Mixture of joy and grief as Ijaw nation, others bid final farewell to Mama Amoguye Angelina Timiyan
OGULAGHA – When the family of Late Chief (Mrs) Mama Princess Amoguye Angelina Timiyan, mother of the Ebenanaowei of Ogulagha Kingdom, rolled out the burial plan of their mother who departed this world on Tuesday, August 30, 2022, the good people of Obotobo community, Ogulagha Kingdom in Burutu Local Government Area of Delta State, welcomed it with an open mind. GbaramatuVoice reports.
Their expression of open mind was propelled by two separate but related reasons.
First, they saw it as a very good avenue to bid farewell to the Princess whom many in the community considered as a virtuous woman dotted with exemplary qualities of emulation.
Secondly and very fundamental, the entire Ogulagha kingdom and its environs considered it a strategic period to express their profound gratitude to their royal father, His Royal Majesty, Elder (Capt.) Dr. Joseph I. Timiyan (JP), Ebenanaowei of Ogulagha Kingdom and Chairman, Delta Ijaw Traditional Rulers Council.
To many in the kingdom, His Royal Majesty, Elder (Capt.) Dr. Joseph I. Timiyan (JP) is not just their Royal Father, but their benefactor per excellence whose contribution towards their personal lives and development of the kingdom is unparalleled. To others, he is a man with a golden heart that has so many of his subjects (old, young, orphans, widows, youths, artisans and students) on his payrolls. To the rest, he remains a man with a loving heart for God and humanity.
While the innocent and peace loving Ogulagha community were planning to offer the King their ‘Widows Mite”, little did they know that the king has in his usual characteristics planned a carnival-like burial for his late mother that will not only keep the community dwellers feasting for the five days but have the kingdom ‘invaded’ by notable personalities from across the globe and from all shades of life.
Although the event started officially on Monday 31st of October, 2022, with the vigil mass held at the King’s residence in Warri, Delta state, the first signal that showed it was going to be different kind of burial ceremony of the sorts was dispatched on Friday 4th of November, when the community dwellers to their greatest surprise saw the remains of Mama arrive from Warri to the Ogulagha Waterside in well decorated barges and vessels accompanied by an entourage too numerous to count but made up of the family, friends, royal fathers, captains of industries, nollywood artists, revered men of God, public office holders, among others. The barges and vessels had live bands and were loaded with food and drinks for entertainment.
Governor Okowa of Delta State Speaks
Speaking at the burial ceremony, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa said: We are here yours truly to commiserate with you on the passing on of your beloved mother to glory, undoubtedly from the biography we have just heard, she has lived a life worthy of emulation, she has lived a life of service to the ogulagha kingdom and beyond and she has lived a life of service to God Almighty.
Okowa who was represented by his Deputy, Kingsley Otuaro added: Your mother has lived a life worthy of emulation like I have said and as we all are aware, mothers are the greatest assets God Almighty has given to each and every one of us and even when they have lived the Methuselah age and have passed on to glory, the excruciating pains that attains their passing on to glory cannot be over emphasized.
“On behalf of the government and people of Delta State, we are here to commiserate with you, be strong in the Lord, because your mother is resting in the bosom of our Lord and all we need to do at this moment is to exemplify the beautiful virtues we have heard her to have lived, emulate those virtues and ensure that those virtues are entrenched and extrapolated in this Kingdom and beyond. He concluded.
Ijaw nation mourns
On his part, Professor Benjamin Okaba, President, Ijaw National Congress (INC) said: On behalf of over 45million Ijaw people, in Nigeria and outside Nigeria, I have come to commiserate with our daddy, to soliderise with him on this very special day, as we all gather to pay farewell to his beloved mother.
Well, today is not to make long speeches but to convey the condolence of the Ijaw people, well mummy lived 82years, she lived a fulfilled life, a very very fulfilled life, she gave utmost training and discipline to her children, she didn’t die a poor woman, she didn’t die because there was no money to treat her, she died because this is her time to be with the Lord. While on earth she lived an exemplary life to the extent that we can call her a mother to womanhood.
Today, we are telling ijaw nation why we are mourning, why we are also bidding farewell to our mother, we must be conscious of the time we are into, we must be conscious of the security issues of our nation, we also have to be conscious of the complexities of 2023, we have to be very careful, make the right choices, knowing that leadership is very crucial in defining the Ijaw question.
