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By Young Erhiurhoro
Witchcraft practice in Africa generally is synonymous with sorcery, black power, ritualism, demonism, diabolism, magic and such other words or terms as related to evil spirituality. Witchcraft is not only common to Africans, but to Europeans and Asians and other races and peoples of the world. The science is as old as man himself. Witchcraft has been in existence since the creation of man by God, the creator of the universe.
Since the introduction of formal or western education in parts of Africa by the British colonial government in the late 18th century, which led to the establishment of different grades of schools, from primary to the higher institution, we have changed from one curriculum to another.
In all these different curricula, there have been various subjects like Arithmetic, English Language, Religious Studies and others. In Religious Studies for instance, the children at the lower educational levels would be made to study different traditional religions in a particular ethnic group and the cultural practices of such a group of people. But in all these, there had been no mention of witchcraft science as a subject of study.
Unfortunately, this deliberate removal of witchcraft science as subject of study in our school curriculum by our colonial masters and ignorantly accepted by the first beneficiaries of western education in the various African countries made our children to look at this practice with much disdain and also relate it to evil practice amongst the people.
Personally, I won’t argue with those that looked at witchcraft science as a form of evil practice. This is because right from onset in Africa, witchcraft science was infused with evil activities by its practitioners. Situations have been reported in African communities where witches and wizards confessed to killing of people, causing of crisis in a community, infesting people with various dreaded and strange sicknesses etc. In virtually all alleged confessions of witches and wizards in these communities, there had been nothing good to celebrate in them. This is why so many people of that time disdainfully looked down on the science.
Without doubt, this is one of the major reasons why witchcraft science was never included in all our educational curricula since the colonial era till this present time. In fact, the white men had tied us to their own thoughts and pattern of thinking.
This witchcraft science we are talking about is not only found in African soil. It’s also in their lands, but they so painted their ways of practising it with white emulsion paint and painted our own with black paint. This is where the difference was clearly established between the “white man witchcraft” and the “black man witchcraft”.
Painting their practice of witchcraft with white paint was the essence of western education. Education in this regard is a process to refine, restructure, reform, resurrect and to regenerate old human systems and institutions of life and to completely turn anything of no use to meaningful usage with ardent results. This is the meaning of education.
More importantly, in this educational system, at the university level, we have various courses of study at the various departments and faculties. For instance, in the Faculty of Social Sciences, we have courses like Sociology, Psychology, Philosophy, Religious Studies etc. In all these courses, there is always an inclusion of Witchcraft Science as topics or themes in particular courses. But, our university system has not approved Witchcraft Science as an independent course of its own.
I heard somebody say that “that is the missing link in African universities;” and that nobody would be interested to read such a course in any African university. However, this is not true. So many young people are interested in studying Witchcraft Science as a course in the university.
At this point, I want to state that one African obtained a post-humous and honorary ‘Doctor of Philosophy’ degree in ‘Witchcraft Science.’ This sounds so amazing and very surprising too. Yes, he was a celebrity and an acclaimed scholar. He was the late Professor Michael Young Nabofa, an erudite scholar and a great academic of Religious Studies from the African premier university, the University of Ibadan.
He majored in African Traditional Religion (ATR) in his Ph.D thesis with academic research interest in Witchcraft Science and Igbe religion. This man made a lot of publications on various areas of African Traditional Religion especially on this Igbe religion and Witchcraft Science. Late Professor Michael Young Nabofa was from the ancient Uwheru kingdom in Ughelli North Local Government Area of Delta State.
In a concluding note, I want to advise the National Universities Commission (NUC) to again review the curriculum of some of the courses in both Faculties of Arts and Social Sciences to make Witchcraft Science an independent course of study. I believe since the exit of this great Urhobo philosopher from this planet earth, there has not being any graduate in Religious Studies with specialization in Witchcraft Science as late Professor Nabofa.
By creating this course of study, it would definitely create interest and motivate our young people to study this course with much vigour and candour. Africans can as well paint their Witchcraft Science with white paint as did by the white men and so many good things will come out of it.
Today, the many new scientific innovations and technological feats that are being recorded on daily basis in the western world are not just coming as a result of acquiring only pedagogical knowledge within the four corners of the classroom, but acquiring this spiritual knowledge from Witchcraft Science of how to apply and turn the ordinary knowledge we acquire in the sciences to produce things that can make life more easy and more comfortable.
There is no way you can remove Witchcraft Science from real and practical education if we really want to measure with the rest of the world in science and technology. Many of those we allegedly brandished as witches and wizards in our various communities can really go a long way in turning so many of our difficult things to things of economic benefits.
Once again, I honour our late father and great Urhobo philosopher, late Professor Michael Young Nabofa with a post-humous and honourary award of ‘Doctor of Philosophy’ in Witchcraft Science. A legend doesn’t die, the soul doesn’t die, continue to live on.
Young Erhiurhoro;Kjc is a reporter and a member of the Urhobo Historical Society
