pharaoh Ruling Council in the third dynasty between 2686 BC and 2613 BC, tenth dynasty from 2130 BC to 2040 BC and the 12th dynasty (1991 BC to 1802 BC). Following the occurrences of natural disasters such as famine, harsh weather conditions, constant foreign invasions and eventually, an outbreak of war in 700 BC, the Igalas migrated from Egypt, travelling along the river Nile - which satisfactorily explains why they are currently settled by the river Niger. Their first settlement was in Wukari, Taraba state, where they lived for about 200 years. It was in 500 BC after many other people had joined them that they left Wukari and moved to a new location where they finally settled. This new location is the present-day Idah in Kogi state.
The Journey to Idah
Like I said, I did not know there was a town called Idah in Kogi state even though I had written quite a lot about the state. It was going to be my first time there and I looked forward to it, more so, because I was going to witness a different culture and my love for road trips. (Never mind that I am rethinking that love now because of the terrible state of Nigerian roads, unnerving traffic jams and poor customer care and satisfaction from transport companies.)
Unlike me, I did not do my research about the state before embarking on this trip. When I was going to serve under the National Youth Service Scheme (NYSC) in 2015, I researched everything I needed to know about Bayelsa state where I had been posted to, including its location on the map, weather conditions, their lifestyle, local government areas and towns, available foods and amenities. This time around, for some unknown reasons, I relied only on what my friend - who I was travelling with - and my boyfriend told me.
Cheney (my friend) had narrated her experience to me when she travelled down there to inform the elders of her wedding date and plans. She told me of the red sand and how it was quick to stain one’s dress. On the day we went to shop for her wedding shoes, she listed as one of her specifications that she would prefer kitten heels because of the rocky terrain. With this information, I knew to pack dark coloured clothes and shoes with balanced soles/heels.
On the other hand, my boyfriend who had also visited Idah told me about the federal polytechnic there. He also informed me that life was boring in Idah, that is, there is virtually no exciting recreational activity one can engage oneself with while in the town. That was quite discouraging but since I wasn’t going mainly for vacation, I thought that it shouldn’t be much of a challenge. Notwithstanding, I made sure to load my phone with data for surfing the internet to combat possible boredom.
As the date drew closer, my friend dropped a bombshell. “We will be crossing a river on a barge boat.” She announced as we were discussing.
“Wait, what?” I did not know what a barge was but I heard “boat” and “river”, and my brain was trying hard to process how travelling to Idah had anything to do with boat and river.
“There is no other way to go?” I asked to get an assurance that there were other options.
“No,” she replied. She went on to explain that the reasons why she chose this new route by water had to do with bad roads, insecurity (possible kidnap attack), and that the Okene route was longer and dustier.
She offered to show me what a barge looked like and I don’t think it helped to allay my fears in any way.
She must have seen my fears plastered on my face. “The vehicle will be on the barge too and you can stay inside the car. They allow only a few people who are hydrophobic to stay in the car.” She tried to soothe me.
Already exhausted from still trying to process this new piece of information, I said to her, “I’ll be one of the few people to stay back in the car.”
When I informed my boyfriend of the “development” and the reasons she gave, he had a different opinion but since I would be going with my friend and not my boyfriend, I had to prepare my mind to conquer my fear.
As the Yorubas say, “B’á a bá dá ogún ọjọ́, ogún ọjọ́ á á pé. Bí a bá dá ọgbọ̀n oṣù, ọgbọ̀n oṣù á á pé. Ẹgbẹ̀rún ọjọ́ ń bọ̀ wá ku ọjọ́ kan.” Meaning, no matter how far away tomorrow may seem, it will eventually become today. Before long, the travel date we set came and with our luggage, we hit the road.
