Sunday, November 14, 2010

Oba Ovoranmwen Nogbaisi Square, Benin City, Nigeria


On Friday the 12th of November 2010, the Square at the Ring Road area located at the heart of the City was renamed from Kings Square to Oba Ovoranmwen Nogbaisi Square. This action achieved two things; first, by the change of name, there was observed a deliberate attempt to remove the abstract but overbearing spectre of a neo-colonial dependency hitherto hanging over a people of an independent nation; and second, it represented the long overdue honour for the last Oba of an independent Edo nation, a man who became one of the last line of defence in the struggles of the African against an alien political-economic ideology that has foisted on the world the twisted and contradictory principles of contemporary capitalism.

It is an honour well bestowed for a King that is more than deserving. And for him that gave the honour, much honour awaits...