How circumcision, initiation rites unsettle families

Chukwuemeke Iwelunmo

Mrs. Comfort Eke from Owerri Municipal area of Owerri in Imo State, on hearing that her first daughter had delivered a baby, rushed down to Lagos to attend to her daughter. In the Ibo land, this is known as “omugwo” and it is compulsory for mothers to participate in such periods. Mrs. Eke had not been to Lagos since 3 years ago when her daughter, Uju Ugochukwu consummated her marriage in the ancient city of Owerri. However, Mrs. Eke made it to Lagos, few days, after her daughter delivered a bouncing baby girl. To Mrs. Eke, her main reason of visiting was to ensure that her first female grandchild was properly and timely circumcised. Narrating to this paper, Mrs. Eke said she had sworn earlier before that trip, that there is no female child that would come her way without being circumcised. She said “I came to ensure that my grandchild is circumcised. I have had very terrible experiences in life and I know the kind of experiences I had with my only child who I did not circumcise. She is different from others. It was not a good experience”. At the end of the day, the baby girl was circumcised and she lost her life in the process because of excessive bleeding. This made Harry Ugochukwu, the husband of the Mrs. Eke’s daughter to quit the marriage, an action that brought the marriage to an end. That was the end of Mrs. Eke’s daughter’s marriage. However, the trend of grandparents insisting that their female children must be circumcised seems to be fizzling out in most Nigerian communities. In the case of the above family, Mr. Ugochukwu attempted to prevent his daughter from being subjected to the outlawed tradition of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) but both the parents of Ugochukwu and the in-laws were in support of the circumcision. Unfortunately, Mr. Ugochukwu didn’t have a voice to say no to the practice. To many, it is a right step in the right direction. On the other hand, some may however, see it as a bad thing and a wrong step. Although, there are many cases of the practice of female circumcision in Nigeria but with civilization many cultures were either modified or dropped in their entirety. Cultures like killing of twins, prohibiting kids from eating meat and so many others were eradicated but not FGM, which still exists in some communities. According to reports, the main reason for the global stand against FGM is the dangers it poses to the victims. From severe pains caused by lack of anaesthesia, to shock, excessive bleeding, Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and even death. For instance, Mrs. Folashade Agbebi from Iyin in Ekiti State told this paper that she refused to allow the family circumcise her children simply because she could not stand the gory sights of such practice. “I cannot imagine that happening to my daughter, Although my refusal didn’t change anything; the family still went ahead to carry out the practice on my daughters which has left one of my daughter paralyzed and the other in a state of shock as we speak. This has caused a lot of issues with me and my husband because of the perpetual agony that the practice has left my children with. It has been a very serious problem”, Mrs. Agbebi noted. Mrs. Agbebi is not alone in the controversies that circumcision has caused in different families. Presently, all is not also well with the Iduozee family of Evboesi Community of Edo State, Nigeria over the refusal of the family to perform the traditional rituals, circumcision and initiation of their 4 children. Problem started couple of years ago when the Royal palace of the Benin kingdom declared a sudden search for Mrs. Onaiwu Vanessa Iduozee and her children. Her sin was that she has refused to provide her children to perform the traditional rituals, circumcision and initiation of her children. Mrs. Iduozee is a wife to the brother of the Enogie and traditional ruler of Evboesi community in Edo State. With the Enogie’s position in the community, it is widely believed that all traditional procedures would be observed within the family. For this reason, the Enogie and the traditional ruler of Evboesi community, His Royal Highness Chief Iduozee Festus Ogiefo had sometime instructed his palace chiefs and guards to search everywhere within and outside the state, so as to apprehend Mrs. Iduozee’s children, namely: Iduozee Aizeyosabor Harry, Iduozee Osayuwamen Havana, Iduozee Osahenrunmwen Haward and the toddler child Osama David Iduozee who has never been to Nigeria since his birth. Lamenting the situation, Mr Iduozee Sunny Aiyeki, husband of Mrs. Iduozee expressed displeasure over the continuous search of his 4 children who have done no wrong to the community. Mr. Iduozee explained that the search has spread so wide that, his mother in-law, Mrs. Caroline Idowu Omobude, in her early 70’s had to escape from her resident. According to him, he is now living with her relative outside the state. He stressed that, the situation is even more dangerous now, as his Mrs. Omobude was recently attacked by men suspected to be palace sword bearers and warriors in an attempt to apprehend her and her grandchildren. Mr Iduozee added that, apart from attacks that have been meted on him at different times, the recent onslaught on his mother-in-law is connected with the suspicion that the woman may have conspired with the daughter, that is his wife, to keep the children away from the traditional demands. Pointing out that, the attack was not the first attempt on his mother-in-law, Mr Iduozee said that, they have made similar visits in the past her resident “It was a serious attack but she only managed to escaped and run for her life to Abuja with injuries. Her health condition worsened there and she was admitted in a nearby hospital. Thank God, she is alive today”, Mr Iduozee narrated. Mr. Iduozee however, informed that he had been strongly against the tradition because such initiation was against the Christian faith of his family and the risk of exposure to the dreaded HIV/AIDS by using the same knife on all the children. He said that the crude method of circumcision of children in the country would inflict permanent scars and leave his children in agonizing pain and trauma for the rest of their lives. According to some custodians of Bini culture, tradition and custom demands that all male children of the traditional palace must be initiated to the Ekpenlegbe Deity as they attain maturity age to assume their traditional positions in the kingdom. It is therefore, believed that Mrs. Iduozee may have incurred the wrath of the gods of the land by not presenting her children for initiation into the Ekpenlegbe Deity, as decreed by the traditions of the community as severe punishment would be meted to the entire community.