![]() Thereafter, Huraka left Poka to live in Epe where he was at different times joined by other settlers, among whom was Alara, a prince who came with his royal attendants from Ile-Ife, namely Lugbesa, Agbaja, Ofuten, Ramepe, Ogunmude and Oloja Sagbarafa from Ijebu-Ode 7. According to Chief Olufowobi, this was probably in the 13th century 6. It was from Poka that Huraka was instructed by Ifa oracle to cross the Otien River and settle down in Epe. Oko-Epe has since been corrupted to Epe ( Oguntomisin, 1999). While in Poka, his favorite hunting ground was a strip of forest located between Otien River to the north and the lagoon to the east and west, which he called Oko-Epe 5. This expedition ultimately led Huraka and his group of hunters to Poka. Huraka was said to have left Ile-Ife with a group of hunters on a hunting expedition. ![]() According to this tradition, Huraka had founded Poka before migrating to Epe 4. 8 However, attempts by the author to locate the family associated with Alara in Epe yielded little r (.)ĥThe Huraka tradition, which was probably recorded in Epe itself and in Poka 2 ( Oguntomisin, 1999: 1-3), says that Huraka, a hunter from Ile-Ife, was the first settler of Epe 3.6 Interview with Chief Olufowobi, the Jagun Oba of Epeland, 12 March 2010.The forest is infested with a lot of these a (.) 5 The town derived its name from black ants called epe.3 Interview with Chief Olufowobi, the Jagun Oba of Epeland, Epe, 12 March 2010.2 Poka is a small community located in the northern axis of the town.Epe gives a good example of the feelings of these peripheral, unexplored communities and of their ambiguities. However, while the perceptions, aspirations and expectations of independence in the urban centers have been substantially documented, the feelings and expectations of the people at the grassroot and the periphery have not been fully explored by professional historians. Lagos at that time was a centre of intense political activities. ![]() This politicking pitched different communal groups against each other. The quest for independence dominated the forefront of Nigeria’s political scene from 1955. At independence, the town could boast of two industrial sites set up by the AG regional government: Epe Plywood and Epe Boat Yard.ģBritish domination of Nigeria came to an end on the 1st of October 1960, when Nigeria became a sovereign state and, three years after, became a republic. The major occupations of the people were fishing, boat making and agriculture. At independence in 1960, the population of the town was approximately 20,000. The town also served as one of the divisional headquarters of the Western region. By 1952, the town was placed under the administrative jurisdiction of the Western Region government under the leadership of Obafemi Awolowo, the first Premier of the Western Region. Located on the northern shore of the Lagos Lagoon, Epe is bounded in the north by Ijebu-Ode, the capital of the former Ijebu kingdom, and in the east and west by Ikorodu and Lekki lagoon respectively. Epe was later incorporated into the Lagos Colony as part of the British Protectorate. Situated about 77 kilometers from Lagos city, Epe is one of the towns that were incorporated in 1892, following the defeat of the Ijebu kingdom by the British. Therefore, direct annexation of Lagos took place in 1861 and the one of Epe in 1892 ( Ajayi, 1961). Then, by the 1890s, through the signing of treaties of “friendship” with local chiefs and direct military action, what is now southern Nigeria became part of the British empire as “underdeveloped estates”, in the words of Joseph Chamberlain, the then British Secretary of State for the Colonies. However, the independence celebration was coloured by historical rivalry between the two different communities occupying the geographical space of Epe.ĢBritish intervention in what was to become Nigeria first manifested itself in Lagos, which was bombarded by the British anti-slavery Naval Squadron in 1851 on the pretext of stopping the slave trade ( Ajayi, 1961). their time to be in charge of their affairs and make decisions pertaining to them. This era, they hoped, was to be theirs, i.e. The people of Epe, like others in many parts of Nigeria, felt the time of imperial domination was over. – Western Nigerian: the movement of Kosoko in 1851 from Lagos Island to Epe.ġIn Epe, the independence celebration day was one that brought about great expectations and hope to the people.
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