UPATA KINGDOM WRESTLING: King Otuwarikpo Calls for Cultural Revival . . . Reiterates Zero Tolerance For Criminalities
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by Harmony NwusoThe Ñyê-ïshï Èlé Úpātá Lôwétü Lî Ny’údū Úpātá III of Úpātá Kingdom, His Royal Majesty, Dr. Felix Enene Otuwarikpo, Fnipr, has called for a cultural revival amongst Úpātá people, inorder to promote Úpātá cultural festival to international standard.
Ny’údū Otuwarikpo, who made the call during the opening ceremony of the 2025 Úpātá wrestling festival, held at Edeoha Town in Ahoada East Local Government Area, Rivers State, Saturday, June 21, 2025, further called on his brother Kings to assist to strengthen cultural ties and use their influence to address rising insecurity.
He asserted that culture must be preserved being a way to keep the identity of a people as passed on by the ancestors,
On rising insecurity, the Upata monarch reminded other royal fathers on the strategic importance of the traditional institution in promoting peace, conflict resolution, and aiding security efforts.
He appealed to them to move beyond their ceremonial roles and serve as agents of community stability.
The royal father who said he has zero tolerance for crime and criminalities, reiterated his warning against illegal possession of fire arms, urging those in such act to surrender them to the security agencies or face the consequences.
“After this wrestling bout today, if anyone is found bearing arm within Upata land he or she will go down, such person(s) is an enemy of Upata and Ekpeye. He will have to contend with the Government,” he warned.
In his speech, the Ekpeye Supreme Monarch, who was also the royal father of the day, His Imperial Majesty, Eze Sir, Amb. Kelvin Ngozi Anugwo Ph.D, DSSRS, JP, AP, Eze Ekpeye Logbo III, Akalaka XII, thanked the Igbu Upata monarch for his tireless efforts in preserving and promoting the Ekpeye cultural heritage.
He described him as a noble torchbearer of our ancestral pride, emphasizing on the importance of wrestling as not only a sport but a time-honoured ritual of strength, discipline, and identity within Ekpeye land.
Highlights of the wrestling festiva were the wrestling proper and the various cultural parades by wrestling groups from the various kingdoms that make up Ekpeye Ethnic Nation.