The Idah park (where vehicles going to Idah from Lagos loaded from) was somewhere in Ajah, five minutes’ drive to Abraham Adesanya. We arrived at the park at 5:47 am and did not take off until five minutes past seven in the morning. That did not bode well for me; it is a flaw in management and I think it can be fixed by setting take-off time so that travellers know when to arrive at the park as against having to sit and wait for an oddly long duration of time. It would also ensure latecomers get to the park in time and prevent cases whereby the driver has to turn back the other way facing the park to pick late birds, as was the case on our trip. We arrived at Lakowe Lakes at 7:26 am and the driver received a call to come back to the park for two passengers. No way were we taking a twenty minutes drive back to the park. We asked him to tell the two people to get a ride down to where we were. We would stop at a major bus stop for easy locating. Tell you what, about an hour later, we ended up not carrying one of the two passengers who arrived later and had plenty of luggage that the driver wasn't willing to transport. We finally got back on the road and officially commenced our journey to Idah at 8:25 am.
Road trips should be fun but it is not entirely the case in Nigeria. Bad roads, long-term road constructions and redundant cum anomalous police road blocks along the way all combine to make it frustrating. The condition of the roads makes it difficult for a smooth drive, hence causing traffic jam. Then, policemen and road safety officials mount blockades on the roads few meters apart from one another and seize every opportunity to milk road users of their money. Besides the apprehension this causes, it makes the traffic unbearable. A female road safety official was nearly crushed by a trailer because she wanted to collect “something”.
We travelled from Ajah to Ijebu through Epe. By 10:14 am, we were at 49 Village in Okitipupa Local Government Area, Ondo state. Driving through Obatedo, Arilewo, and Gbotalota towns, we finally arrived in Ore at 26 minutes past 12 noon. Not far from the Ore main station was Agogboro, Costain. This community had a finely built bus park for interstate travellers.
We travelled from Ajah to Ijebu through Epe. By 10:14 am, we were at 49 Village in Okitipupa Local Government Area, Ondo state. Driving through Obatedo, Arilewo, and Gbotalota towns, we finally arrived in Ore at 26 minutes past 12 noon. Not far from the Ore main station was Agogboro, Costain. This community had a finely built bus park for interstate travellers.
One of the perks of road trips for me is buying snacks hawked in traffic. The one thing I look forward to whenever we have to travel to my hometown is buying Ibadan bread and àkàrà Osú (Osu’s special akara). But this trip was different. The snacks that the hawkers had for sale were either unfamiliar or something I do not eat - pepper fruit, kola nut, bitter kola, walnuts and groundnuts. In fact, one mallam had rubber mats and catapults for sale. That one cracked me up.
Another essential thing to consider when embarking on a journey is confirming the driver’s efficiency - knowledge of road networks and speed limit. If you are unlucky to ride with the kind of driver we had, you have to prepare your mind to be on the road all day long. While at it, consider the rigmarole around different unknown towns to your list of added benefits, only be ready to discover the names of the towns by yourself.
From Ore to Benin which should have been 55 minutes (110km), we spent 1 hour 33 minutes on the road. As if that was not enough, we spent another 2 hours driving in and out of Edo and Ondo states thus causing us to arrive at Auchi at 3:57 pm. From Auchi, we travelled through Ayogwiri to Iraokhor to Fugar, all in Etsako LGA.
The road trip gets interesting from here.
All the while, I had been fascinated by the sight of a hunched structure protruded about two or three feet upwards from the ground. When the car drove past the first one, I assumed it to be a shrine or low hut because of its round shape and zinc roofing. It wasn’t until we kept seeing more of the same structure and upon closer study of the structure that it dawned. I’ll let you guess.
It was my first time to see that type of well and while I engrossed myself with thoughts of why they chose to build wells that were nearly half as tall as their houses, I saw a signboard that indicated that we were within the Agenebode community.
Agenebode was a much-talked-about town by my boyfriend. He had continuously informed (read that as ‘tease’) me the days leading to the day of the trip that we would ride on a boat from Agenebode. When I saw that signboard, my heart struck a hard beat. Reality was gradually dawning on me: this is where my strength and courage would be tested. I was unsure of my readiness as I had spent the entire duration of the journey intentionally not thinking about that one last and major lap of the journey.
