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| Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu's trial and the different strokes of Masquerade |
The masquerade in Biafra is symbol of justice ,peace and unity ,while it is used to pervert justice in Niger-area
The Igbo masquerades, mmanwu, are traditional performances acted out by exclusive secret societies within a community.
These exclusive societies consist of adult male members. Each member must be initiated into the society. Their identity is known only to the other members. The main function of these societies is to celebrate the harvest and to entertain the village people. Some other functions include,enforcing the justice system, enforcing village curfews, protection, and as village security guards. The members, also known as masqueraders, wear masks to hide their identity from the rest of the village. The mask is also worn to resemble the spirit of a dead community member. By wearing the mask, a masquerader is thought to have spiritual powers that are conducted through the mask.
The living-dead are what these masquerade/spirits embody. Igbo people believe that the dead never actually die; rather they remain in a "personal immortal state". They reside somewhere between the earthly world and the spiritual world. These living-dead are believed to be closely related to those of the village. Since men are masqueraders, they are buried within their homes so their spirits may be close to their families (Chiene 10). The living-dead then return to the earthly world from time to time to offer spiritual advice. It is the living-dead, who the masquerade portrays.Wikipedia.
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‘’The egwugwu are a symbol of the culture and independence of the Umuofia. The egwugwu are seen as ancestral gods, though in actuality they are masked Umuofia elders. The egwugwu serve as respected judges in the community, listening to complaints and prescribing punishments and deciding conflicts. Just as the egwugwu are superstitiously thought to be the spirits of the Umuofia ancestors, for the sake of the novel, they are symbolically the spirit of the clan. When the egwugwu lose power in the community and are replaced by a white court, the clan’s culture and independence is lost.’’ Chinua Achebe.
On the trial of a Biafran citizen, Nnamdi Kanu, for proclaiming self determination of his indigenous people at the federal high court Abuja, the Nigerian government security agency (DSS), presented 3 masquerades to bear false witness against him, but the trial judge rejected the masquerades saying that it is very strange in jurisprudence to use masquerades as prosecution/defense witnesses .
Niger-area is indeed a very strange country.
Long live United State of Biafra.
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-M.M.Mbanaja.
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