The Amanfo Duruokpalanne

THE SUPREME CHIEF OF AWO-OMAMMA:

 

DURU OKPALANNE (AMANFO) WAS THE SOLE REPRESENTATIVE IN GOVERNMENT, IN JUDICIARY FOR AWO-OMAMMA IN ORLU AND OKIGWE PROVINCES, HE WAS THE FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE ENTIRE CUSTOMARY COURT IN ORLU,OKIGWE AND OWERRI. HE WAS ALSO  MEMBER OF THE NATIVE COURT OF DEGEMA. HE PRESIDED IN OGUTA, NWANGELE, IBI,AND OMUMA WHERE HE PRESIDED LAST BEFORE HIS DEATH.

BECAUSE OF THIS NUMEROUS FUNCTIONS AND HIS ADMINISTRATIVE CAPACITY HE CAME IN CONTACT WITH MANY CHIEFS OF HIS CATEGORY: NWATURUOCHA OF NGURU, NJOKU NWASI OF AKABO, NJEMANZE OF OWERRI INCHI ISE, AMA-OBI OF OGIDI,OSUKWU OF IRETE,UWANDU OF OGWA,  NKWAZEMA OF NEKEDE  ETC.

 

HE WAS RADICAL, HE WAS RICH , HE WAS POIGNANT.!!!

DURU OKPALANNE, DUE TO HIS ADMINISTRATIVE  CONCIOUSNESS AND POLITICAL  ANTICS, HE SUMMONED THE 13 VILLAGES OF AWO-OMAMMA AT NKWO AWO. HE SLAUGHTERED A FAT COW. THE COW  WAS SHARED TO THE VILLAGES, AND THE BLOOD OF THE COW RUBED TO EVERY OFOR FROM ALL THE VILLAGES. HE ANNOUNCED TO THE CROWD ' THIS IS MY OFFOR EZE, ANY OFFOR EZE IS SUBJECT TO MY OFFOR EZE' AND THE PEOPLE ANSWERED IHAAAA!!! . THAT OFFOR EZE IS STILL KEPT IN HIS OBI. IT IS THAT SAME OFFOR EZE THAT ALL THE SUCCESSIVE EZES  OF THE AMANFO  RULING HOUSE HANDLED.

 

HIS LIFE, ADMINISTRATION AND DEATH:

DURUOKPALANNE  WAS A POLYGAMIST( MARRIED  TO 57 WIVES). HE WAS VERY WEALTHY AND AN ASTUTE  BUSINESS MAN. HE OWED HIS INFLUENCE IN HIS CLAN AWO-OMAMMA TO HIS WEALTH AND JUDICIOUS USE HE MADE OF IT ,BY HELPING HIS KINDRED IN TIMES OF TROUBLE. HE WAS THE SUPREME AUTHORITY IN AWO-OMAMMA  AND THE OYIBO ACCEPTED HIS AUTHORITY AND REGARDED HIM AS THE AUTHORITY IN THE AWO-OMAMMA AREA. ISSUES WHICH DEFIED RESOLUTION WERE DECIDED BY HIM AND HIS  EZEIPKE (CHIEFS). HE WAS BELIEVED TO REPRESENT THE EXECUTIVE AUTHORITY OF HIS CLAN. 

CHIEF DURUOKPALANNE  AMANFO WAS  A MIXER AND IMITATOR HENCE HE WAS ABLE TO SPEAK HIS PIDGEON ENGLISH. HIS PRONOUNCIATIONS  WERE  QUASI ENGLISH. HE COULD SPEAK TO THE ENGLISH MAN AND HIS SONS MADE FUN OF HIS ENGLISH. HE WAS ADMIRED BY THE COLONIAL MASTERS  AND THE GOVERNMENT THEN. ( IN ONE OF THE ARCHIVAL RECORDS AMANFO WAS QUOTED AS BEIGN VERY INTELLIGENT AND ABLE TO SPEAK ENGLISH) HE MADE EXTENSIVE TOURS  OF SEVERAL GOVERNMENT OFFICES AND NATIVE COURTS LEAVING OTHER VILLAGE CHIEFS TO TAKE CARE OF HOME.