We arrived in Agenebode town at 4:38 pm and seventeen minutes later, we were at the Agenebode border. The picture below is one of me taking a long look at the river that would decide my fate and prove my ability to do what would otherwise be my own ‘impossible’.
At the river border, there was a lady, possibly in her late twenties, who coordinated shipping activities. She ensured that travellers who wished to use the boat were served on a first-come-first-served basis. Their normal standard was to wait until three vehicles were available for shipping. Each vehicle was billed a sum of three thousand naira.
It did not matter when the vehicles arrived, if your vehicle arrived first or second, you had to wait for the other two or one as the case may be. Our car arrived rather late which meant we had to wait indefinitely for two other vehicles. I guess the driver of our car could not bear that condition - as if he was new to the arrangement - and so, he began to throw tantrums. Before we knew it, he was already making a man-over-woman-case fight. Irritated by his behaviour, I stepped away from the car and moved closer to the water to familiarise myself with her.
There was an uncompleted structure a few metres away from the river bank. A closer look at it suggested that it may be an unsuccessful overhead bridge project. This is a common denominator beneath projects in Nigeria - either they take decades to get done, are done substandardly, or they are done halfway and left as a monumental eyesore. The latter is the case for this bridge.
Imagine it was built to completion. Certainly, the roads leading to the bridge would be constructed as well. Can you picture the magnificence of a bridge flying over the river? Besides the beauty, a bridge at Agenebode will guarantee safety of travellers and also save time and money.
After waiting for fifty minutes, the two drivers in line decided to split the extra cost between themselves. We wouldn't have had to wait for that long and the drivers would have saved some money if there was a bridge. I wondered what would be left for the driver after filling his fuel tank at least three times on the trip, had “settled” several policemen along the way and had to pay to cross a river, for a trip that cost nine thousand naira per passenger with a total of six passengers in the Sienna.
We were loaded onto the boat next, after the cars, and took off from the shore a minute or two later after the boat boys refilled their tank and made sure the engine was in good order. The ride was smooth except for one time when the boat seemed to have made a jerking sound. My heart nearly stopped. At that point, I thought of the possibility of a boat breaking down in the middle of the river. Stop that line of thought, Tana. But seriously, anything can happen and for a river where one can hardly come across another commuter, the risks are higher.
On the other hand, I saw an opportunity that the government can maximise for their own economic profit and global visibility. The view on the river was a beautiful sight. The island would be great for an island resort where people could go to for vacation and events. Part of the area can be developed for residential purpose thus making water transportation more lucrative for the local dwellers. Visitors who cannot afford accommodation on the island will have an alternative option which is Idah town. This would lead to the development of the town, cause a boost in their lifestyle and be a source of revenue both to the natives and government.
Anyway, after a 42-minutes sail, our boat finally reached our destination - the shore at Idah, down the hill from Ega, the biggest market in the town, I presume. Also in Ega, they had a mill for processing their locally grown rice. Take it from me, they have a good one. The rice is sweet.
As we drove past Ega market, my friend pointed ahead and announced that one Princess Inikpi was buried alive somewhere there in the market during a war. This was an act of sacrifice to restore peace in the town. Further up the road from the market was King Attah’s Palace. Attah is the titular name for their king. Again, my friend informed me that the incumbent king was late and they had yet to install another king. She did not tell me why but I later found out the reason from her brother.
Recall I said that the Igalas guard their ancestry with jealous pride. My friend's brother revealed that the Am ’Onus (chiefs) were yet to install a new king because they needed to do a thorough screening of the candidates lineage as they are averse to crowning one who is not a full-blooded Igala as King. The children of the deceased king, one of whom should have been next in line, do not qualify because it was discovered after their father was enthroned that he is not a direct descendant of the Igala clan. I was dumbfounded.
