Pedro Adukpo-Egi, a retired Major in the Nigerian Army and head chief of Ikata group of war-canoe houses, was proud of his heritage as a son of Nembe Kingdom. He was particularly proud of the exploits of Ikata, Mingi II, Amanyanabo of Nembe, who led the kingdom to war against encroaching neighbours. From the day he was chalked as Chief Ikata, Adukpo-Egi saw himself as a reincarnation of the warrior king who couldn’t wait to engage the next challenger in combat.
Standing at an impressive six feet plus seven inches, Pedro did not make light of the advantage he had in height. It was an asset that gave him easy recognition in the army as a young man. He was a head taller than everyone, including his senior officers. He stood out in the rank and file of soldiers lined up on the regular parade ground. He had the voice of a commander who could call the platoon to order in readiness for war, and Adukpo-Egi was active at the battle front in the heat of the Nigeria-Biafra war, for the better part of thirty gruelling months.
He was commander of his platoon, and earned the respect of his troops on account of his record of discipline, honour and courage. These were character traits that even his course mates at the Nigerian Defence Academy could vouch for, including General Abdulsalami Abdullahi Abubakar, former Head of State, and Major General Mohammed Christopher Ali, former Chief of Army Staff, and a one-time Military Administrator of Plateau State.
Adukpo-Egi was one of the nine signatories on the proposal for the creation of Bayelsa State, the only Nembe man on the list. He was present at every meeting pertaining to the creation of Bayelsa State from the first day Dr. Amba Ambaowei put out the first notice. He was overjoyed the day the state was created. For him, it amounted to the manifestation of the proverbial Promised Land. On the morning of Tuesday, 1 October 1996 that Promised Land was created as a political entity, and the aspirations of the southern minority in Nigeria came to pass.
Adukpo-Egi’s comments on the eventual creation of Bayelsa State still resound along the corridors of history. In ‘The Tide on Sunday’ edition of that week, he described the event as a most glorious achievement. He said: ‘It marked a turning point in the history of the people, and what’s truly remarkable about it is that it came to pass without a drop of blood’. As a staunch stakeholder and a signatory to the document endorsing the creation of Bayelsa State by General Sani Abacha, Chief Pedro Adukpo-Egi was a founding father of Glory Land. Not surprisingly, he was consulted on crucial issues at critical moments in the life of the state.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan admits that he had to go in search of Adukpo-Egi when he emerged as the party choice for Vice President, rising later to become President. It came to Jonathan’s notice that Adukpo-Egi commanded great influence amongst his people, and his charisma was as obvious as his height, ranking as the first chief in the history of Nembe to have enjoyed a four-tenure return as Chairman of the Nembe Chiefs Council from November 1987 to May 1990, then from July 1992 to November 1994. Afterwards, he was recalled to the same exalted office and served from August 2001 to December 2001, and again from 28 December 2001 to 27 December 2003. In all that time, the admirable qualities, which stood him out in the Army, his sense of discipline, honour, and courage were demonstrated for one and all to see.
Adukpo-Egi joined the Nigerian Army in 1957, right after secondary school. He had a series of military training programmes and educational courses within and outside the country. After rising to the rank of Sergeant, he was granted Regular Combatant Commission on completion of a Cadet Training at the Nigeria Defence Academy, Kaduna. A senior cadet in this course, he was duly commissioned as an officer on the rank of Sub-Lieutenant. Prior to his commission, he was an education instructor at the Nigeria Army Education Centre. He rose to the rank of Major in 1974.
He was a platoon commander during the Nigerian civil war, an Adjutant Company Commander, Battle Group Commander, as well as Commanding Officer, Infantry Division. He was wounded in action, hit by enemy fire at the war front, a bullet tearing through his right arm, and another cutting through his lower abdomen. It so happened that he had a small compact Holy Bible in his field jacket. Till his last day, he was convinced that the Bible, torn to tatters by the bullet, saved his life. Not surprisingly, he became a life member of the Bible Society of Nigeria in later years.
