By Valentine Obienyem

I was delighted to learn that Agaba Awgbu is back. Everything that happened after its arrest could have been lawfully carried out, and the public duly informed of the government’s action, without desecrating our customs and traditions in the manner that was done.

The law enforcement authorities could simply have announced that those accompanying or acting on behalf of Agaba had been arrested, rather than stripping our tradition naked before the public. I saw some people justifying what happened, and I could only pray that our forefathers would forgive them, for they did not know what they were doing. In our eagerness to enforce the law, we must be careful not to ridicule institutions that embody the history, identity, and collective memory of our people.

I am happy that Agaba has returned. It must remain faithful to its nature; otherwise, it ceases to be Agaba. A masquerade that abandons the very qualities that define it becomes an empty costume rather than a living cultural symbol.

In Igbo cosmology, every masquerade has a distinct identity, personality, and social function. It is no accident that some people are nicknamed after particular masquerades. A man who is exceptionally fearless, imposing, or physically commanding and destructive may be called Mbuze or Agaba because those are the qualities associated with that masquerade. Likewise, Onuku has become synonymous with folly, comic relief, and playful mischief. Such names have entered our everyday vocabulary because the masquerades they represent have, over generations, become embodiments of specific virtues, temperaments, and social roles.

That is why Agaba must remain Agaba. It should inspire awe, command respect, and preserve the mystique that has always distinguished it. But it must be wise as to draw the limit between guided and stupid destructiveness.

The custodians of Agaba should therefore perform the necessary rites to appease its spirit and remind it of the wisdom of our ancestors. The same tradition that gives Agaba its power also places limits on how that power should be exercised. Agaba can display its might in the arena of culture, festivals, and traditional ceremonies, but it should not descend to blocking highways, harassing innocent motorists, or disrupting public order in a manner to screw public opinion against it.

Like the human world, the spirit world, despite its abundance of power, abhors excess. Our ancestors understood that every power, no matter how sacred, must be moderated by wisdom. A river that overflows its banks ceases to nourish the land and begins to destroy it. In the same way, a masquerade that exceeds the bounds of custom ceases to command reverence and begins to attract resentment.