Justice, the Igbo traditional way: a study of the imprecation of deities ( mma ) among Christians in Obollo, Nigeria

This article investigated the imprecation of deities among Christians in Obollo, Nigeria. The sudden recourse to traditional deities among Christians in Obollo is on the rise. It is this sudden alternative way ardently preferred by Christians that this work investigated. The work utilised a fieldwork approach, where data gathering was through oral interviews. Its theoretical framework was decoloniality. Through these approaches, its findings indicate that despite the effort of Christianity to Christianize the Obollo people, they still have a strong attachment to some traditional system of justice, predicated upon constant imprecation of deities through imploring them to recover assets or to protect life and property. While this finding indicates a decolonial drive among the people, it also shows the intermingling of a Christian faith with a people’s strong cultural practices.