After the war, he continued to command infantry battalions and was Acting Brigade Commander in several parts of the country. From being in charge at the Second Division Rear Task Force, Ikeja, Lagos, he was moved to man the 186 Infantry Battalion, Nigerian Army, Benin and Ibadan. From there to 202 Infantry Battalion, Ore, was a short walk. His next assignment took him to 133 Infantry Battalion, Nigerian Army, Owo, from where he moved to 131 Infantry Battalion, Osogbo.
He was Brigade Major at 7 Infantry Battalion, Sokoto, from where he relocated to 65 Infantry Battalion, Sokoto. He became Acting Brigade Commander, 7 Infantry Brigade, Nigerian Army, Sokoto, and was subsequently posted to the 71 Infantry Battalion, Nigeriab Army, Gusau. His stay at 184 Infantry Battalion, Okitipupa, was equally eventful when he moved to DAA & QMQ 2 Infantry Brigade, Nigerian Army, Port Harcourt. In all these stations, Adukpo-Egi showed himself to be an exceptional officer with great leadership qualities.
In a citation on Major Adukpo-Egi in Sokoto in 1976, his field commander, Brigadier-General Samuel Femi Daramola described him as an epitome of great morale in battle. He was referring to the brave impetus that Adukpo-Egi gave to his troops in the heat of war. This became obvious when he was shot and carried away. His troops did not hesitate to leave the battle field for fear of being routed. Without his presence, in short, his troops felt they were no longer safe. In other words, the flock retreated when the shepherd was hit. Ironically, the enemy troops retreated too, and the area soon became a no-man’s land. That was a measure of the morale the young officer exuded for his troops to imbibe.
As Field Marshall Viscount Montgomery of Alamein would say, ‘morale is the most important factor on which war potential is built’. Major Adukpo-Egi personified that morale. It was not a routine indulgence in the Nigerian Army to send war despatches at that time. Otherwise, he could have been mentioned in despatches from the time he was a young lieutenant. As may be expected, owing to the serious injuries sustained in action, he was boarded, obliged to undertake a medical discharge, and retired in May 1980 as a Major, bringing to an end the remarkable military career of a brave officer.
The young officer was proud of a few extra-regimental engagements that came his way in the course of time. To start with, in 1977, at the height of the campaign against apartheid, he served as Chairman, South Africa Relief Fund Raising in Gusau Local Government Area, and was reputed to have raised the highest donation among local government areas in the country. That came as a mark of Adukpo-Egi’s ability to mobilise men and materials for a given purpose. He was virtually taking a cue from four years back, in December 1973, when he made a wholesome contribution to the National Drought Relief Fund on behalf of the Opu Nembe Descendants Union, Owo branch.
What’s more, he organised the largest Operation Feed The Nation farm in the Nigerian Army at Gusau, Sokoto State. He was particularly proud of the day General Olusegun Obasanjo, Head of State, visited the farm and commended him for his exemplary effort. That visit enabled the young officer to interact closely with the Head of State, and to make valuable suggestions to government on a number of national issues.
In the days following his retirement from the army, Major Adukpo-Egi had to make a conscious effort adjusting to life as a civilian. He had to cope with drastic alterations in his military routine, and take a new dramatic involvement with everyday life without uniform and boots and parade ground salutes. Before long, he became a business man who could safely go by the name of a contractor.
He also went into providing security services for willing clients, and embarked on fishing expeditions in a bid to make an occupation out of fishery. He entered into partnership with several companies like Opuada Company Nigeria Limited, Topmark Fishing Company, African Security Services, and Savannah Sugar Company, amongst others, where he served in management positions.
In the early 1980s, in the face of Melford Okilo’s rise as a politician of national renown, Adukpo-Egi also went into partisan politics for a short period, contesting for a position in Brass Local Government Area (LGA). In the end, he became Chairman of the defunct National Party of Party, covering Nembe, Brass, and Ogbia. He had a natural zest for service, a willingness to be relevant in the affairs of his community. It was clear soon enough that he couldn’t do this through politics, but that did not deter him.
The fact that he was a soldier did not necessarily take away his humanity. He would not live a rigid and stern existence all his life. Even while in the army, he was known to be a sociable person, and he was prepared to demonstrate that even more as a civilian. And so, in a bid to be of service to his people, he took active part in several social clubs, one of which was known as the Senocratic Society of Nembe. This was a socio-cultural group where people from all walks of life would gather in Nembe, mainly during festive periods to celebrate, interact in the open, and come up with ideas that would project the culture and united brotherhood of the Nembe society.