DURUOKPALANNE AMANFO WAS THE FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE ENTIRE CUSTOMARY COURT , THEN AT UGWU NWAPALI (NOW ORLU) AND OKIGWE.

DURUOKPALANNE ENJOYED TAKING TEA,COFFEE, COCOA,BREAD , MILK , SUGAR ,CORNEDBEEF AND SARDINES  WHEN PEOPLE IN THE VILLAGE DID NOT KNOW WHAT THEY WERE. CHIEF AMANFO  WAS CRAFTY THAT HE SENT OKOROWU THE FATHER OF CLEMENT OKOROWU AND IHEACHO MGBEDE TO GO AND LEARN COOKING. THESE TWO MEN WERE TRAINED BY THE MASTERS COOK AND THEY COOKED FOR AMANFO. THEY ALSO IMPARTED THE KNOWLEDGE TO NWOROKO , ONE OF THE WIVES OF CHIEF AMANFO AND THE MOTHER OF LATE  HRH.EZE JOHN AMANFO. NWOROKO WAS ABLE TO MAKE AKAMU, TEA, COFFEE AND COCOA FOR THE HUSBAND AMANFO.

 

HE WAS A SPORTS MAN AND LIKED TO ORGANISE ISU UMUAKA,UMUAGHA, AWA, TO COME AND COMPETE  WITH AWO.OMAMMA. HE WOULD ALSO JOIN AMIRI AND OTULU TO AWO AGAINST PEOPLE FROM OFE MMIRI.  A CUT OF DRY MEAT WAS USED AS A PRIZE. SOME WOULD BE GIVEN A GIRL AS HONORABLE PRIZE.

NWAKUBA  OF UBOGWU WAS ONE OF HIS CHAMPIONS. NWANEWETA THE FATHER OF OKOROUGO OF UMUEZEALI  ALSO WAS ONE OF HIS CHAMPIONS IN WRESTLING COMPETITION.

AMANFO BROUGHT THE  OTU  UMUEGBE INTO AWO-OMAMMA. OTU  UMUEGBE WAS ONE OF THE KNOWN OTU AT AWO-OMAMMA. IHETU , THE FATHER OF FRANCA EGUZOZIE WAS THE LAST OF OTU-UMUEGBE TO DIE IN AWO-OMAMMA.

AMANFO DURUOKPALANNE HAD A DAY IN AWO-OMAMMA LIKE HIS GREAT GRAND FATHER DURUEGBUSUO. A DAY SET OUT FOR  A GREAT MAN'S NEW YAM FESTIVAL. CHIEF AMANFO WOULD ORGANISE AWA,AMIRI UMUAGHA FOR WRESTLING COMPETITTION. THIS SAME FESTIVAL  IS USED TO CHECK DAYS AND MONTHS IN THE YEAR LIKE HIS GREAT GRAND FATHER -DURUEGBUSUO.

HE BROUGHT EDUCATION IN AWO-OMAMMA WHEN HE BUILT THE FIRST SCHOOL WITH PALM FRONDS (LEAF) IN HIS COMPOUND ABOUT 1912. HE FIRST STARTED THE SCHOOL BY SHARING SLATES TO HIS CHIEFS . ANY CHIEF GIVEN 5 SLATES  WILL HAVE TO BRING  5 BOYS . PEOPLE WHO BENEFITTED FROM THIS  WERE LATE CHIEF EMECHETA,CHIEF MATHEW NNABUO ,CHIEF JOHN EJIMFUGHA AND PETER MMADUIKE. HE TRANSFERRED IT TO  ST JOHN THE PRESENT PIONEER PRIMARY SCHOOL UBACHIMA IN 1913. ONE OF THE SCHOOL PUPIL THEN WAS OBIOMA MICHAEL FROM UBOGWU. AT ABOUT 1934, HE MADE A MOVE AND ALL THE PEOPLE OF AWO-OMAMMA GATHERED TOGETHER AND THE PRESENT CENTRAL SCHOOL WAS BUILT AT ISIEKE. EACH CHIEF OF ALL THE VILLAGES CONTRIBUTED 3 PENCE FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE CENTRAL SCHOOL. HE DONATED HIS OWN PENCILS AND CUPBOARD TO THE SCHOOL. 

