Adajinege was of Ebira origin who had been told that the Igala people were all evil. He decided to check it for himself by putting the tribal marks of Igala on his cheeks and joining himself to them. Then he studied them and discovered they were not as described. Read in full: Doctufos:
11. Now a homo of Ebir who knew so well how to speak the language of the Igalites took a sharp object and made the tribal marks of the Igalites on his cheeks. And he looked exactly like an Igalite.
12. And he changed his name from Adajinege to Adaji. Now he went towards the side of the Igalites and they accepted him. And they loved him because he was outspoken. And they spoke many evil things to him concerning the Ebirites.
13. Now when Adaji continued to be with the Igalites, he began to make observations. And he knew that past tales and histories were the cause of tribalism and wars. And Adaji said, I shall do things which shall make many homos cease to be tribalistic.
14. Now Adaji went into the place dominated by the Ebirites. And he was not afraid of attacks from them, for they have already thought that he belonged to the Igalites and not to them.
15. And Adaji said to them, I have taken my life in my hands to come among you. Now I have few words to tell you. By what am I different from you? And they said, you are an Igalite but we are Ebirites. And there is no friendship between us.
16. And Adaji said, it is not impossible for us to cultivate friendship. For history of the past is that which fuels tribalism. But I have refused to build my mindset based on the histories and the stories I have heard from my parents.
17. For we are all homos and we are of the same species. Why then should we hate one another?
18. Now while Adaji spoke, some homos of Ebir got angry at him, but others accepted his sayings. And they did not let the angry ones lay hands on him.
19. And Adaji said, do you want to attack me because I am of the appearance of the Igalites? Now hear the truth, for I am an Ebirite. And I said within me, what is the difference between an Ebirite and an Igalite?
20. And I said, because I am not close to the Igalites, I may not know the difference. And I took the sharp object and made incisions of tribal marks of the Igalites on my cheek. And I learnt their language properly.
21. And I said, let me make a shortening of my name Adajinege and be called Adaji. And when the Igalites asked of my name, I said to them, I am Adaji. And by accident, there is a name like it in their culture also.
22. And they accepted me fully because they thought that I was one of them. And they loved me even more than they loved themselves, for I made myself appear perfect before them.
23. Now I learn that there is no real difference between an Ebirite and an Igalite except that which histories and tales from the past has made our head to believe. For we think that an Igalite cannot be good and they think also that an Ebirite can never be kind.
24. And what we believe appear so real to us that the only aspects we see in each other are the bad sides and not the good sides. For there is no race or Kingdom or tribe which has in it perfection or total toxication.
25. But every homo on earth is spotted with one or more unacceptable quality. For some homos love to dominate while some love to cause trouble. But if we correct each other in love and acceptance, we can move together.
26. Now I have been with the Igalites for ten years and I have not found them evil as we think. For they are social and behave well with one another. And I have been with the Ebirites my people also, and they take care of themselves.
27. But they detest the Igalites as the Igalites detest them also. And by continual hatred of each other with unending battles, the homos of other lands shall hear about us and detest both us and them.
28. And once this is achieved, we shall be detested in every place we go. And in return, we shall hate them also. And they shall see us and our land as a wicked land where there is no hospitality and tolerance.
29. Therefore let the Ebirites and the Igalites come together now, or else we shall be enemies to one another and make our land a dangerous place to live in.
30. Now the sayings of Adaji whose full name was Adajinege sank into the minds of some of the Ebirites. And they had change of minds, living peacefully in Ida. But the hearts of some remained hard, for their minds were totally infiltrated with wickedness such that they did not know how to clean it up. |
Doctufos: Otem Erectus 77:1-33
1. Now Adaji returned to the Igalites and said, what is the reason why we hate the Ebirites? And they said, have you not heard the histories which our parents passed to us? Do you not know how they have been very unfriendly to us?
2. Now Adaji said, I have heard it, but that was the histories of past things. Can we not turn history around for the homos of the future? Is it impossible for us to reconcile and make peace?
3. And they said, you are mad Adaji. How shall we go against the instructions of our ancestors? They began the bad blood and we must sustain it. For our fathers shall not be pleased with us if we allow the bad blood to end.
4. Now Adaji said, this is not true. For even our ancestors which that they could return to make amends of all the wrongs they have done to the earth. For tribalism and ethnicity is not the wish of our mother, earth.
5. Now tell me, in what way are you different from the Ebirites? You have two eyes and one mouth and one head, and the same have they also. And you have two hands and two legs and a navel, which they have also.
6. So why do you think we are different from them? And even if you think that we are different, does it matter that we cannot interact with one another?
7. The cat and the dog can be friends. So also are the chickens and the duck. They are different animals, but we are the same homoerectuses, but we make ourselves enemies. This is not good.
8. Now the homos said, we are different even in the tribal marks we make on our faces and in the manner of behaviour. For an Ebirite can never have a good behaviour, no matter how or where he is brought up.