SDP Presidential Candidate condoles with monarch
Also, Prince Adewole Adebayo, Presidential Candidate of Social Democratic Party (SDP) noted as follows: We condole with you and we wish you long life and prosperity and we wish this Kingdom to be a great kingdom and the people of this great kingdom, no matter how long it takes, starting with us will enjoy the full benefits of the endowment that God has given this community. All the problems here will be a thing of the past in your lifetime. Thank you your majesty
Other Reactions from the People
An indigene of Ogulagha kingdom told GbaramatuVoice crew that right from Friday 4th of November, when Mama’s corpse was conveyed to the Obotobo community and till the last day of the burial, many did not bother to cook in their various homes as there were always enough to eat in the king’s palace.
Another male Ogulagha indigene during an interview with GbaramatuVoice said that he will never forget the burial ceremony for obvious reasons.
In his words, I will never forget Mama’s burial ceremony. Apart from the fact that Mama was a good woman and a mother to all, his son, His Royal Majesty, Elder Capt. King Joseph Ijawperebo Timiyan (JP) (PhD), Torububou 1, Agbonu, the Ebenanaowei of Ogulagha Kingdom, has also been good to his subjects. Also worthy of note is the fact that the burial ceremony has brought fame to the Ogulagha kingdom and placed the Obotobo community on the global stage.
Indeed, aside from the above testimonies by indigenes, His Royal Majesty, the Ebenanaowei of Ogulagha Kingdom also gave an indication about Mama’s goodness during the thanksgiving mass.
On the love that existed between him and his late mother
He said: “Pray, don’t swear for your children in the morning, in the evening, because this is what I learned from my mother. And even when I’m in this town in the palace, in the morning, around 5:30, she will come into my room; her prayer will wake me up in the morning. It may be 6:00am… And also in the morning if I wake up in time around 5:30, I will be with her. So we continue to pray even in her house. And that is where I will stay till 7 or maybe 8 O’Clock. And all the chiefs around will come and meet me over there. So that is the spiritual aspect. So what I’ve been doing for years, for me to miss that aspect is not going to be easy.
He revealed that before Mama passed on, she bought some fish for him to eat in Warri; she sent them. And the fish was still in the fridge before she died… She is someone that is taking care of us, all the children. On her own time she will buy fish and send to all of us. I know she always kept us in her mind and we also do the same. I think I love her better than she loved me. But I think she loved me mostly because she felt she never made a mistake having me [as] the first born of her and she also told me that if it happens that we will come back to this world (it’s something that people are saying), she said I will be her first born again. I promised her, “if it’s so, I will like to be your first born because I never lacked anything, right from youth till today.”
We will miss her. No matter how we console ourselves and encourage ourselves, we can say that death is inevitable or any way we put it, honestly we will miss her. It has happened to others. I was thinking it’s a mere thing. She’s 82; some died at 60, 50; people bear it, but I don’t know how it’s like. It depends on how you take your mother; it depends on how you love her; it depends on how she took care of you. But mine is exclusively excellent and that is why it affects everybody…
Continuing, he added; I don’t think I really need anything from my parents again, rather they need it from me. Despite that, I feel like something is missing. Seriously, it’s missing. Although I still have another person that will represent her, it cannot be exactly like her—that’s my wife. She is also trying to pray… We men have a lot of commitments. So time to pray is always a problem for us. But the women are dedicated to prayers… Women are full time. So, the first thing they do is pray.
His impression about the love shown him by his kingdom
Our Kingdom is so wonderful. When people love you, when things like this happen, you will understand that they love you. This has made me know that all the chiefs in this kingdom, all the children, the youth presidents, in fact, the women are wonderful. The entire Kingdom, they’re so suppressive. My friends, my business partners.
Yes, this burial, everybody knows we will spend money. But sometimes when I look at it, I can spend my personal money or money from very close friends and business associates. So, on my mother, “is it me all these people are doing all these things fo?” People can just give me N20 million, N10 million, N5 million for burial. And that is why I ask myself, “Why are they giving me money for my mother’s burial when I have enough to bury her. I have enough; without anybody contributing money I can bury her.
But I think I have been doing that to others too. So I now know that it’s what I was doing that they are doing back to me in return. Even from this kingdom, people were given N2 million, N3 million, N5 million—people that are still struggling. These people love me. Can someone just release N2 million, N3 million to you? For just burial that one cannot make useful reference. Outsiders were giving me N10 million, cows were coming from different places (everybody knows I have enough cows in this town…) but cows were still coming from different places. That is to tell you people that it’s good to do good things. When people are in need, help them when you have to. That’s the truth. If I don’t help, if I don’t give, if I’m not generous then nobody will give to me. If I’m selfish nobody will come close to me.
