The Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III, has introduced the celebration of a new festival, Ghigho Aghofen, into the Warri Kingdom.
The festival, which in English, means “The Great Palace watch” is part of the the Olu of Warri’s cultural renaissance agenda for the Warri Kingdom.
The maiden edition will hold today, Saturday, December 18, 2021.
This announcement was made on the official Instagram page of the Olu of Warri.
“For the first time in the history of the Itsekiri Kingdom, the Olu of Warri, His Majesty, Ogiame Atuwatse III, has introduced a new festival into the Warri Kingdom scheduled to hold December 18, 2021,
“Ghigho Aghofen (also known as The Palace Watch) is a ceremony that ushers in one of the indigenous Itsekiri communities to keep watch over the Kingdom, reminiscent of England’s “Changing of Guards” ceremony— this time more radiant and colourful,” the monarch wrote.
The festival will involve each Itsekiri community taking turn to “keep watch” over the palace for a set period and thereafter turning over the responsibility of the watch to a successor community at the “change of watch”.
The essence of the watch is to afford Itsekiris an opportunity to each showcase their unique histories and traditions before the revered monarch of the Warri Kingdom and for the benefit of local and foreign visitors seeking to immerse themselves in the rich cultural heritage and the people’s creativity in fashion, food, music and dance.
The subsequent festivals will take place on the last Saturday in the months of March, June, and September, and finally on the last Saturday before Christmas in December. The event will then take on a new name “Riro Aja n’Aghofen” meaning ‘Change of Community in the Palace’.