It started with chit-chat. I was with her two brothers. Somehow, the conversation got stirred in another direction and out of the blues, her immediate younger brother blurted, “You know that not all Igalas are fully Igala?” My brows furrowed as I asked him what he meant. He went on to explain that there are the original Igalas and the immigrants who came later. His brother and I unanimously disagreed with him. I countered the idea on the ground that if they have been with the tribe for so long, having forsaken their former identity and chosen Igala as their preferred tribe, then they qualify as original. He didn't buy our idea and he reiterated that no unauthentic indigene will be allowed to sit on Attah's throne.
In hindsight, after discovering their origin, I think I can partly agree with him. Unlike many other tribes that are constituted of people from different tribes, the Igalas have their own origin traced all the way to ancient Egypt. This is similar to a tribe like Yoruba. On the other hand, I still think that if one has decided to identify with a new tribe different from the one they used to be, then they should be embraced as aborigines, after all, that is the meaning of Igala. In fact, in Yoruba land, once a person has been living in a particular town for at least ten years and has positively contributed to the growth of the town in one way or another, he or she is referred to as ọmọ onílẹ̀ (literally, child of the land owner; better put: indigene).
How is it done in your own tribe?
Life in Idah
The day after we arrived in Idah - Wednesday, I woke up with an enthusiasm to “see” the town. The night before had been uncomfortable due to the barrage of mosquitoes and sweltering temperature; it was difficult to have a good sleep. Made it to dawn and the sunrise made up for the discomfort. Sunrise in Idah was a beautiful sight just as sunset on the confluence of the river was breathtaking.
The weather in Idah is blazing hot. Sun rises early in the morning and begins to scorch the skin immediately. Maybe due to the structure of their houses, or the absence of trees except in front of residences, there is no form of shade. For this reason, the atmosphere is always hot at 36 to 39 degrees on most days.
Our itinerary for the day was short. First, we had to wash the car and then go in search of a makeup artist for her traditional wedding ceremony. My friend drove the two of us down to the stream to have the car washed. The stream is used as a car wash and laundry spot. People drive their vehicles there to be washed for a fee whereas others go to launder clothes and my guess is that it is a commercial chore as well. But that is not all about the stream. It has an interesting story.
First, you should know that the stream is a small body of water deep enough to reach one slightly above the ankle. The stream runs from one side of the town through a bush of bamboo trees and flows to the other side of the town under a culvert that must have been built to allow for easy road passability. To the side and back of the stream are bamboo trees, some of which have been cut down to make benches for people to sit on while they wait for their vehicles.
As we walked to the shed naturally created by the bamboo trees, we saw a small market ahead and decided to window-shop. To the right, something caught my eyes. It was a statue with a name painted on the base - “Princess Oma-Odoko”. When I asked my friend about it, she relayed how there had been a battle over ownership of the stream. In the heat of the battle, Princess Oma sacrificed her life by submerging herself into the earth alive. That way, she claimed the stream for her town’s people and she, on the other hand, has become a revered entity. Her statue was erected to immortalise her and the people worship and offer sacrifices to her.
Initially, the story was amusing because I could not grasp why anyone would want to die for a stream - a small one for that matter. However, I saw something that changed my disposition towards the legend. While we were at the stream, a man visited Oma and said greetings before going ahead to make supplications. It was then it dawned on me that the people of the town must consider her a powerful being to have that much faith in her to the point of visiting her site to offer requests. My friend hinted that people often dropped money at Oma’s feet. There was also a shrine behind the statue where rites and rituals are performed and one can see strips of white and red fabrics tied to the bamboo branches as an indication of the sacredness of the stream.
With all those details, a sense of reverence came upon me and I felt a level of respect for her bravery. A study of our African traditional legends - I can speak for the Yoruba tribe - will show you that in the ancient times, rather than be captured or killed by an enemy, warriors and powerful men and women preferred to transform themselves to inanimate objects, disappear, commit suicide or enter under the ground alive. It was how they expressed courage and so counted as heroes.