9. When Adaji heard it, he cried out, saying, keep quiet! For it is bad to say what you do not know. I am indeed an Ebirite by birth. And I thought within myself, let me go close to the Igalites and make friends with them one on one. Then shall I know if the negative stories I have been told about the Igalites from childhood are true.
10. Then I approached some Igalites, saying, let us be friends. And they said to me, leave this place, for we do not want you to spoil us. For you Ebirites are evil inside out. And there is nothing good about anyone of you.
11. And when I returned home, I asked my parents, saying, is it true that there is nothing good about our character? And he said, do not be foolish my child. For we are good people, but only the Igalites are full of evil. And it is bad to associate with evil.
12. Therefore keep your distance from them. For they are full of wickedness and evil.
13. Now a day came when there was serious battle of the Ebirite and the Igalites that my father went and fought hard with the Igalites. And he was killed. And my mother died shortly after.
14. And they left only us, the children upon the earth. For we were three brothers. And when Akavo departed Ida, my two elder brothers said, follow us to the land where Akavo shall lead us. And I refused, saying, I shall remain in this land to see how to end the bad blood of the Ebirites and the Igalites which had begun in ages.
15. And they left me behind and followed Akavo. Then I said, I do not want to be treated by the Igalites like a stranger upon the land of Ida. Therefore I shall take a sharp thorn and make the tribal marks of the Igalites upon my face.
16. And I did so and came close to the places here in Ida where the Igalites occupy in multitude. And I wore rags so that I may appear as if I am incomplete in the head. And I walked round the land for two years, listening to the teasinss and the manner the Igalites speak.
17. And they came around me and played with me, for I amused them a lot. And a homo named Ache, being a very gentle and good lady, began to feed me daily. And she spoke with me more than every other person.
18. And I began to love her so much. And I said in my mind, it is time to reveal myself in my real handsomeness. For I know how to speak the language of the igalites already. So I went and shaved my dirty dreadlocks and my beards.
19. And I applied ointment on my body. And I was like a very handsome homo of Igala. And I went to the place where I often dwelt, among the slums. And I saw Ache coming there to seek me so that she might feed me with ogidigbo which she had wrapped in a forijobu.
20. And she did not see me in the place where I dwelt, but my dirty hair and beards did she see. And she feared that the ritualistic had come for me and had killed me.
21. And she wept. And when she came to the town again, I went close to her, but she did not recognise me. For I did not look like the mad homo in any way. For all the blackness of my body and the rottenness of my teeth have I watched away.
22. And my fair skin was made fresh and shiny with ointment.
23. Now I began to go close to Ache and she did not know that I am one with the mad homo. And she always felt disturbed. And when I asked her why, she said, the mad homo whom I always take care of has been kidnapped for ritual by the Ebirites.
24. And I said to her, how do you know that it is the Ebirites who came to kidnap and kill him? And she said, they are all evil. And they can do such thing.
25. And I said, why do you hate the Ebirites so much like this? Will you cease to speak evil of them if you get married to one of them? And Ache said, may our ancestors forbid that I marry an Ebirite.
26. For I would rather marry a mad man instead of an Ebirite.
27. Now Ache became my wife unknowingly. And when she was my wife for twelve months, I told her that I am an Ebirite. And she was very shocked. And I said, will you reject me now and go for another homo? I was not Adaji from birth but Adajinege.
28. Now make your choice, for I am an Ebirite who has come into the midst of the Igalites to prove them wrong in the mentality of their minds. For they say that all Ebirites are evil. And the ladies of Igala forbid to marry the men of Ebir.
29. Now also, the mad homo whom you give food in the slum is me. And I did this so that I could come close to the Igalites to learn their language properly. And I made the tribal mark of the Igalites on my face so that I could be accepted. For I know that even the mad homos of every land are not totally cast away and hated as a tribe hates another tribe.
30. Now Ache wept and felt ashamed. And she changed her thought concerning me and my people. And she alone knows that I am not an Igalite but an Ebirite until this moment which I tell you this story.
31. Now when the friends of Adaji(Adajinege) had heard all that he told them, they were speechless. And none of them could raise a finger to hurt him because they still saw him as one of them. And they had loved him so much for many years.
32. And they stood by Adaji(Adajinege) to tell other Igalites his story and to make them change their mentality towards the Ebirites. And Adaji(nege) went to many and said, your choice today shall determine how the future of our land shall be.
33. For a land full of tribalism shall be resistant to development, because no rich and intelligent soul shall seek to dwell in a place where there is tribal war often. Therefore let the Ebirites and the Igalites be one. So my advice to Nigerians is that we should stop hating on other tribes. Let Igbos love Yorubas and Hausas, vice versa. The civil war of 19something has gone, let us forgive ourselves and move on. #SayNoToTribalism |
