Draft:Nwaotam

Nwaotam: A kind of masquerade predominated with the Ibani. and Ndoki-speaking people of Rivers State Nigeria, which appears wearing black and white regalia with agitation and fast moving action on top of the roof show it's struggle to fight the forces of evil.

History.
The origin of the Nwaotam masquerade in the Opobo, Andoni and Bonny Kingdom was outlined to the ndoki people of south-eastern Nigeria in the present abia state of Nigeria.

Customs indicated that the ndoki people have had long-term connections with the ibani people of bonny and opobo. Historical records claimed that the ibani people have always traversed upstream through the imo river to the azumini area for trade, and cultural and social interactions. The nwaotam cult occurred from the deity of ancient ibani people were got in mostly to satisfy the European's quest for human commodities in the 18th and 19th centuries. According to the remembrances of late captain crow of Liverpool

Who visited bonny for trade, the ottam tribe are stout and strong and of a deeper black than any other tribes at bonny, their bodies and looks are carved and tattooed frightfully. The Ottams were not only notable for the idolization of spirits they called 'Mmoh', but were also brought into bonny as adults, therefore the description 'Ottam Mmku" was made popular in bonny. It was also in this line, that their working strength, tribal marks and rascality gave them another local phrase, ottam-ahiriha. The ibani rite has it that the nwo-ottam originated from a dark mythical groove in mkpajekiri around ohambele-ndoki. By this time, the ndoki native, which included the ottam tribe's men, had started serving this 'mmoh' gods believe to be heterosexual; and would organise dance during a season of the year.

Those dances were mostly organised based on age grade systems; and several years, the deities' head of nwaotam.

Contemporary time:
This masquerade found in the niger-delta area, borrowed from the igbo ndoki area to the ijaw areas of opobo, bonny, and in recent times andoni (the obolo) people. though

masquerade heads of the uplands depict the spirits of the dead and that of the ibani people represents the water spirits, this masquerade not being a display of riverine origin has however rejected the owuogbo cult of the ibani people of opobo and bonny through the singing patterns dance styles and the drum patterns. The drum beats of the masquerade are still original as in the ndoki hinterland with differences in the display probably because of spiritual efficacy and originality. Traditions have suggested that the two original deities that became the masquerade heads of Mmkpajekiri in Ndoki and Queenstown-Opobo are called 'Nwaottam', while every derivative masquerade is called "Nwattam".

It's Core
The core of the nwaotam masquerade at the time metamorphosed into a cult, because this domestic deity at Ndoki had acquired a great deal of ritual authority. It was at these instances that Opobo people of the captain uranta family adopted the cult of nwaotam called " Ntuma-Mkpa" and then ferried the male naitive original totem (mummified Nwa-ottam head) through the azumini rivers into Imo rivers, then to queen town by 1920 on the authority and assistance of King Arthur Mac Pepple, the then Amanyenabo of Opobo kingdom.

Mythologies
The core of the nwaotam cult originally as a secret society was its strict hierarchy and important religious and judicial roles as the okonko of the South east and the Ekpe cult of the calabar people, but could however stand as such in opobo over the years. Later, it became a great Carnival parade roles being watered by the presence of the owuogbo cult

The Seven (7) myth
However, the masquerade is still guided by the following seven myths.

The myth of the cemetery:
the nwottam cult reveals the recognition of the ancestors and the spirits of the dead great men of a town. It is believed that as the core nwaottam cult members (called Ntuma in Queens town, Mkpa in Opobo town and Uke Mkpa in Bonny) go to the cemetery seven days before the day of display, they can appease the spirits of the ancestors of the town called "Ndi Ritchie" or "Amaduo apu" and curry spiritual powers from them.

The myth of the tribal mark:
It is believed that the nwaottam spirit (Mmoh) was the guiding ancestral deity of the ottam people and to depict the original mummified totems, the masquerade head must have big tribal and bleeding marks like gutters on it's face, with a facial expression of strength and aggression, with the face looking up as a medium to god called "Chineke".

The myth of the spirits gender:
There is a belief that these spirits possess both male and female personalities; both in performance and in responses to metaphysical issues. For instance, the original totem that was taken to queenstown was said to be the male gender of the original masquerade at "Mmkpaje kiri Ndoki". It is also believed that the female spirit is stronger than the male spirit, and can only be displayed after a certain number of years.

The myth of peculiar food-stuff:
There is this belief in the nwaottam core cult, that for the many days they will be communicating with the ancestors of the town, they must eat foods cooked by any woman, but must only cook yam, corn and plantain by themselves. The above myth earned the masquerade of the appellation 'Ori Opobo'. The significance of this is for fortification.

The myth of shooting canons and guns:
The masquerade is believed to be the spirits of the ancestors made one with deity and can only perform on house-tops, without having it's heels touch the ground, by bringing good omen to the town after displaying on the roof and jumping straight down to the ground. It's believed that the nwaottam spirit communicates with other deities of the town being airborne on a house roof, to grant protection to the town as it performs to entertain.

The myth of the cult:
The core group of the masquerade has become a cult because only those in this sect can know the rituals involved and the spiritual challenges. Hence, the Ntuma mkpa or Mkpa nwaottam oruke mkpa as in queenstown, opobo town and bonny respectively have an elaborate initiation process, that only members can tell. However, embedded into the fabrics of nwaottam, the above seven myths might be: Nwaottam has metamorphosed into a yearly Carnival in Opobo and Bonny Kingdom, with the introduction of freelance performance spectrum of different folks with several types of costumes.