Visiting the stream exposed my mind. You see, one will not know how other people live until one has lived among them or mingled with them for a while. The boys and men I saw at the stream behaved rather brashly in a manner that gave away their little or outright lack of exposure. They left their clients’ jobs and bickered endlessly over a trivial matter. The experience practically showed me that there are some things that are invaluable - education (not just schooling), experience and exposure. One may acquire them with a sum of money at the initial instance, however, in the future, they would be the treasure that makes one exceptional.
A typical day in Idah starts with children leaving for school while the women go about doing chores and getting breakfast ready. They seem to live a lax life. Children leave for school at around 8am in the morning and close by 1pm. It is not uncommon to still see shops closed at 10am; they are open whenever you see them open and they close whenever they choose to. There is a distinction between the Ibos and indigenes in the town. This is evident in how the two different categories operate their businesses. Any shop you see open from the hours of eight or nine in the morning is most likely to be an Ibo trader’s shop.
They are mainly farmers and popular among their farm produce is rice. They are naturally blessed with cashew, mango and neem. In case you would like to invest in any of these cash crops, Idah might just be the place to go; neem trees grow like grass there. The major means of transportation around the town is motorcycles - both men and women ride motorcycles. Cars are used for intrastate trips while buses are for interstate travels and their cars, the size of a Volkswagen, carry up to six or seven passengers depending on the location.
Their main dish in Idah is oje akpa (literally, ‘food corn’). It is a mixture of blended corn and cassava turned on heat into a meal. Oje akpa can be eaten with any kind of soup but they mostly prefer to eat it with okra soup. They also eat okpa made with Bambara nuts. It looks and tastes like moi moi. In place of akara made from beans, they use the same Bambara nuts fried in palm oil to make their own akara. By my own judgement, based on how they both tasted, I will recommend moi moi over okpa any time. Moi moi is tastier, more delicious and creamier than okpa that tasted dry and sandy, especially the akara.
Their language
What is the point in visiting a town and not learning a bit of their language? A people’s language is one of the ways to distinguish them from another group of people. The people of Idah speak Idah dialect under the Igala language, a member of the Yoruboid language group. This is the same branch under which the Yoruba language falls. It explains why some of their lexicons are similar to those contained in Yoruba language. As seen in Adejoh’s journal article referenced above, the Igala language originated from ancient Egypt where they used to be natives. Therefore, similarities can be found between the two languages. Similarly, these same words are present in Yoruba language with slight variations.
See the image below.
I digressed because the above chart proves the legend that the Yoruba tribe has been in existence almost from the beginning of the world but our focus is on Idah, so I shall continue.
Moving on - I learnt how to say greetings in Idah language.
Olodudu /ólodúdú/ - good morning
Oroka /ọrọ́kà/ - good afternoon
Olane /ọ́làanẹ̀/ - good evening
Olaale /ọ́làalẹ̀/- welcome; welcome from market - olaajá
Nago /naago/ - hello
Abuo eha /àbúòẹhà/ - How is the family?
The people greet almost everyone they meet along their way but the women add an extra flair to theirs - greeting with monosyllabic vowels: eh, ah and oh.
Something like:
Woman A: Olodudu
Woman B: Eh, olodudu
Woman A: Nago
Woman B: Eh
Woman A: Eh
Woman B: Eh
Woman A: Eh
Woman B: Ah
Woman A: Abuoeha
Woman B: Lafia
Woman A: Eh
Woman B: Eh
Woman A: Eh
Woman B: Eh
Woman A: Eh
Wedding Ceremony in Idah
In Nigeria, weddings are mostly conducted in about three to four stages depending on the tribe and religion or beliefs of the couples involved. The stages are:
Introduction
Court wedding
Traditional wedding, and
Religious wedding (AKA “White wedding” (for Christians) or “Nikah” (for Muslims)
Stages one and three are the commonest of all four stages. The introduction ceremony is where intending couples introduce one another to their parents and would-be in-laws. Whereas the civil ceremony typically takes place in a marriage registry, the traditional ceremony is hosted by the bride’s family and performed according to the customs of the family of the bride. This explains why it is called “traditional wedding”. Religious weddings on the other hand are held in religious centres. The ceremony rites are dictated by the doctrines of the denomination and officiated by ministers or clerics as the case may be.
