Festivals

Iriji Mbaise Cultural Festival plan sparks calls for road repairs

Published

1 year ago

June 18, 2025

As Iriji Mbaise Cultural Festival 2025 approaches, organisers urge hospitality upgrades and road rehabilitation to welcome local and foreign visitors

Iriji Mbaise Cultural Festival plan is in full swing ahead of the highly anticipated annual celebration on 15 August 2025, with organisers calling on government agencies and local stakeholders to support preparations for the event in Imo State.

Also read: Governor Soludo champions farming to address food security at Anambra’s new yam festival

Addressing journalists at the Ezuruezu Mbaise Civic Centre, Chairman of the Central Planning Committee, Chief Steve Onu, confirmed that this year’s festival will be held at Town School Itu in Ezinihitte Mbaise Local Government Area.

He announced that legal luminary, Barrister Louis Alozie SAN, will chair the occasion.

Chief Onu emphasised that the cultural exhibition will showcase Mbaise heritage in full splendour, affirming the festival’s standing as a national cultural event of note.

He called on the Ministry of Culture and Tourism to prioritise rehabilitation of key heritage sites in the area, including the Lagwa Monkey Colony, the Ahiara Declaration Centre, Mbari Cultural Centre in Nguru, and others, urging the deployment of tourist guides during the festivities.

Hospitality industry owners across Aboh, Ahiazu, and Ezinihitte Mbaise were reminded to clean and upgrade their hotels and eateries in readiness for the influx of guests.

Onu stated that the quality of accommodation and services offered during the festival would play a major role in promoting Mbaise as a tourist-friendly destination.

The committee also made a passionate appeal to the Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma, to approve immediate road repairs across Mbaise.

According to Onu, improved road access is vital for smooth movement and safety during the celebrations, especially as large numbers of visitors from within and outside Nigeria are expected.

Onu believes the state government stands to benefit from a positive image boost by ensuring Mbaise is accessible and presentable during the cultural festival.

The current organising effort stems from a resolution passed in April 2025, when the Mbaise apex socio-cultural group, Ezuruezu Mbaise, led by Joe Ogbonna Anosike, inaugurated the Iriji Mbaise Cultural Festival Central Planning Committee at a governing council meeting.

Also read: Cross River State Priorities Agriculture at Leboku Yam Festival

With strong community backing and national interest growing, the Iriji Mbaise Cultural Festival 2025 promises to be a significant highlight on Nigeria’s cultural calendar.

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Culture

OLOJO….Ile Ife’s September Gift To Culture

Published

2 weeks 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.”