Editor’s note: Naij.com contributor Pelu Awofeso takes us sightseeing to Lokoja where he visits the famed European Cemetery, where some of Nigeria’s British colonialists were buried, among other historical sites around Kogi state. The state, like most states in Nigeria, can generate much IGR if it pays more attention to its tourist attractions, especially now that Nigeria needs to diversify its economy, Awofeso says.
Lugard’s bust, Museum of Colonial History
After a light and leisurely breakfast of bread,
egg, noodles and tea, my friends and I leave calm and laid-back Okene for vibrant and historic Lokoja, speeding past roadside sellers displaying dozens of bottles of honey. Typical of many Nigerian highways, the road to Lokoja—roughly an hour’s drive—is appalling for a long stretch but it levels up just after the junction that leads to Kabba to the left.
egg, noodles and tea, my friends and I leave calm and laid-back Okene for vibrant and historic Lokoja, speeding past roadside sellers displaying dozens of bottles of honey. Typical of many Nigerian highways, the road to Lokoja—roughly an hour’s drive—is appalling for a long stretch but it levels up just after the junction that leads to Kabba to the left.
A trip to the past
We drive to the Local government premises (Murtala Mohammed Way), where we’re introduced to Alhaji Nasidi, a newspaper publisher and an authority of sorts on local history. We intend to see a bit of the town’s historical assets. Our tour begins from the famed European cemetery, a short distance from the Local Government offices.
European Cemetry
At first sighting the cemetery, about the size of two football pitches, is unimpressive: it’s unkempt and overgrown with weeds. Wilted leaves from the shade-trees cover a good portion of the ground. Its waist-high fence is crumbling in many parts, and we scale over the front fence to be able to see the graves at close range. Buried on these grounds are men and women, though foreigners, who shaped the course of Nigerian history from as far back a century ago (some of the headstones are dated 1800s).
“In the past, some of the grand- and great-grandchildren of these people used to come here every year,” Nasidi says, clearly unimpressed with the cemetery’s sorry state.“They used to pay for the place to be kept tidy till their next visit.”
From the look of things it seems the surviving relatives have lost interest in that arrangement and decided to cease funding it, and both the state and local governments, it appears, feel no such responsibility for this vital slice of local history. We come out the same way we came—scaling the fence—leaving the stench and eyesore behind.
Iron of Liberty
After that disappointing start, we all get in the car and ride to the location of the first primary school to be built in Northern Nigeria, sharing a compound with the Church of Nigeria Anglican Communion. Like the cemetery, it’s in a bad shape and none of us feel any need to linger in the premises for too long. On our way out, we stop by the Iron of Liberty monument, said to be where former slaves in Lokoja were brought to be set free. There is a painting of Bishop Samuel Ajayi Crowther, the former slave-turned-priest who helped to translate the Bible into Yoruba language, while he was stationed at Badagry in present-day Lagos State.
Iron of Liberty monument
Lokoja carries the burden and the beauty of Nigeria’s history.
“The most painful thing is that since Kogi State was created more than 20 years ago it has never had a governor who appreciates tourism enough to capitalize on all the gems of history we have here,” says one resident. “That’s why all these monuments are run down the way they are.”
Shortly, we head to the cenotaph on IBB Way, built in honour of fallen heroes of the two World Wars. Instinctively I begin to count the names engraved on one side of the white structure: 380 names in all, including 24 European officers. Here is about the best maintained historical landmark in all of Lokoja. But other than preserving the memories of long dead soldiers, the cenotaph holds no special attraction.
“You know that every Governor of Kogi State has to come here every year on Jan 15 to lay wreath. So they always give out the contract for renovating it,” Nasidi explains.
Finding Lugard
From there we drive to the National Museum of Colonial History, housed in a wooden building. It details a bit of the history of Lokoja and is said to have been built sometime between 1900-04 by Sir Frederick Lugard, the first Governor-General of the Northern Protectorate (1900-1914), and later the Governor-General of Nigeria (1914-1919).
National Museum of Colonial History, Lokoja.
The building, says the in-house guide, served as Senior Officers’ quarters in the Lugard era. A similar structure is just a few metres adjacent it.
“That was Lugard’s office,” the guide adds.
The structure is also in bad shape; from a distance it appears to be sinking. And more than a century after it was built, the best use the community has found for it is as a beer parlour, a hub for the town’s residents looking to have a relaxed evening.
We drive up Mount Patti to see the Baobab tree which Lugard is said to have planted when he first settled there in 1900 or thereabout. We also see the abandoned bungalow, scribbled all over with indecipherable markings.
Lugard’s Baobab tree
A fish feast on a moonlit night
Lokoja, because of its location along the paths of Rivers Niger and Benue, is awash with fish.
“We have a high appetite for fish in this area,” Lawrence says. “The one other thing I think we enjoy so much is the outdoors at dusk.”
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We are seated with a few other residents in the expansive premises of an outdoor bar on Lugard Way. In no time, a young Hausa grill master places a 5kg fish (known locally as Kurungu) on the table; it’s covered all over with pepper-sauce, cabbage, onions, potatoes and slices of lime. Even under the dim lighting provided by the nearby bulbs and the moonlight, I need no one to tell me that this is going to be a great bite.
First primary school in Northern Nigeria
“There you are, go right ahead,” Lawrence says, a smirk on his face.
We all rinse our hands and begin to pick the fish apart.
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