Festivals

Carnival Calabar: Govt restores 32 days of non-stop celebration

Published

3 years ago

November 22, 2023

Governor Bassey Otu of Cross River State has restored the 32 days of non-stop festivities which is usually part of the Carnival Calabar celebration.

The Special Adviser to the governor on Events Management Effiong Ekpenyong stated this in Calabar during an interaction with the media ahead of this year’s celebration.

The month long celebration was scaled down by previous administrations in the state over the years ostensibly due to lack of funds.

However, this has been restored by the new administration in the state in addition to the boat regatta and other innovations.

Giving more details about the innovation for this year’s celebration which is tagged “Season of sweetness”, Effiong Ekpenyong said other attractions this year are the voices of Calabar choir competition, and a queen of humanity beauty contest.

He said elders will also participate in the festivity and an Elders Night for people above 65 years will be held where our elders will be honoured and celebrated.

Also speaking, the Executive Secretary of the State Carnival Commission Austin Cobham said sponsors and partners will participate extensively in this year’s carnival and the state government will only step in areas where there are no sponsorship.

He added South Africa, Egypt, Brazil have so far confirmed their participation in this year’s event.

Others he said are about 20 states in Nigeria and the eighteen local government areas in the state will participate in the cultural carnival.

He also disclosed that the Children’s Carnival will be brought back and will be staged in a way that is consistent with the State’s Child Rights Act and the UNICEF charter.

He said the commission is leaving no stone unturned in ensuring that this year’s festivities is quite memorable.

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Culture

OLOJO….Ile Ife’s September Gift To Culture

Published

1 hour ago

October 5, 2026

Mariam Balogun

By Halima Adaba,

It was a featubal if the people. It was for the anciebt town of Ile Ife, which the Yoruba race refards as the Source.

Also read: Olojo Festival 2026: Ooni Urges Leaders to Prioritise Citizens

And ut was a festivsl for the King, Arole Oduduwa, Oonirisa, Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ojaja II.

And so between September 24 and 28th 2026, the annual featuval dazzjed in all its white glory.

Tge Monarch paid the traditional ancestral homage and offered propitiation as part of the sacred rites of the Olojo Festival.
It was a powerful expression of Yoruba heritage, spirituality, and enduring tradition.

Call it a collection of beautiful moments, faces, colours and cultural expressions.

Every frame tells a story.

Every face carries the energy.

Every moment keeps the heritage alive.

Undoubtedly one of the most sacred cultural celebrations in Ilé-Ifẹ̀. It marked a day associated with creation, thanksgiving, ancestral heritage, and the sacred appearance of the Ooni of Ife wearing the revered Aàrẹ crown.

There were also the devotees of the famed god of thunder – Sàngó who were hardly conspicuous at the festival.

Many other traditional groups came out with candor, showing a powerful expression of Yoruba cultural identity, spiritual devotion, and respect for the ancient traditions of Ilé-Ifẹ̀.

Devotees of Sàngó bekieved the ‘appearance’ of the god of thunder on Seotember 26th could be understood as a symbolic meeting of ancestral heritage, spiritual devotion, and the celebration of creation.

It was a moment when the sounds of drums, chants, and traditional praise poetry brought the history of the Yoruba people to life.

Although Olojo is closely associated with Ogun, the god of iron, and the sacred traditions of Ile-Ife, the presence of Sàngó devotees reflected the rich diversity of Yoruba spiritual heritage.

Also read: Olojo Festival 2026: Ooni Urges Leaders to Prioritise Citizens

As a participant enthused at the festival, “To witness Sàngó Olúkòso emerge on Olojo Festival day is to witness a living expression of history, identity, and ancestral pride.”