Protests in Warri as Olu of Warri abolishes ancient cultural practices

There have been protests and serious tension in Warri, Delta state for some days for now after the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwase II, announced the abolition of some of the ancient Itshekiri cultural practices. The Olu of Warri who is a born again Christian with a Foursquare Worship Centre in his palace, had last Wednesday September 4th declared in a document titled, “The New Order of Iwere Kingdom,” that the “Ogiame” title which had been in existence for over 500 years would no longer exist because it is purportedly associated to a river goddess. He now only wants to serve one God.

The Olu of Warri in the document, said:

“I also repent for the name and title of “Ogiame” that my ancestors and I have borne, as it connotes our allegiance to Umalokun (goddess of the river) and other deities of the sea, all of which are false gods. Today, I renounce our allegiance to Umalokun and other gods of the sea, land and sky. On behalf of the royal bloodline, the throne, the people of Iwere land, I publicly enter into a new covenant with God.''

Not only did the King renounce his traditional title of Ogiame, he also dissociated himself from some of the kingdom’s age-long traditional practices, which he described as paganism. This seeming born again position by the King has been seen to be an insult to the traditional history of the Itsekiris. 

There are also indications that the King did not consult the Itsekiri Traditional Council of Chiefs and Ruling Houses before he took the decision. Now the people of Warri are asking him to either withdraw his statement or abdicate the throne. 

Several people, including members of the royal family have tried to convince the Olu of Warri to change his mind on the matter, but the King has so far said there's no going back on his decision.

On Sunday 8th Sept, angry Itsekiri youths took to the streets in Warri to register their displeasure on the Olu's new belief. The protest could have turned bloody but for for the timely intervention of Governor Uduaghan, who is also an itsekiri. He appealed to the youths to stay calm, promising that the issue would be addressed.

No fewer than 5000 women are expected to embark on a protest today in Warri against the monarch.

Super Eagles play Burkina-Faso today in a friendly

Nigeria vs B/Faso
Kick-off: 4pm
Crucial FIFA ranking points will be at stake when the Super Eagles host Burkina Faso in a friendly today in Kaduna.

wat ,who proposed to Cossy Orjiakor?

  wat the fk..

Mo Abudu Covers September Edition Of TW Magazine

TW September edition cover girl is none other than Mo’ Abudu, a lady who has proven that passion and a clear-headed focus can get you anything you want. From HR practitioner to Media mogul, Mo’ is indeed an inspiration to all African women, and with the recent launch of her Television station Mosunmola Abudu is set to change forever, the world's perception of Africa.

Open Nigerian bisexual Yemisi Ilesanmi speaks out, says gays have a right

Well, she's open about her sexuality because she's not based here. Hehe. UK-based bisexual, Yemisi Ilesanmi, a single mother and an atheist, who has been fighting for the rights of gays for many years, recently granted an exclusive interview to TELL magazine where she spoke on issues surrounding homosexuality and its perception here in Nigeria.

Yemisi tells TELL

Whether Nigerians accept it or not, LGBT rights are recognised human rights. Unless, you can prove that Lesbians, gays, biséxuals and transséxuals are not human beings, well, you have no reason to deny them their fundamental human rights. Unfortunately many Nigerians believe in the concept of sin. First, we must understand that sin is a religious concept. Not every Nigerian is religious. Your religion is also a personal matter, why drag other people into your personal relationship with Jesus, Mohamed or Obatala?
When I am told that homoséxuality is a sin, I just tell them their religion is not my law. The Bible or Quran is not my constitution, so why is that even coming up?

Yemisi Ilesanmi continues...

The very first thing we need to understand is that homosexuality, bisexuality, asexuality are all as natural as heterosexuality. Our sexual orientation differs; we are born with an innate ability to be emotionally or sexually attracted or not be sexually or emotionally attracted to same sex or opposite sex. Unfortunately, many African societies do not provide enabling environments to discuss sexual orientation. Sexual orientation does not harm anyone. A person who is attracted to opposite sex does not harm anyone so far it is a consensual adult relationship.

It is absurd when Christian gay bashers gleefully quote Leviticus 18:22 to justify why they want to jail and stone gays. Anyone who wants to quote from Leviticus should at least read the book to make sure they are not guilty of any of the things condemned in the book. Leviticus also says you should not shave, you should not interact with a woman in her menstrual cycle, thou shall not eat shrimps or shell fish, Lev. 11:10,11:6-8 thou shall not touch the skin of a dead pig (therefore touching football without wearing gloves makes you unclean!) So, when Christians throw Leviticus at me, I simply throw Leviticus right back in their face.

My immediate family knows my sexual orientation, my father is late, and my mother is accepting of whom I am and has shown me love and support. To continue to be an important part of my life, you cannot be homophobic, biphobic or transphobic.

My atheism has nothing to do with my biséxuality. Atheism is simply a non-belief in God. My bisexuality is my sexual orientation, no connection. However, I must say, my atheism has helped me to stand up against religious bullies, who use the Bible and the Quran to justify their hate for gays, lesbians, transsexual and bisexuals.

Religion carries a lot of unwarranted weight in Nigeria and Africa generally. This should not be so. In fact, this is one reason the African continent is still very backward. When religion carried so much weight in Europe during middle Ages, it was wrought with wars, jihads, killings and ethnic cleansing.

Many religious Africans now use the ‘holy’ books to justify the oppression of members of their own society. Even when the original owners of the religion inform them that the book has been updated and some parts are no longer applicable, Africans still insist that it is must be applicable because it says so in the book they were given. How pathetic!