Diluting the Sacred: When Media and Misguided Leadership Threaten the Soul of Iri Ji Mbaise

Diluting the Sacred: When Media & Misguided Leadership Threaten the Soul of Iri Ji Mbaise

By Alex Egemasi

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​MBAISE, IMO STATE — Culture is not merely a performance; it is a sacred archive of history, sweat, identity, and generational heritage. Yet, as the Mbaise nation marches toward the grand anticipation of the 2026 festival season, a deeper, more ideological battle rages behind the scenes. At its core is a fierce resistance against cultural dilution, institutional overreach, and the dangerous erasure of those who actually toil the earth: Ndi Ezeji (the revered yam custodians and lords).

​The fault lines of this struggle were recently brought into sharp focus by a wave of critical commentaries from Mbaise intellectuals and traditional custodians, paired with widespread critiques of mainstream media representations—such as a viral 2016 documentary chronicling the festival on Royal TV Nigeria.

​For outsiders and casual observers, watching compressed media coverage of the Iri Ji Mbaise festival might look like a colorful gathering of traditional rulers, dance troupes, and speeches. But to a true son or daughter of Mbaise, what often hits the screen is a hollowed-out caricature.

​A critical review of the archival documentary on the 2016 festival highlights a glaring disconnect between media framing and authentic tradition. Critics point out that standard coverages routinely fail to capture the most vital, spiritually foundational pillars of the celebration:

IVUFUTA OJI: The deeply spiritual offering of the kolanut performed exclusively by Ndi-Ezeji.

THE BLESSING OF THE KOLANUT: Conducted by Ndi Eze, which sets the spiritual tone for the gathering.

NKWA JI: The rhythmic cultural heartbeat and music dedicated to the king of crops.

IWA-JI IN ITS FULLNESS: Including the sacred ritual of the 1st eating, which marks the legal and spiritual opening of the harvest season for the entire community.

THE ERASURE OF NDI EZEJI: Even when cameras pan across the faces of the true agricultural lords, they are frequently glossed over without mention or acknowledgment of their monumental social significance.

​As cultural purists aptly note: Anyone who relies solely on these superficial portrayals will never truly understand what we mean by Iri-Ji Mbaise.

​The Institutional Tug-of-War: Ezuruezu vs. Ndi Ezeji

​The media's oversight is merely a symptom of a larger, systemic malaise at home. Voices from across the Mbaise landscape have risen to challenge how the apex socio-cultural organization, Ezuruezu Mbaise, has occasionally handled festival planning, warning that administrative ambition is threatening to eclipse indigenous heritage.

​Weighing in on the discourse, Tpl. Arc. Finian Emereuwa, KSJI (Finimore), did not mince words regarding the trajectory of the festival:

​"It is quite unfortunate that our people keep doing some things in a wrong way. Are we really encouraging our people to farm and produce more food or discouraging them?" Emereuwa queried.

​"Ezuruezu Mbaise being an apex sociocultural organisation... does not mean they should ignore the existence of other sociocultural organisations that have been valued for several decades in Mbaise land. Undermining the efforts of Ndi Ezeji and ignoring them because we are now celebrating a world-class new yam festival does not promote our culture and can never encourage our Mbaise people to farm."

​Emereuwa recalled a painful memory of his late father, Ezeji Ochiabio, who once rushed home with a heavy heart upon hearing whispers that traditional rulers were attempting to strip Ndi Ezeji of their prerogative over Iri Ji. For a society where becoming an Ezeji requires grueling years of backbreaking agricultural labor and mastery of the soil, pushing them to the background deals a psychological deathblow to farming incentives in the region.

​Echoing these deep-seated concerns, Ezeji (Nze) Anselm Ikwu reinforced the absolute indispensability of the Ezeji institution, pointing out its unmatched historical endurance.

​"It is not as if we cannot look the other way while people commit abominations," Ikwu stated. "But the major question is: O di mma ka oki noro n'ulo eghu amuo n'obu? We are merely trying to guide Ezuruezu Mbaise Executive, because they do not know what they are doing. Nobody gets choked up because the person swallowed his pride."

​Pointing to the historic resilience of the Ezeji Mbaise Society—which has stood tall for over a centennial and a half, meeting every izu (native week)—Ikwu warned that modern executive overreach risks destroying a priceless heritage with a mere wave of the hand.

​"Ndi Ezeji Mbaise are not restricting anyone from becoming a member," Ikwu added. "Let people engage in yam cultivation, become members, and then come and preside over Iri Ji Mbaise. You are not a yam farmer and you have not been initiated into the Ezeji society, yet you want to come and preside? It's never done."

​The recurring friction—manifested previously in controversial financial tasks and structural clashes—proves that modern developmental goals and ancient traditions must walk hand-in-hand rather than step on each other's toes.

​As Mbaise looks toward hosting a magnificent, globally appealing festival, stakeholders are sending a unified message to leadership bodies: True global prestige cannot be built by burying local authenticity. Government backing, international contacts, and world-class recognition can—and should—coexist seamlessly with the unquestioned primacy of Ndi Ezeji.

​To preserve the soul of Mbaise, the yam must remain sacred, the farmers must be honored, and the custodians must lead the way.