If I want to use my personality and my position to live the way I want to live, people will be scared to come to me. But you can see that anybody can knock on my door and come in, I don’t care. I can eat in public . I don’t care, because I don’t believe that anybody can turn me on because I don’t have the mind to punish anybody. There are kings that don’t eat in the public, but I eat in the public. I want to be free. But, if you think I’m very free and you want to use that as a privilege, that’s when you will see the Hand of God, because God is God and nobody can tempt God. I know it is only God that ordained me and that is why I’m free with everybody. I didn’t argue with anybody, it’s my time, and it’s what my fathers were doing.
Royalty is right from my maternal and paternal side, so I’m not surprised to become a king because my mother’s father was a king in this kingdom. So if I become a king what will make me surprised? My mother, she’s a princess and my father’s immediate younger brother, Ene, is next to Timiyan; he was a king in this kingdom. So when I become a king who will now cast that flood in me. That is why I want to be very free; I want to accomplish those things that my paternal side did not accomplish, my maternal side did not do. They are all things. Let me do better than them. And I believe I’m going to do better than them, I’m going to reign better than them, I’m going to rule better than them.
Mama’s Lifestyle
At my mother’s old age, I was surprised that my younger ones were telling me that they saw bags in my mother’s room. When they opened them, some of the bags were N1 million, N1.2 million, N2 million. It was just like that. As they opened the bags it was just million, million, million… My mother doesn’t believe in bank (the audience laughed). But I’m not telling anybody to go and raid that house (laughter from the audience).
Already, in this community, a very local community, there is a woman that is a millionaire.
That is to tell you that it’s not because there is no money to treat her. It is because God wants her to go on that particular day, if not, money can survive anybody. Only me can survive her. I am more or less a governor, and so there is nothing that I cannot do.
Appreciation
I thank everybody for taking the pain, from the 31st [October] to 4th, 5th, today (6th) (November) it’s not easy as the environment cannot be conducive like yours even though you view it as very beautiful. It’s not yours. There is a difference between yours and where you are.
Also, Why I stand here is to tell everybody that after this session there’s a light refreshment in my palace. I decided to do this in honour of my mother so that anybody that is coming to this burial will not lack food, water. I will continue to cook for everybody till on the 7th of this month (November) even thereafter I will continue to cook, because my mother fed the nation, so I will also do that.
The Big Promise
Another thing I’m also thinking is that there are people that are very close to my mother, and through my mother they’re very close to me. And you know that for now they will feel so bad that they cannot have access to me, but I promise them that I’m still there for you people. Through my mother, If I put a lot of people in my payroll I will not stop paying you because my mother is down low. As far as your name is in my payroll I will pay you till the last day. And also those that are close to her that I’ve not added your name to my payroll, I will find time to put your name in my payroll. I will continue to pay everybody. My mother’s death cannot separate me and you, provided I know you as a good friend to my mother.
As a follower to my mother, just take it that you’re still with me. Have free mind, just come to the Palace, you want to see me I will definitely see you. Now that my mother is not there for you, I’m still there, I recognize you people, I know you well, especially her sisters that were very close to her. And I know that they loved her. Don’t think I will forget about you because my mother is under.
Donation to the Church
Thank you very much our Reverend Father. I’ve not been to a Catholic church like this apart from few invitations I attended. But I’m taking this one as my own. You’re so young and very brilliant, a good preacher. I think you said you want to repair a building… Okay, I will give you people one million naira.
Roll Call of Dignitaries
Dignitaries present include, His Excellency, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa, Governor of Delta state, represented by his deputy, Barr. Kingsley Otuaro; Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, Deputy Senate President of Nigeria (represented by Chief Bosin Ebikeme); Hon. Julius Pundi, Member, Federal House of Representatives; Barr. Adewole Adebayo, SDP Presidential Candidate; Chief Kenneth Gbagi, SDP Governorship Candidate; Chief Michael Ikuku, Chairman/CEO, Michharry and Company Limited.
Others include: Hon. George Timinimi, Delta South Senatorial candidate, APGA; Professor Benjamin Okaba, President, Ijaw National Congress (INC) worldwide; Dr. Shedrack Agediga, Executive Director, Planning, Research and Statistics DESOPADEC, traditional rulers across the state; clergymen, oil and gas moguls, Executives of IOCs, actors, comedians, among others.
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