Agadez: A city of markets and monuments

The trip was on the invitation of Dodorido Fans Association, and it was solely to attend the coronation of Dr. Abdulqadir L. Koguna Darma as the first Sardaunan Abzin. We travelled by road in a convoy of 11 vehicles with 150 people, some of whom, like me, were going to the ancient city for the […]

The trip was on the invitation of Dodorido Fans Association, and it was solely to attend the coronation of Dr. Abdulqadir L. Koguna Darma as the first Sardaunan Abzin. We travelled by road in a convoy of 11 vehicles with 150 people, some of whom, like me, were going to the ancient city for the first time.
Our journey to Agadez started from Kano around 2:40pm on a Saturday (11 May, 2013).  We passed through Daura to Kongolom, a border town between Nigeria and Niger Republic. At the border, Dr. Abdulqadir L. Koguna Darma, the leader of our team, went to the Nigerian Customs and Immigration officers where he presented our permit (laissez-passer in French, meaning let pass in English) and explained the purpose of our visit to the neighbouring country and we were allowed to pass.
Upon reaching Danbarto, another border town, we stopped again to face Customs and Immigrations officials of Niger Republic. The leader of our journey furnished them with all the relevant details of our mission to Agadez. Satisfied with the explanations by Sardauna, we were cleared accordingly. Instead of proceeding, however, we waited for the rest   of our entourage members to arrive Danbarto, where we also prayed both the Magrib and Isha prayers.
After observing our prayers, we continued   our journey to Damagaram, the capital city of Zinder. There, we were hosted at the presidential lodge. “You can’t find a house better than this in the whole of this town,” Sardauna told us before leaving Damagaram for Agadez, a journey of about 360 kilometres.
The following day, May 12, on the eve of our trip to Agadez, Hauwan Ali Baba, a singer who was travelling with us, received the news of her father’s death. For this reason, we all offered prayers for the repose of his sole and also tried to console her over the sad news. She was later taken to the motor park where she boarded a vehicle and returned to Kano. All our vehicles went to the filling station to refill their tanks.
On May 13, around 5:30am, we stormed Aderbissinat, a town that is about 150 kilometres away from Agadez and where the inhabitants are famous for raising goats, camels  and cattles. We offered our morning (subhi) prayers in front of the prefecture (the secretariat of the head of government known and addressed as prefect), who organised a reception in our honour. 
At a point, Sardaunan Abzin made an announcement asking for the residents of Fagge and Darma; when they showed up, he separated them from the rest of his entourage. He also asked those among us whose towns (in Nigeria) were not mentioned and we raised our hands, then he said “from here up to Agadez, your group is known as ‘yan uwa da abokan arziki (friends and well wishers). We didn’t know the import of the Sardauna’s action until I found myself in the house reserved for friends and well wishers. 
In Adarbissinat, we had our breakfast, we were served roasted meat and French bread; we also had a very cold guava juice and other lemonades. We ate to our fill after, had some rest and then continued on our journey.
Prefect of Adarbisinat (equivalent to a state governor in Anglophone countries) did not leave us after the reception. He boarded the front seat of a military vehicle and escorted us up to Agadez where we arrived around 11:40 pm. As soon as we arrived, the Governor of Adarbissinat left us at the government house in Agadez. Our accommodation in Agadez is located at ‘Assembile quarters, in a very big house, which is the branch office of the President Mahamadou Issoufou’s party, PNDS Tarayya..’ PNDS Tarayya (Parti Nigerien pour la Democratie et le Socialisme-Tarayya) means Party for Democracy and Socialism.
On May 14, rumour started making the rounds that the Sultanate would not conduct the coronation of Sardaunan Abzin, but that did not stop us from sightseeing in Agadez. Sardaunan Abzin asked us to enter our vehicles and get ready to visit the famous Zakariyya Mosque, an ancient monument, which scholars said was built around 700 years ago. Made up of mud and wooden date trunks, the mosque has a unique architecture. On the same day we went to the mosque, we also attended the wedding ceremony of Sardauna’s daughter.
Early in the morning of May 15, we trooped to the Sultan’s palace and unfortunately for us, Sultan Omar Ibrahim Omar was not in town. Some prominent palace courtiers (viziers) informed us that the Sultan has gone to address a crisis in a part of the sultanate.
Though, the coronation ceremony did not hold, the title holder of Sardaunan Abzin organised a reception at IRS Agadez, which is an affiliate body of AbdoulMounin University of Niamey. During the reception, a scholar from Hausa Literature group, known as “Tsangayar Adabin Hausa,’ in the person of Malam Nasiru Wada, presented a paper entitled “Traditional Titles in Hausaland,” where he talked about the origin of the title of Sardauna. He stipulated that the word ‘Sardauna’ is neither Fulfulde nor an Arabic word and, therefore, it is very difficult to infer its conceptual meaning. But, the late Sardauna of Sokoto, Sir Ahmadu Bello (Premier of the defunct Northern Nigeria) was once quoted as saying that the meaning of Sardauna is one who shields the emir from   attack during war. “Whenever Sardauna is defeated at the war front, automatically the emir is defeated,” as stipulated in the paper.
Throughout our five-day stay, we intermingled with the people of Abzin (Abzinawa), the real citizens of Agadez and we visited major markets in the town including Marakesh Tol (Kasuwar Tol), Artizanals (market stalls for the artisans) and the popular livestock market known as ‘Aci-da-kofato (earn from the animal hooves).
We really enjoyed our stay in the ancient city of Agadez, which though remote, is also bustling with life. There are countless French products to choose from, ranging from edibles to household items. There was no shortage of basic necessities despite the remoteness of the area.
The journey will be perfect for those whose hubby it is to drive, and with little to see on the sidelines apart from endless sand dunes with no trees, nothing will take your attention off from driving. And coming from Northern Nigeria, we seem to have a lot in common with the people who are also predominantly Muslims. The food is also virtually the same save for the tea, which they take every now and then.
In fact, hard as I tried, I couldn’t resist the urge of making some comparison between the people of Nigeria and Niger Republic. In Agadez, for instance, I saw people who hold their cultural heritage in high esteem, very dear to their hearts. They are law-abiding even with the little or no presence of security around them. And though they may be considered by many Nigerians to be poor, they seem to be living comfortably.
Our stay in Agadez, was really enjoyable and memorable. It has not only opened my eyes to the vastness of the universe but also reaffirmed the saying that there is much knowledge to be learnt through travelling. It also has five beneficial effects on human beings, which include peace of mind, source of knowledge, acquaintance with a different cultural norms and values and befriending people who were hitherto unknown to you.
We finally returned on Thursday May 16 to the news of bomb attack in Daura, forcing us to return to Mai’aduwa where we parked our vehicles and slept at the motor park. Another harsh reality that stared us in the face upon returning from Agadez is that of total darkness in Mai’aduwa town. Interestingly, we never experienced a single power outage during our five-day trip to Niger Republic. Water was also flowing from their taps.
On Friday, May 17, after performing subhi prayer, we by-passed Daura by taking the Shargalle route and arrived at Gidan Mutum Daya, from where we returned to Kano. We all thanked the Almighty Allah for the safe journey.