Chief Adolphus Munamuna, Ọụbẹbẹ Kẹnị Ịjọ Ibe (the chief oral poet of the Ịjọ nation): the Ịjọ praise poet and the Niger Delta issue

Abstract

The Niger Delta struggle or problem is no longer news to the international community. It has become the preoccupation in the works of contemporary literate writers from the region. In fact, such works have even begot the name, literature of the Niger Delta; and there is much scholarship on the appreciation of these works. However, what has been missing is that scholars in the disciplines of folklore, literature and cultural anthropology have not given attention to the relationship between the struggle and the traditional verbal art forms of the region. Therefore, this paper explores a fairly long oral poem about the struggle, chanted by the Ịjọ praise-singer, Chief Adolphus Munamuna. It points out that, in doing so, Chief Munamuna continues the tradition of the African bard who comments on the goings-on in his society; not just chanting the praises of chiefs and other important personalities. It concludes by noting that the Niger Delta problem becoming a tool in the hands of an oral artist adds a new dimension to the discourse on the Niger Delta struggle.