On 10 November 1979, Adukpo-Egi was elected as head chief of the King Ikata war canoe house, the oldest war canoe house in Nembe kingdom, comprising Chiefs Oruwari and Kemmer group of Houses, and all the communities under their ambit. As a mark of his popularity amongst his people, he was elected in absentia, and thereafter informed of the eventuality. He was officially installed by the Amanyanabo of Nembe, HRM Justice Ambrose Ezeolisa Alagoa, Mingi XI, at a colourful ceremony on 18 January 1980, at Opu-Polotiri, Nembe.
As it was in the days when he was a soldier, he was the tallest in the line-up of chiefs, and his new chieftaincy regalia sat well on him. As God would have it, he found favour in the eyes of the king, and became the king’s closest ally. From that day onward, Adukpo-Egi dedicated his time, energy, resources and blood to the services of the King Ikata group of chieftaincy Houses and the entire Nembe-Ibe. His involvement was so complete and his charismatic leadership so evident that he became chairman of the Nembe Chiefs Council for four eventful tenures, the only war-canoe chief that holds that distinction in Nembe history. The fact bears repeating.
He was the only chief who came out to fight when a civil crisis broke out in the community. And he was more than battle ready, if it came to confronting a neighbouring community. In one of such conflicts, he lost a tooth, and earned the sympathy of the youth. In 1993, under his auspices as chairman of Nembe Chiefs Council, the Nembe Youth Movement was established. He gave the youths his full support and his blessings to operate as a recognised and authentic body in the Kingdom, and was summarily proclaimed as Grand Patron of the Nembe Youth Movement.
Adukpo-Egi was a member of the Board of Directors of Savannah Sugar Company. In 1997, the premier institute of Nigeria, the Institute of Internal Auditors of Nigeria conferred on him three distinguished meritorious awards, namely the Honourary Fellowship Award of the Institute. He was also recognised for being an International Figure of Outstanding Integrity and Eminence, and was bestowed with the Award of Merit for Probity, Trustworthiness and Hardwork.
He was a patron to a host of clubs and associations, among them Amaebimo Ogbo, the Nembe District Solidarity Front, the Opu Nembe Descendants Union, and Brass LGA’s branch of the the Nigerian Legion. He was also an active patron of the Nembe Ebi Dogi Ogbo, the Ilaye-iIate Social Club of Nembe, and the Niger Delta Divers Association. By the same token, he was an associate member of the Bayelsa State branch of the Nigeria Red Cross Society, and founding Vice Chairman of Rivers and Bayelsa State chapters of the Retired Armed Forces Officers Forum (now amalgamated into the national body of Retired Army, Navy, Air Force Officers Club of Nigeria).
Legend has it that Ongiri, a son of King Ikata, Mingi Two, Amanyanabo of Nembe, had lived in Kalabari Kingdom, going by the name of Ngeribara, and had bequeathed a proud legacy from a line of descendants. When he became Chief Ikata, Adukpo-Egi took it upon himself to locate his distant brethren in Kalabari. In the end, he brought them back into the fold of their ancestral home, and formally received them into the King Ikata group of Houses in Nembe Kingdom.
Little wonder that when HRH Captain D. Benibo Ngeribra II of Ngeribra-Ama was to be installed in Kalabari, Adukpo-Egi was invited to perform the chalking ceremony at Feni-Polo. Ikata’s leadership qualities, his love for his people, his concern for mankind earned him trust and warm regards in the hearts of many. His zeal to bring about a better society endeared him to those who shared his ideals, within the family unit, in the Ikata group of houses, and the entire Nembe Kingdom at large.
Adukpo-Egi was born into the Egi and Gbasigha families of Nembe on Sunday, 10 November 1935. His Nembe name was Ayebanimiworio, which was often shortened to Nimiworio, meaning God knows. His father, Adukpo-Egi Efere, popularly known as Chief Wills Kemmer Oruwari, was an aristocratic figure, and a very influential man in his days. He was of the Okainfie family in King Ikata, Chiefs Oruwari-Kemmer group of war canoe Houses, as well as the Ogbari and Basuo group of Houses in Nembe Kingdom.
