| OGBAUKWU: NIGERIA'S CAVE DESTINED TO BREAK UNESCO'S WORLD HERITAGE SITE RECORD - SAYS OSIBEROHA UCHE OSIBE The much known but inadequately publicized Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave in Orumba South local government area of Anambra State, Nigeria is set to tower among other caves in the world. This is as a result of findings of research sponsored by the New Africa Foundation for Research, Information, Education and National Development (NewAfrica F.R.I.E.N.D) and conducted by the New Africa Foundation for Arts, Culture and Tourism (NewAfrica FACT). The outcome of the research findings shows that of the ten criteria from which one out of ten criteria is required to attain the status of the World Heritage Property, the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave is found to meet eight out of them (the ten criteria) - a potential world record at that. No known cave or tourist attraction site has been known to possess up to 8 criteria as is with Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfalls in Anambra State, Nigeria In this interview, with the Founder and Executive Director of New Africa FACT, a cultural heritage and tourism promotion cum development non-governmental organization, Osiberoha Uche Osibe who is also the Secretary of the Board of Trustees of Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfalls Tourism Foundation (OCWTF), the tourism development activist throws more light on the nature and importance of the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave as a veritable tourism destination point. His view is captured below by BEATRICE ONUCHUKWU: Sir, can we know much about the town where the Ogbaukwu Cave is sited. Thank you very much. Owerre-Ezukala town is one of the most populous communities in Orumba South local government area of Anambra state in Nigeria, west of Africa. A boundary town that is bordered in the north by Awlaw town in Enugu state; in the South-east by Umuaku-Isuochi in Abia and one-time by Eziama town also in Imo state. Owerre-Ezukala serves as a major outlet to the South-east, South-south and northern part of Nigeria. Sir, can we get to know about this Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfalls that is creating wave in the tourism industry. Yes, the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfalls from the research findings of natural/physical scientists and writers is believed to have been formed by flow that creates lava tunnels or tubes, solution dissolution (and to an extent non-solution dissolution) as well as limestone. It belongs to the limestone caverns family formed by solution process. Beautiful limestone of great sizes and shapes among other solid minerals abound within the cave environment. Apart from evidence of abrasion and erosion in limestone caves formed through non-solution process. a solution process of rain water is known to attack and dissolve rock salt (calcium carbonate of limestone) to widen the cracks and joints of the rocks by disintegration of rock One major thing is that the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave is a massive cultural and historical monument with a natural cavity or opening within the earth, reaching out from the surface of the earth to the realm of light. Measuring not less than 10 kilometres in length and extending to Awlaw-Ishiama and Nkwuli-Awlaw axis of Enugu state and the border of Egere in Awgu local government area and Amuda-Isuochi Umunneochi local government area of Abia state, Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfalls, is known among scholars and tourists as the biggest and largest cave in West Africa at least. The landscape is a mixture of sandy, rocky, dryly and wetly stuff, as well as a natural beach for relaxation. Another significant thing is that it possesses great waterfalls that cascading from a height of about 60 metres, all year round with its heaviest flow peak during the rainy season enough to generate electricity. The Cave's waterfalls have their sources from a confluence of the swampy Edegere and Ozu ukwu stream, both in Iyiafo village of the community. Just as it splashes down, the waterfall forms a natural swimming pool at the base where tourists swim or take their bath. From the base of the waterfalls, the waterfall moves further about a mile to join a nearby supernatural lake (Ogbo-ori) joining another Akpagha which joins Obiyi river which embraces Utulu river to form a bigger Mamu river, a tributary of Oji river. It is this Mamu River that traverses several rivers in many communities to join Omambala river (from where the name of Anambra State was derived, moving further to form a tributary of River Niger. What major fascinating features can be found in the cave that you would say makes the Cave a major tourism destination point Infact, many tourists have visited the cave and ended up saying, there is nothing that is not in the Cave. I join them to say also that there is nothing that is not in the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfalls. On entering the Cave, the visitor feels the clement weather in and around the Cave, On deseeding into the Cave , a visitor sees the waterfall, after which he washes his or her hand and moves to rest either at the first naturally-rock-sheltered reception point obu agu nta (small lion's den) or obu agu ukwu (big lion's den) where the visitor/tourist gets exciting moments watching traditional wrestling matches and mock battles take place. Inside the cave are varied tunnels and inter-connecting passages leading into different roomy apartments of varying shapes and sizes. Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfalls is a naturally-carved rocks, with two different entrances, one serving as an entrance and the other an exit point offering an escape route in a case both of emergency or danger. It is here that the major interesting scenic spots abound and local guides help tourists to appropriate the best out of tourism sites either with candles and torch in the absence of electrical connections inside the Cave. Security wise, the Cave offered a good hide out in terms of danger or insecurity since the olden days. Villagers were and are still known to find refuge inside it. A visit to the cave usually turns out a visitor's delight as a visitor is likely to see scenic places of interest from a particular tunnel of about a door-post size made of sharp, slender pinnacle hanging from the roof (stalactites) and another pinnacle in form of a door curtain growing from the floor (stalagmites). Both the stalactites and stalagmites join to form another tourist attraction structure of nature like a pillar Interesting thing in the Cave is that a spiritual force was once known to inhabit the Cave. Traditional religionists claim it was the God Creator that resided inside the Cave from where He stays at a particular entry point of the Cave to dispense justice to disputing parties that came on consultation either over a missing or stolen yam, cocoyam, cock or maize. After listening to a petitioner, the Spirit was known to pass judgment and the offending party punished accordingly . According to legend, the unknown GOD of Ogbaukwu that inhabited a large living room inside the heart of the enclave abandoned it When the spirit at Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave abandoned the place it had occupied, a search party of elders from the community was sent to Arochukwu (the voice of God) in what they called Ije Aro or Ije Chukwu to find out if exploits of the famed Long Juju or Aro oracle were manifested by the fleeing Ogbaukwu spirit. The journey was futile following marked disparities between the two supposed spirits in method of operational modalities. Unlike the Owerre-Ezukala spirit which nobody can associate with any shrine or priest, the Aro oracle was said to have developed out of a small shrine in Ibibioland and graduated to become prominent after many years of the establishment of Aro State. Unlike the God of Ogbaukwu, the Arochukwu oracle had agents that specialized in attracting clients to the oracle and those that were charged and declared culprits were deceptively said to have been sacrificed to the oracle only for them to be sold into slavery through the backdoor. The Aro oracle was defeated in the 1901 / 1902 British expedition. The oracle was said to have fled to another cave near Okigwe. Final destruction of the shrine took place in 1912 after the agents resurrected the practice of the consultation of the Aro oracle Since the futile Ije Aro by elders of Owerre-Ezukala, no one has been able to locate the whereabouts of the God of Ogbaukwu compelling the natives to contend that the spirit had gone up to Heaven. The only evidence that the 'missing' God of Ogbaukwu existed is the face of the unknown God sculpturally etched on the ceiling in one of the roomy apartments inside the cave. Few metres after it is a bewildering nature-made hanging roof without a supporting pillar Moreover, there is a particular awe-inspiring tunnel leading to a bottomless pit referred to as Ogba ekesu. At present, the place is blocked because of danger it poses. It has a tale of danger warning every tourist to avoid the area as no one is known to have returned alive to tell the story after braving it. Opposite the centre of the Cave where the God of Ogbaukwu once inhabited, is a tunnel leading to a route through which a visitor/tourist can explore the cave until he/she gets to a point where a neighbouring town of Awlaw in Oji river local government area borders Egere in Awgu local government area , both of Enugu state and Amuda Isuochi in Abia state. There are further scenes of attraction like an architectural piece depicting human settlement and socio-economic development when early men hunted for food and engaged in pastorals. These human habitation and activities are made manifest in downstairs and step-stone leading to the upstairs, rock-structured household dwelling, master bedroom, flattened traditional rock bed, wardrobe, storeroom, dane gun and domestic utensils, rock-moulded salt, and industrial items like spanners of rock inside the Cave. Following a step-stone, a visitor gets to a an enclosure where a leg of an elephant (ukwu enyi) naturally made of rock, depicting high artistic value is found. There is also a tunnel leading into an apartment in the Cave that is like a pen where animals are kept and called animal kingdom obodo anumanu in local parlance. Here can be found life-size rock-made animals like antelope, etc in their resting, squatting, stooping or standing positions. There is also a rock-made snake. The Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave cannot be exhaustively explored as there are numerous small tunnels that are blocked and unable to accommodate a human size. However, it can take a visitor/tourist about two hours to have a relative satisfactory exploration of the cave. Is there any suggestion that the Cave might have been a cradle of civilization given the historical, natural and cultural findings and formations in the Cave No one can say for sure the beginning or evolution of life. Oral history backed by observations of the physical, cultural, religious and historical occurrences in the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave goes to fuel speculation that the cradle of early civilization started there. This is one of the reasons the NewAfrica FACT team tends to regard the cave as having met one of the ten criteria for becoming a world heritage site . A forest, mountain, lake, desert, monument, building, complex or city qualifies for enlistment on the UNESCO World Heritage Site as long as it is of special cultural or physical significance. To qualify for enlistment, the nominated site(s) must be of