 

TRAVELS:

THERE WERE NO  FUNCTIONAL MOTOR ROADS.  AS AN IMITATOR CHIEF AMANFO ORDERED FOR  HAMMOCK. THERE WERE NO CARS. THE OYIBO ALSO TRAVELED  BY HAMMOCK, IT WAS INDEED VERY STRANGE AND WONDERFUL TO SEE A BLACK MAN IN A HAMMOCK.

DURU OPKALANNE  HAD EIGHT STRONG MUSCULAR MEN WHO CARRIED HIM TO ALL HIS DESTINATIONS AND TO PRESIDE IN ALL THE NATIVE COURTS HE  HAD TO PRESIDE. THE MEN HAD THEIR FIXED BOUNDARY OR A BIG TREE WHERE THEY REST AND CHANGE FOR ANOTHER FOUR TO TAKE OVER.

THE HAMMOCK WAS A SWINGING COUCH OR BED MADE OF TAPOLE ROOF ABOUT 6FT WIDE, WITH AUTOMATIC SPRING WHICH CAN TURN IT INTO A CHAIR OR A BED. IT PROTECTS FROM SUN OR RAIN. IN THE OUTSKETCH OF TOWN WHERE NATIVES WILL STAND AT BOTH SIDES OF THE ROAD  TO TAKE A CLOSER VIEW OF HIM, THE CARRIERS WOULD BRING HIM DOWN AND THE AUTOMATIC SPRING WOULD BE PRESSED AND IT CHANGES TO  A CHAIR, HE WOULD THEN SIT THERE TO RECIEVE CHEERS AND  HAND WAVES. AT OGBARU, THERE EXISTS AN IROKO TREE CALLED ORJI AMANFO. IT WAS A RESTING PLACE OF AMANFO NWA ODAJURU!!

WHEN FUNCTIONAL MOTOR ROADS WERE CONSTRUCTED, HE ORDERED FOR A MOTOR CYCLE, THE FIRST EVER TO USE A MOTOR CYCLE OR HAMMOCK COUCH IN HIS AREA. HE WAS VERY EFFICIENT IN HIS HIS ADMINISTRATION.

HE CHAMPIONED THE BUILDING OF  N.A. ROAD  FROM ORLU TO P.W.D ROAD AWO-OMAMMA. 

HE SINGLE HANDEDLY CONSTRUCTED THE  ROAD FROM NKWO AWO TO NJABA BIDGE.

 

MYSTICAL

DURU OKPALANNE WAS VERY INTELLIGENT AND EXHIBITED MYSTICAL POWERS. HE WAS MYSTICAL AND HAD A PARROT BIRD THAT REVEALED GOOD AND BAD SITUATIONS TO HIM  THROUGH CONVERSATIONS WHICH NO OTHER PERSON COULD UNDERSTAND. HE HAD TWO MYSTICAL  CURVED (ARCS) IRON  POSITIONED IN FRONT OF HIS OBI (PALACE) AND AT THE  REAR ,UFO . THE MYSTICAL PARROT WAS ALWAYS PERCHING ON TOP OF THE  FRONT ARC VIGILANTING .DURUOKPALANNE DID NOT ALLOW  HIMSELF TO BE TRAMPLED UPON BY NO ONE DEAD OR LIVING!!!

 

HIS  DEATH.

1947 : HE DIED  AT THE IHIALA HOSPITAL PRECISELY ON THE DAY OF A TOTAL ECLIPSE.HIS DEATH WAS  THOUGHT TO BE THE END OF TIME AS HIS WIVES AND MANY PEOPLE WITHIN AND OUTSIDE THE CLAN ATTRIBUTED THE PHENOMENON AS SUPERNATURAL. (CHI NJINABU)

THE NEWS THEN SPREAD IN THE WHOLE OF THEN EASTERN REGION AND THE MIDWEST THAT  THE SUPREME CHIEF AMANFO OF AWO-OMAMMA HAD DIED. AT HIS DYING HOUR,HE AGREED AND  SUBMITTED TO CHRISTIANITY AND WAS BAPTISED WITH THE NAME KEVIN BY THE CATHOLIC PRIEST PRESENT AT THAT MOMENT AND THE CATHECHIST OF THE IHIALA PARISH MR. OKOLIE GREGORY.