Adukpo-Egi’s mother, the last wife of Efere, was a maiden called Ngoebiye Gbasigha. She was a noble descendant of the King Ockiya, Chiefs Omo-Berena group of Houses. She also hailed from Agudama in Ogbia LGA of Bayelsa State. From 1944 to 1951, young Adukpo-Egi attended St Luke’s School Nembe, one of the oldest schools in Nigeria, established in 1869. After his primary education from 1951 to 1957, he attended the Kalabari National College, Buguma, one of the oldest secondary schools in the Niger Delta. As soon as he finished with his finals exams, he opted to join the Army.
He was brought up as a Christian of the Anglican faith. In fact, he was a confirmed member of the Anglican Communion, St Luke’s Church of Nembe. But many years later, he was introduced to Brotherhood of the Cross and Star (BCS) by his friend and in-law, Benjamin Ololo, and was baptised as a member on 31 March 1982. He was a devoted and dedicated member of the fold until his last day. In 2006, he was ordained a pastor. On account of a split in the BCS fold, however, he became part of the newly established Christ Practical Brotherhood of the Cross and Star.
Pastor Adukpo-Egi was not just a Christian by association. He was also a Christian who manifested an exemplary lifestyle. He acknowledged God in everything he did at all times. He brought up his children and everyone under his care according to the Christian faith he had imbibed. Even so, he had a great deal of regard for other religions and respect for people’s decision to believe whatever they wanted to believe in.
Chief Adukpo-Egi Ikata was a man who always stood for what he believed to be just and true. He was not given to compromise or prejudice. He acted at all times without fear or favour in the interest of the common good. He was a man who abhorred any form of oppression or injustice, always ready to render help or give support to anyone who came across him, known and unknown. He was very keen on any idea and committed to any project that spelt out growth and progress for his country home and the nation at large.
In 1955, as a school boy in college, Adukpo-Egi propounded what he was proud to call the Egi Theory in the Law of Oculorum. His proposition was that ‘the closer the eye gets to an opening, the wider it sees the universe’. But he could not proffer a formula to determine the area seen at graduated distances from the opening. It has since become clear that this is a light-based theory that recalls the discovery of the telescope. If nothing else, it showed a potential for creative scientific research, which was not developed.
In 1977, when he was the Commanding Officer of 74 Infantry Battalion Nigerian Army, Gusau, he delivered an epoch-making speech as a guest speaker at Government Secondary School, Shinkafi, Sokoto State. He spoke in the manner of Jesus Christ who exhorted mankind to ‘seek ye first the kingdom of God and everything shall be added unto you’.
Dr Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana took that one step further when he told Africans to ‘seek ye first the political kingdom and everything shall be added unto you’. In like manner, Adukpo-Egi told all students to ‘seek ye first the kingdom of education and everything shall be added unto you’. Highlights of the sermon were published by the _Daily Times_ newspaper on Thursday, 21 July 1977.
Adukpo-Egi was blessed with the soul of a benevolent warrior. It showed in the battle field, and it was fully demonstrated in the course of his long-running tenure as Chairman of the Nembe Chiefs Council. He was proud of the praise name of his chieftaincy title, and his countenance glowed whenever he was hailed by the sobriquet: ‘Osuokoromo Bila Ba_ ! It was at once a recognition of his prowess in battle, and a call to action.
He always fought on the side of conscience, righteousness and good breeding. He was blunt in expressing his opinion, and yet sympathetic to superior argument. When he was convinced about a point of view, however, it was hard to persuade him otherwise. When he was attached to a mission, in like manner, it was irrevocable until his purpose was accomplished for good.
Like a good and hardy soldier, he believed in the words of the Nigerian national anthem, and lived it up to the last letter, to defend the sovereign integrity of the nation, and foster peace and unity. His sense of patriotism stemmed from that, and he took to cultivating love for the land of his birth as a personal duty.
Adukpo-Egi had great regard for major players in Nembe history, from ancient times to technocrats and achievers of the present day. He was enamoured of the exploits of King Ikata, Mingi II, who could easily be credited for devising the war canoe as a platform for warfare to assert his suzerainty and ensure the protection of his kingdom. In much the say way, he had great admiration for King Boy Amain who ransomed the Lander brothers, Richard and John, of the River Niger fame.