outstanding universal value and meet one of the ten criteria set out since 2005.Before the modification was made in 2005, one set of ten criteria was broken into six criteria for cultural heritage and four criteria for natural heritage respectively. Taken one after the other, the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfall property is believed to possess eight out of the ten criteria that qualifiy a property to be considered as having outstanding universal values for enlistment on the World Heritage Site. The cave/waterfall is likely to break the record as no property on the World Heritage Site is known to have met half of the criteria talk less of eight out of ten criteria. There is the undying desire for a quicker step to be taken to include the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfall in the Tentative List for possible selection and placement on Nomination File as well as its evaluation and determination of recommended nominated property for enlistment on the World Heritage Site. The Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfall property can be matched against the ten criteria for selection: (i) Under the cultural phenomenon, a property is considered for enlistment on the world heritage site if it "represents a master piece of human creative genius." At the entrance of the cave, a visitor can find two different overflowing rocks that provide sheds for relaxation, leisure and playground/mock battle field or wrestling arena. In side the cave that looks like a natural dome, the visitor can also find the entrance and exit points in times of danger, similar to architectural device by mankind for safety sake. In the course of exploring the cave, a tourist can find master piece of human creative ingenuity with the natural stony sculptural leg of an elephant or probably a horse. There is also a nature-architectured downstairs and upstairs as well as roomy apartments for human habitation, wardrobe, kitchen, toilet, uko agu, and an earthly life size forms of animals made of rock in their natural pen or animal kingdom (obodo agu). Like in the caves discovered in the period of Stone Age in Spain and France where early men lived, the sculpturally carvings on the wall and floors of the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave depict ancient human-like activities and high artistic value of the early men who gathered food, hunted for animals and engaged in pastorals. The engravings also depicted beautiful nature decorations and evolution of humanity and animal migrations. (ii) Again, a property for enlistment "exhibits an important interchange of human values, over a span of time, or within a cultural area of the world on developments in architecture or technology, monumental arts, town planning, or landscape design." Caves like Ogbaukwu in Owerre-Ezukala was used as a shelter for and place of protection for early men against wild animals , harsh weather and unfriendly neighbours. The formation of the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala has a touch of class in architecture, and town planning design such that there is an entry and exit points, upstairs, step-stones and down stairs with tunnels and roomy apartments of different sizes and shapes as well as wardrobe, kitcjhen and other household and industrial items. The enclosure within the living room with a compound depicts post-colonial Nigerian traditional home made up of a parlour or master bedroom, mkpuke (detached wife's room, kitchen, open space, and a pen-like enclosure where domestic animals are kept. There is a compartment where the awe-some architectural manifestations of hanging roof without supporting pillars. Except they were naturally formed, the decorative stone carvings/designs patterns on the walls and floors of the cave can be attributed to an intelligently-fashioned works of high artistic value and products of the cultural environment. What can one say about the "face of the unknown GOD" scripturally-etched on a roof of a room inside the centre of the cave. The property to be inscribed on a world heritage site should be one that "bears a unique or exceptional testimony to a cultural tradition or to a civilization which is living or which has disappeared." The Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfalls site is regarded as a cradle of civilization dating back to the Stone Age period through the iron Age Oral tradition alludes to the fact that early civilization grew at the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave since the Stone Age. There is the possibility that they lived together as a community inside the cave and had an ancient type of government and centre of meeting. Various sounds re produced from different stone as they are played on to produce different danced to at traditional wrestling or mock battles at the arena of big lion's den) (obuagu ukwu) As with the caves in Spain and France, the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave has carvings on its walls and floors made from cut chippings of pieces of stone into desired shape though Egypt and Mesopotamia are acclaimed originators of writing, the natural development of sculptures and engravings in rocks in Ogbaukwu wonder cave give expression to an earlier form of primitive writing/communication. There is also the prevalent cultural tradition of divination since the ancient time. It is still in practice till date. Legend has it that Ogbaukwu /Owerre-Ezukala Cave was at a time a place where the natives consulted an unknown GOD. This spirit being was said to have able to discern the mission of those who came to seek justice and inquire from it over disputes. As republicans, Igbos were individualistic, egalitarian and had a segmentary political system devoid of central government but a village of assembly of native and council of elders (ndi amaala) consisting of ofo holding family heads