The seventy-one-kilometre drive from Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, to Ikot Abasi, the Land of God, was smooth and enjoyable. Ikot Abasi is located on the South West corner of Akwa Ibom. The road is good and the traffic not heavy. It was easy to appreciate the refreshing greenery of Akwa Ibom State countryside.
Midway into the journey, we came across a mini pyramid of coconuts. We parked and quickly offered to buy some. The young boy selling the coconuts with expertise cuts off the top of fleshy green back, exposing the hard nuts. He carved open the top to get to the soft flesh of the unripe coconut with the nourishing water. The coconut water was refreshing and we quickly used the hard back of the nuts for improvised spoons and scooped the white soft delicious belly of the coconut into our mouth. It was simple, yet enjoying the essence of living.
The attraction to Ikot Abasi was some very interesting historical sites. Although Ikot Abasi has rich tourist attractions, these have not been adequately projected. It has only been visited by mostly historians for research and tourists in search of the out-the-way sites who bother to make their way to the town.
The town used to be in the news because of Aluminum Smelting Company (ALSCON). The company was the major reason for the visit to the town. However, even before ALSCON, Ikot Abasi was very active during the slave trade era. A port with relics of the obnoxious trade is still in the place.
The first place of call was the Amalgamation House. This was the place the trajectory that culminated in the creation of the entity called Nigeria was put in place. It was at this Amalgamation House that the Governor of Southern Nigeria Protectorate, Lord Frederick Lugard, signed the law that brought the Northern Nigeria Protectorate and the Southern Nigeria Protectorate to become the entity known as Nigeria on January 1, 1914. His spouse, Flora Shaw, coined the word Nigeria.
To many, the Amalgamation House is a kind of metaphor for what has become the entity known as Nigeria. The house is on elevated concrete pillars, a wooden structure. It is a typical house of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
It has a wide corridor supported by wooden pillars and big windows to cross-ventilate the offices. The whole structure is built with wood with corrugated iron sheets for the roof. The original roofing sheets are still there, but have turned dark brown. There is also poker of holes doting the roofing with huge gaping holes. A visitor has to be very careful to avoid a the visitor’s legs slipping through the holes and sustaining injuries. The condition of the wooden floor is also suspect as it could also give way while walking on it.
It is very obvious that the place has long been neglected. On the wall of the inner office is a profile write-up on Lord Lugard. It tells us that: “Frederick John Dealtry Lugard was born in Madras, British India, in 1858. He was trained in Royal Military College, Sandhurst. He was a soldier, an explorer and an administrator by training. He had a spouse, Flora Shaw”.
Among other information, he signed the amalgamation of the Northern and Southern Protectorates on January 1, 1914 to bring into existence the entity called Nigeria.
Ordinarily there ought to be a signboard of the National Commission of Museums and Monuments (NCMM) to show that the property is a protected area under the Nigerian law, but no such thing.
Apart from the Amalgamation House, Ikot Abasi was the scene of the of the famous Aba Women’s Riot in 1929. There are relics. Some of the monuments in Ikot Abasi are in honour of the brave women that lost their lives in the civil protest.
Ikot Abasi through the Imo River was also a slave deport through which millions from the hinterland were moved to the coastal area for shipment to the New World, America. On the waterside is the Bridge of No Return, the boarding point for captured slaves that would be transported to the coastal area before being shipped.
The floating bunkers beside the Bridge of No Return were said to have been used to keep slaves. The bunkers are made of concrete with no ventilation except from the doors to the bunkers.
Lovers of eco-tourism would also find the waterfront a beautiful sight to behold. It is a perfect relaxation point for picnic and generally fun.
Ikot Abasi as a tourist site, is a place one could spend the whole day exploring and having fun.
In addition to the historical and eco-tourism sites, the long conveyor belt inside Aluminum Smelting Company of Nigeria would draw attention. There is no major hotel in Ikot Abasi. One could visit from Uyo and go back after the visit. The road is relatively good.
Speaking on the tourists’ endowment in Akwa Ibom, the Commisioner of Tourism in the state, Mr. Victor Antai, said the state was now serious with tourism and would conserve and refurbish these historical sites to improve the tourism profile of the state and attract both local and inbound tourists to the state.