King Josiah Constantine Ockiya, Mingi IX, also had a special place in the estimation of Adukpo-Egi, for prosecuting many wars, protecting the subjects of the kingdom and ushering in civilisation by receiving the first set of white Christian missionaries to arrive the Niger Delta coastline. In a public poll conducted by the British Broadcasting Corporation for the greatest African of the Millennium, Adukpo-Egi voted King Frederick Willam Koko, Mingi VIII, as his foremost choice for prosecuting the war of independence from British rule, beginning with the raid on the Akassa outpost of the Royal Niger Company on 29 January 1895.
Adukpo-Egi also had abiding respect for Reverend Daniel Ogiriki Ockiya for undertaking the singular feat of translating the Holy Bible from English into the Nembe language. By the same token, he rated Ernest Sisei Ikoli as the foremost political figure from Nembe-Brass, especially for his antecedents in the campaign for political independence in pre-colonial Nigeria, and for ranking as the first Nigerian journalist in the sub-region with the publication of West African Pilot.
Adukpo-Egi would readily name Mrs. Mercy Gbalipre Alagoa as the first Nigerian woman to become a manager in the UAC of Nigeria, and his respect for her husband, Prof. Ebiegberi Joe Alagoa, was no less great, on account of the historian’s ground-breaking book on Nembe entitled The Small Brave City-State, and the prominent place he gave King Boy of Brass in the African historical biography series in 1964, which elucidated the role played by King Boy Amain in the exploration of the great River Niger.
Adukpo-Egi readily spoke well about Impru Gbobate of Okpoama for his unflagging enthusiasm since the 1940s to establish secondary schools in the Nembe kingdom. His adulation for Mr. Kaliyai of Okpoama, who wrote the Nembe-English dictionary, was equally notable. He also had a special place in his heart for HRM Ebitimi Banigo, Amanyanabo of Okpoama, for being the first Nembe man to establish a bank with a nationwide presence, and for being the first Nembe man to be appointed as a federal minister.
Adukpo-Egi reckoned with the fame and reputation of Commander Alfred Papapreye Diete-Spiff, now Seriyai II, Amanyanabo of Twon-Brass, who served as the first Military Governor of the old Rivers State. Vice Admiral Victor Ombu also earned Adukpo-Egi’s respect for bringing fame to Nembe by serving in the capacity of Chief of Naval Staff. By no means the least was his respect for Navy Captain Walter Feghabo (rtd.), now Chief Amain, for raising the estimation of Nembe in the eyes of the world when he became the first Military Governor of Ebonyi State, and later Delta State.
Adukpo-Egi also saw Dr. Edmund Maduabebe Daukoru as a man in a class of his own, ranking as the first Nembe man to be appointed as Minister for Petroleum. Long before Nigeria’s first geologist stepped into office as Mingi XII, Amanyanabo of Nembe, Ikata was proud of the personal friendship he enjoyed with the oil magnate.
In the course of his four-tenure reign as Chairman of the Nembe Chiefs Council, Adukpo-Egi could only name Chief Percy Diete-Kien as the man with whom he had outstanding differences of opinion over the leadership of Nembe. Till his last day, Ikata was hopeful that the Nembe community would appreciate his personal sacrifice to ensure the well-being of the Nembe people, knowing that he acted out of patriotic love at all times.
On 10 November 2021, Adukpo-Egi celebrated his 85th birthday and marked his 50th marriage anniversary to his wife in pomp and style at his country home in Igopiri overlooking the waters of Nembe. He was glad to have in attendance all his children, all his grand-children and their parents, and so many cousins, nephews, nieces, friends and family, associates and admirers who congregated to wish him well. All the while, seated next to him was his wife of 50 years, Mrs. Seigha Clarice Adukpo-Egi Ikata, mother of Patricia, Peri, Ebiyena and Tari.
Seven months later, on Saturday, 7 August 2021, he passed away at his residence in Port Harcourt. His remains were laid to rest on Saturday, 23 April 2022, at the Ikata mausoleum in Nembe, after the full complement of traditional rites for a war-canoe chief had been performed alongside farewell ceremonies by his church.
