GELEGELE is said to have been founded by its first ruler of the village, Ikpiti and his elder sister, Kunemor, sometime in 1403. Both were said to have been attracted to the area because it was located on a hill, which makes it almost impossible to be flooded by the river around the place.
According to oral history, the name ‘Gelegele” means a place on the hill. It seems to have history and importance entrusted upon it. Gelegele began as an ancient seaport which existed even before the coming of the colonial masters and long before the birth of Nigeria as a country.
Apart from the British expedition in Benin, Gelegele was one of the seaports through which the colonial masters passed in their quest for the exploration and partitioning of Africa. They used it to access the ancient Benin Kingdom. It became a major route for slave trade, cocoa, cowries and other precious items for the colonial powers and now it has become an oil-producing community.
Gelegele community road…under construction
Most importantly is its role in the history of the Benin Kingdom. It was through Gelegele that the British punitive expedition passed in 1897, which resulted in the total annihilation of the empire. It was through this same port that the reigning monarch of the Benin Kingdom, Oba Ovoramwen was deported to Calabar.
British expedition
The British expedition team was led by its Consul-General, James Phillips. The large canoe which Phillips and his team arrived Gelegele is believed to be buried by the sand in a particular spot at the port. There is also a mass grave site where the British colonial masters were reportedly buried. The names of those killed and buried along with Phillips are Peter W.C. Copland-Crowder, Arthur I Maling, Kenneth C. Campell, Robert H. Elliot, Harry S. Powish and Thomas Cordon.
With all these it would have been expected that Gelegele would have acquired some form of development, but alas, that is not the case. Like every other community in the Niger Delta, Gelegele is a graphic contrast to its economic and historical significance. Despite hosting the oil flow station of Dubri Oil Company since 1979, socio-economic activities in Gelegele are seemingly non-existent.
The mere mention of Gelegele usually evokes a picture of a far-flung, under-developed, inaccessible community in the heart of the rain forest. The village is situated near a large expanse of tropical rain forest, deep in Ovia North-East Local Government Area of Edo State, with a network of rivers, creeks, streams, canals and springs linking up to the River Niger which flows into the high seas.
Pockets of jetties and shrines being patronized by the people keep the area alive. Expectedly, low level fishing and trading in condensate (mistaken by the local people as diesel) go on in the area and serve as the major sources of revenue for the people.
The journey to Gelegele for Vanguard began at the new-look Ring Road in Benin City. The Ring-road of today wears the modern look of a real urban business centre and epi-centre of the Benin Kingdom.
The Ring-road structure is the representation of the ancient road networks constructed in the glorious days of the Benin Kingdom. All roads around the city empty into the ring road. It is worthy of note that popular and historical roads converge at the Ring Road.
These include such roads as the Sakpoba road, Sapele Road, Airport Road, Ekenkhuan, Mission Road, Ewaise (formerly called Forestry) Road, Akpakpava. Also noticeable round the Ring road are very important historical sites of the Benin Kingdom that serve as historical pointers of days of yore. First among these sites is the Palace of the Monarch of the Benin Kingdom, Omo N’Oba N’Edo Uku Akpokpolokpolo, Oba Erediauwa.
Then comes the Urhokhota Hall (the traditional meeting hall of all Binis). Next is the Oredo Local Government offices. The most important market in Benin, which is the Oba market lies close-by. Directly opposite is the State House of Assembly Complex, with the General Hospital as its next door neighbour. The Benin Baptist Church is close also. The Central Bank Building is also located in front of the Ring road. To complement the beauty and tourist attraction of the Ring road is the National Museum, which is located directly at the centre of the road.
The new beauty of the Ring road is a testimony to one of the achievements of Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo State. In the not too recent past, the Ring road could have been likened to the former Oshodi area in Lagos, where the citizenry dreaded to pass after dark.
At the Ring Road Bus Terminal, vehicles going to different parts of the city can be found. Governor Oshiomhole’s impact on the transport sector is evident in the presence of numerous long luxurious buses popularly called ‘Oshio Baba’ in the local parlance, heading to different parts of the city. These buses are the exact replica of Governor Babatunde Fashola’s BRT buses.
Upon the location of the bus terminal, Vanguard was informed that buses go to Gelegele twice a day, in the morning and in the evening. It was by a stroke of luck that Vanguard got a space into one of the buses heading to Gelegele. With the bus filled to capacity with passengers, it began its journey.
Residential layout
From the Ring road the bus passed by the Ekenkhuan campus of University of Benin on the right and the Garrick Grammar School on the left. Then it meandered through the new residential layout of Ugbiokho. As the bus passed through the Ekenkhuan village the scenery changed from those of buildings on both sides of the road to that of luxuriant tropical rain forests. Surprisingly the journey was smooth thus far, courtesy of the NDDC, that had built a two-lane asphalt road that would terminate at Gelegele.
Gelegele port
Upon disembarking from the bus, we approached two young men we noticed who sat in front of the steps on the clinic.. We informed them of our intention to have an extensive tour of the Gelegele community. We then followed the youths towards a location that had the sign post indicating the direction to the proposed new sea port.
As we progressed we suddenly entered into a clearing, only to be confronted by a group of youths. One of them told us that we had to obtain permission from their “General” before any tour or facility visit within the Gelegele community could be taken. The journey took another dimension when we were shepherded into a footpath that could barely take one person at a time. What this meant was that everyone had to walk in a single file.
Stern looking young men
We were sandwiched by a group of youths. Suddenly, we emerged again at another clearing, but this time, it had houses. Seated under what could be described as an earthen porch were eight stern-looking young men. After introductions, the spokesperson of the group finally introduced us to ‘General’ Richard Obei who we later had an interview with.
After the interview with ‘General’ Obei, he assigned two youths to serve as our guides and to also keep an eye on us. They then took us to the house of one of the elders of the community. The residence was also located within the clearing we had just entered. The residence was modest enough to house a man of the standing as a Chief. It had its generator running, to provide electricity. After the interview with Chief Kokoroko, we now set out for the survey proper of the community.
We followed the youths through the thick tropical rain forest, to every oil-capping site. In all we counted 15 oil-capping facilities scattered in the forest. It would seem as if the Gelegele community is sitting virtually on a crude oil basin.
After a hectic walk through the forest, we came out close to the ‘famous’ Gelegele sea port. Commercial activities were about rounding up for the day. Vanguard was informed that boats and ferries carrying human and commercial cargo went to any part of the country that was linked by waterways. We saw some women loading their wares into one of the speed boats. What we could identify were kegs of local gin, dried fish, snails, plantain, salt, garri and palm oil.
Otedo News
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