By David W Gray

By Uchenna Paul Agbedo

For the sake of this discourse, Igbo traditional society will be used as a case study. Igbo is a tribe in Nigeria. It is made up of a population of over 30 million people.

Gerontocracy is a popular word in government studies. It is the system of political administration where leadership is in the hands of the elders. In Igbo society, leadership is rooted basically on gerontocracy, but it is more encompassing than that. It is worthy of note here that despite the adoption of western form of government most African societies still practice the primitive system of government.

The background of African political life dates back to time immemorial – the days of the fore fathers. The primitive African society had a stable and peaceful society even better than what we have today. They lived in peace.

Everybody obeyed the law. The few outlaws then were seen as outcasts and retards. It was the benefits derived from such communal existence that made the present Igbo society and other African societies to still retain some of the old systems.

A typical Igbo society has a chain or hierarchy of government organs that work to form a harmonious co-existence. It is surprising that most of the laws and customs are not in a written down anywhere yet everybody respects it, though disobedience has many consequences.

The hierarchy of authority and administration starts from the family, nuclear or extended family as the case may be. The father is in charge and the leader of his household. The wife/wives and children are all subordinates to him. Every decision as it concerns the family is deliberated upon but final decisions and judgments reside with the father.

The next in line is the Kindred. This has two affiliates; the Umunna (kinsmen) and the Umuada (women folk). The kindred are made up o the people who are related at least up to the circle of 2nd to 4th generation, although it can be lower or higher than that. The lineage must be paternal not maternal. That does not mean that maternal relationship does not exist but it is not usually stratified. All the grown-ups especially married men are members of the Umunna (Kinsmen). To be a member, one must be duly registered, be attending meetings and paying dues. The kinsmen have one leader. The leader must be the oldest man in the kindred. This position is not contestable as old age qualifies one to assume the office.

Meetings are held at the residence of the leader or at the family hall. The gathering of the Umunna can be likened to that of the modern parliament. The leader is the prime minister; only that he cannot be removed from office through impeachment or election. Although the elders can pass a vote of no confidence on him in case he misbehaves but the only punishment he can receive is to appease the land with cow or goats, palm wine etc. They settle disputes and perform ceremonial functions such as marriage, funeral etc. A member enjoys enormous privileges. The kinsmen that own plots of land usually practice communal land tenure system. Every member is entitled to a free parcel of land. They also bankroll marriage ceremonies and burial ceremonies of members.

The Umuada (women folk) are the female counterparts of the kinsmen. They consist of married women from the same kindred. Even though some of them may be married outside their communities yet they must be members. They also have a leader who must be the oldest among them. The major functions of this group are to cook whenever there is a feast involving the entire kindred. They also take charge of mourning whenever one of them dies. They must stay in the deceased house or four days or more after the burial. One major characteristic of the kindred is that they do not marry themselves; that is to say that a man cannot marry a woman if both of them are from the same kindred.

The next on the political ladder is the Oha (village meeting). This government is the collection of all the leaders of the Umunna (kinsmen) strata that make up the village or community. This can be likened to senators or congressmen. The oha is the highest decision-making body in the community. The leader here is the oldest man in the village. They perform legislative, executive and judicial functions. They have the power to settle disputes and sanction offenders. They can pass any kind of punishment ranging from banishment to levying. In the past they used to pass death sentence but that is not possible now because of the existence of modern government.

In every arm of government there is an age grade made up of young men. This group is in charge of law enforcement. They take charge of village security and also carry out other military and corporal assignments.