and opinion mouldersThe judicial system had no set rules such that a respected elder, ward or village elders can be approached by any of the parties to a dispute to intervene and settle same. Beyond these, spirit, medium or oracle consultation can be opted to settle disputes at times referred to it by the disputants, wards or village. Individuals and families were known to have consulted Ogbaukwu spirit. Disputes usually referred to the spirit are those that proved difficult to establish the guilt verdict. A guilt judgment was passed on the culprit after the consultation at the open entrance into the cave . Due to incessant, insignificant inquiries., the Ogbaukwu GOD as said to have abandoned its habitation inside the cave to a place no one has been able to identify. A search party\s effort to find out if the Ogbaukwu spirit was one that people consulted in large numbers at Arochukwu was futile. A criteria is equally met for a property to be enlisted on the World Heritage Site when it "is an outstanding eXample of a type of building, architectural or technological ensemble or landscape which illustrates a significant stage in human history." The Ogbaukwu//Owerre-Ezukala Cave is an outstanding naturally-formed building,, architectural and technological piece consisting of downstairs, and step-stone leading to the upstairs. It boasts of tunnels and roomy apartments that can pass for a place of human habitation at the early civilization. After the Ice Ages, life is believed to have evolved from ape man to real man some hundreds of thousands of years. Running away from wild animals, enemies and harsh weather, the early men found out that caves were more conducive and secured to stay/live. At Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave, the stream (spring) that gives rise to the waterfalls provides water to drink for human survival. The Stone Age men fashioned rough stone implements as tools and weapons. The existence of household items, weapons of war like dane gun, made of rock still baffles scholars of speleology and visitors/tourists. Opinions are divided as to whether the formation of these stone implements etched on the wall or and floor of the cave is natural or originated as a result of human activities by early men who made sharp implements including axes by striking rough pieces of stones against each other to hit, cut or chop off chipping of pieces of stone to get desired shape. Moreover, to be inscribed as a property on the World Heritage Site, the property is expected to be "an outstanding example of a traditional human settlement, land use or sea-use which is representative of a culture or human interaction with the environment especially when it has become vulnerable under the impact of irreversible change." Inside the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave, is a balcony for security operations and intelligence gathering, as it affords one the chance to stay inside the cave and still have a wholistic view of its entrance. This enables one to stay inside to be secured and be able to monitor intruders in order to take preventive measures or counter moves against danger, insecurity or emergency situation. As a settlement of early human kind, Ogbaukwu Cave and waterfalls are not far from it. You know that ancestors of man according to historians, archeologists and other writers appeared about 50 million years ago. What you see inside the Cave though of natural rocky formations, shows semblance of activities of early men and cradle of civilization that once manifested therein. In the Old Stone Age, the early men only knew about hunting for animals using roughly fashioned stone implements with handle as weapons. They also had cut chippings of pieces of stone to desired shapes for carving and painting on stones and walls of caves as well as other sheltered settlements. The New Stone Age men who had lived on trees and later caves improved on the original creations by making axes which had thick end. These axes were shaped by striking rough pieces of stones against each other while holding the thick end with fist and using the narrow end to hit, cut and chop wood. He learned to scare away wild animals and cruel neighbours in order to secure himself in caves and other sheltered settlements by making fire in the bush and at the entrance to the caves. The Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave is believed to have existed from the Old Stone Age period of over 500,000 B.C. to the New Stone Age period of 3,000 B.C. within which period discoveries were made of paintings and carvings on the rocks in the caves in France and Spain . With the much beautiful nature decorations and cave engravings depicting evolution of humanity and animal migration, it is believed that early life which had existed in Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave traversed the periods of Stone Age through Iron Age. Otherwise how else can one attribute the seeming naturally, intelligently- fashioned domestic items like dane gun, and industrial item like spanner, all made of rock. Same with the sculpturally carved face of the unknown GOD of Ogbaukwu contends that civilization grew at Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala at the same time of Old Stone Age and Metal Age except that it not only developed to a noticeable level in Africa's Egypt because of River Nile and Asia's Mesopotamia because of Rivers Euphrates and Tigris, but also influenced much of history and civilization of Europe and world. After Egypt and Mesopotamia, the third cradle of civilization developed in 3,000 B.C. around the Islands of Crete and between Egypt and Greece and around the Augean sea, a branch of the Mediterranean sea at the Eastern part. A writer had identified some wonderful artificial works done in the ancient times which he dubbed the " Seven Wonders of the World ." These were:(a) the Pyramids