Making the case: Why the Barombi Tribe and other Peripheral villages should be a part of the Oroko Cultural Heritage

If the Oroko people should consider themselves as civilized, they should therefore fit within the defined scope of civilization, which is “the ability of human beings to live harmoniously with other groups of people (like the afore-mentioned), towns, cities and other government.” Knowing that we must live harmoniously with the Barombi faithful neighbors, what then could be the raison d’ėtre for their exclusion? JWN

ByJackson W. Nanje

Over the past couple of years, the Oroko people of Ndian division have grappled with the idea of including the people of the Barombi tribe as one of our own. It is true that the dialects of the Oroko tribes and that of the Barombi tribe are completely different; but dialect alone does not define a people. While the Barombi natives have no problem understanding and speaking the Oroko language, the Oroko people on the other hand, have resisted any attempt to integrate with the Barombi people. It is obvious that the Oroko people have adopted the ethnocentric attitude of rejecting the Barombi people even though they will forever remain a part of the Oroko people by nature of their proximity. The Barombi people on the other hand have adopted the acculturalization (borrowing the traits of people from their pristine environment) attitude, by adapting in their environment. They understand and speak the Oroko language and have equally accepted much of the Oroko mores and have blended many aspects of the Oroko culture into their culture. For example, the Oroko people call elephant Njoku and the Barombi call it same. Similarly, the Oroko people call a certain masquerade (Ngoba) and the Barombi call it the same way. Pepper (Ndonga) is called the same way by both ethnic groups. There are many other cultural aspects that the Barombi people have taken from the Oroko people and integrated into their language because they understand that, as members in an unfamiliar environment, you must adapt.

In the South West Region, there are fourteen (14) Barombi villages. Eleven of them are in Ndian division and three (3) in Meme division. These are the Barombi villages in Ndian division: (1) Bekora native name Kange (2) Mokono (Nkono) (3) Dora (Loh) (4) Lipenja (Penja) (5) Bongongo I (M’palle) (6) Bongongo II M’palle (7) Ngatame (8) Bekarakara (9) Mbengwi (Mbenge) (10) Mbionang (11) Ngoss

And in Meme division, we have the following Barombi villages: (12) Kotto (13) Mbo (14) Kang

All the Barombi villages are interspaced between or are surrounded by Oroko villages and, over the many years that we have lived together, they have proven themselves as the best neighbors that the Oroko people have ever had and whom they should rely on. And since they now own these various villages and own their chiefs, ostracizing them is the wrong path the Oroko man should ever take. It is therefore imperative for the Oroko people to abandon their ethnocentric attitude and accept the Barombi people as one of their own. And since the Barombi people first choice of marriage away from their clan is the Oroko people, and knowing that they are quite willing to assimilate I strongly believe that, over time, the Barombi culture will assume all aspects of the Oroko culture. 

Besides the cultural aspect that give us a stand-alone reason to be considered as brothers, there is a political reason why we should see each other as people hewn from the same family. In politics, the more, the merrier. The Oroko people should always embrace every opportunity to increase their numbers because it compensates handsomely in the national economic distribution of wealth. With the eleven Barombi villages, twenty-seven Balue villages, and fifteen Balondo Ba Nanga villages, Ndian parliamentarians should be making the case for two parliamentarians in that Region instead of the one it currently has now. If we continue to reject a huge segment of the Ndian population because of cultural dissimilarities, as a people, we shall never evolve, politically.

If we look at the beautifully designed Oroko USA website (which is the richest in content), many villages and towns (Isangele, Bamuso, Kumbo Etindi, Kumbo Abedimo, Idabato) that are in Ndian division and that can be easily amalgamated, have been left out and yet, these people commune with us during our cultural events and activities be it in the United States or Cameroon. If the Oroko people should consider themselves as civilized, they should therefore fit within the defined scope of civilization, which is “the ability of human beings to live harmoniously with other groups of people (like the afore-mentioned), towns, cities and other government.” Knowing that we must live harmoniously with the Barombi faithful neighbors, what then could be the raison d’ėtre for their exclusion? Politics is a game of numbers; the Oroko land should be assimilating more people to encourage development and by so doing, they will be moving away from nativity to civility.

When we practice the politics of inclusion, we would therefore begin to make the case of requesting for more members of parliament to serve our division. We currently have a proportionate population in Ndian division large enough to provide us with at least seven (7) Members of Parliaments however, we have not been organized enough to present our case for re-districting all due to politics of exclusion.

In conclusion, we must understand that even though we want to preserve our heritage, we must learn to embrace peaceful neighbors like the natives of the Barombi clan, Isangele, Idabato, Kumbo Etindi, Kumbo Abedimo, who are always so willing to adapt to our culture and traditions. In sheer numbers, we conquer, and in small numbers, we are reduced to insignificance.