Experiencing how traditional wedding ceremonies are conducted in the Igala tribe was the highlight of my trip. Months before the wedding, the introduction ceremony had taken place in her father’s house. In their tribe, only immediate family members on both sides are required to be present at the ceremony. It was during this visit that the groom and his family were presented with the bride price list.
Traditional wedding ceremony in Igala land commences any time from three p.m. and is presided over by the eldest man and woman in the bride’s father’s family. On the day fixed for the wedding, loosely called engagement in Nigeria, the groom along with his friends and key family members arrived at the bride’s house at around 3pm. During this closed meeting without the bride, the groom presents the items on the list. They also bargain bride price - the figure which would only be made known on the day of the traditional wedding ceremony.
After that is done, the bride is ushered out by her friends - who are expected to be dressed in the same fabric attire - and some housewives (wives of the male children in the family). In my friend’s case, she had only two of us - myself and her sister. We danced with her round the arena while she greeted the people (guests and family members), including her husband, and the guests, in return, sprayed her money in appreciation of her appearance and courtesy. Once we had danced round the arena, we went back inside the house with her through the other exit, and that marked the end of the first outing.
For the second outing, the traditional head tie - Igala Achi - is the highlight of the bride’s outfit. Igala Achi is akin to the aso-oke of the Yorubas. It comprises of their theme colours: yellow, green and black.
Like the first time, we danced out with only two of her friends but this time, we did not greet the audience. We simply danced until we got to where her family elders were seated. Traditionally in the Igala tribe, the family elders are the ones who receive the gifts, kola nuts and bride price on behalf of the bride’s parents. For that reason, the elders (three old men and an elderly woman) sit up front to perform the rites with the assistance of the spokesperson (for the groom) and a mediator (on the bride’s side).
A new mat is spread out on the floor in front of the elders and a piece of Ankara fabric spread over the mat. When the bride and her friends arrive at this spot, the mediator will tell the groom and his family to drop some money on the mat before she is asked to sit. The money is simply for appreciation. Next, the groom dances out with his friends and greets his in-laws before going to sit on his own mat laid down behind the bride’s.
The moderator hands over a bowl of kola nuts to the bride which she presents to the oldest man and another to be presented to the elderly woman. The elderly man receives the bowl from the bride after she must have affirmed thrice that there would be no problems or regrets after he might have received the kola. As for the woman, she received it without asking questions and said prayers in return.
The elders and her father took turns to offer pieces of advice to the bride and warned the groom against any form of abuse on their daughter. They reminded him that he was taking her away in one good piece and she must remain in one good piece. This part of the ceremony is beautiful because it clearly shows that they will never condone maltreatment of their daughter for no reason at all.
Thereafter, the bride and groom were formally presented as a couple and were directed through the cutting of their cake. The rest of the evening was spent taking pictures.
From my own experience, I think the people of Idah take life as it comes. All through my 5-days stay in the town, I could not help wondering how they enjoyed life in such a place. Their houses did not have wells or boreholes, so water did not flow inside the house. There were no recreational centres and my friend told me the story of her cousin who was opportune to go to Lagos but refused to stay, on the grounds that she was missing her friends and the town. I could not understand the rationale but much later, I came to a resolve that the Yoruba proverb is valid. It says, "Ibi a bá ń gbé là ń ṣe." (People make the best of whatever environment they find themselves.)
It was, however, impressive to see a federal polytechnic in the town - Federal Polytechnic, Idah (FPI). Idah definitely abounds with great potentials yet untapped.
References
Adojoh, Ayegba. 2020. “A Study of Igala Origin: An Evidence-Based Approach.” International Journal of Trend in Research and Development 7 (4): 250-254. http://www.ijtrd.com/papers/IJTRD22272.pdf.
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