of Egypt , erected about 4,000 B.C. to serve as tombs of the Egyptian kings (Pharaohs);(b) the Walls and Hanging Gardens of Babylon( which were created by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon complemented the Hanging Gardens which were irrigated from waters pushed from Euphrates by a revolving crew;©The Status of Zeus or Jupiter (The status called Zeus by the Greeks and Jupiter by the Romans was carved by the great Greek sculptor, Phidias stood at 49 feet with gold-robbed Zeus seated;(d) The Mausoleum (The magnificent was erected in honour of a Persian ruler (Asia Minor) though now in ruins, portions tomb of it can be found in the British Museum );(e) The Temple of Diana at Ephesus (It was constructed during the time of Alexander the Great by Greeks architects to portray the means the ruler spread civilization);(f) The Goths destroyed the 400 feet long and over 200 feet Wide temple in A.D. 40;(g) The Pharos or Light House at Alexandria (The first light house to be built in the history of the world was established after the death of Alexander the Great to lead mariners to the commercial nerve-centre he founded); and (h) The Colossus of Rhodes (The now destroyed huge bronze status of Helios or Apollo, the sun god of 120 feet high took 12 years to make by Greeks. It was put up at the entrance of the harbor, an Island of the coast of Asia Minor ). Today many handiworks and works of nature pass for the modern wonders of nature. In this wise, Ogba kwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave is a natural and cultural monument that is long overdue for enlistment as a mixed property on the World Heritage Site. Infact it has broken record as a yet-to-recognized world heritage site/property. The New Africa Foundation for Arts, Culture and Tourism (NewAfrica FACT), a subsidiary of New Africa Foundation for Research, Information, Education and National Development (NewAfrica F.R.I.E.N.D) is sponsoring the NewAfrica FACT to go into another round of research to actualize further exploration, survey, excavation and archeological studies of the Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfalls to throw more insight into the nature, other causal formation and date of the existence of the cave. This will go a long way in confirming or disputing the oral historical contention that Ogbaukwu/Owerrre-Ezukala Cave belongs to the cradle of early civilization world heritage monument what with the myth of God's abode and etched face on the ceiling of a room in the cave, evidence of human settlement and activities since the era of Stone Age and the rock carvings on the wall and floors of the cave. Is any festival periodically as a form of traditional or cultural event associated with a god or idol. One major thing about the Ogbaukwu Tourism Festival is that it is not a traditional festival in the sense of according honour to a god or idol. However, its celebration usually coincides with a traditional festival called Ajala Onwa Ato (a cultural festival held about the month of May every year to usher in the harvest period of plenty of farm yields like maize and cassava. This time plenty of consummation of these local dishes is observed The Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave and Waterfalls Tourism festival has become one of the major cultural heritages of the people that has been sustained till date. It helps as a vehicle to foster unity among the people of Owerre-Ezukala and between the host community and tourists from in and outside Nigeria. The festival is held beginning with every last Saturday of May and rounds up the next or two days. This year's festival holds on Saturday 25, 2013 During the festival, an opportunity is created for show-casing of the heritage of the people, cultural value, tourism, relaxation, and entertainment in form of mock battles, traditional wrestling, music, dances, beauty contest, football tourism, exhibition of fabrics - local arts and craft as well as local dishes and African continental. Modern times have not witnessed any ritual ceremonies performed during or after the event, this is more so when the cave has no shrine where a traditional priest can perform rituals before it is celebrated Rather, a Christian Pastor or clergy is usually invited to come to the site and offer prayers and bless the site before the commencement of Ogbaukwu festival and exploration tour to see the wonders of nature at the cave site. The NewAfrica Team equally initiated the establishment of five outstations of the Federal Ministry of Tourism , Culture and National Orientation including but not limited to the National Council of Arts and Culture (NCAC), Nigerian Tourism Development Council (NTDC), National Commission for Museum and Monuments (NCMM), National Institute and Hospitality and Tourism (Nihotours) and Centre for Black and African Arts and Civilization (CBAAC).. This was made possible through a letter by the Osiberoha Osibe-led NewAfrica FACT to the then Minister. Later the Boar of Trustees of the OCWTF keyed into the initiative. Presently, Ogbaukwu/Owerre-Ezukala Cave has been recognized as what NewAfrica FACT research team recommended as the Nigerian Multi-media and Film Cultural Village or what has become known as a Nollywood Cultural Village. The .Nigerian Multi-media and Film Cultural Village is envisaged by New Africa FACT as a place where experts in television and films/home videos can edit/produce films, direct casts, and cinematography using availability of live recording equipment, High Definition Camera (HDV) audio mixers , Non Linear Editing facilities and digital video & audio mixers to fast track its actualization. We envisage Ogbaukwu Heritage Business and Leisure resort, Tourism Education and Training Programme, Information Technology hub, museum, art-life galleria, and paintings, fabrics, game village and aero-plane/jet landing ground, etc, | 