The Efik queen’s ensemble of princes, princess, maidens, and over 100 aides, carriage set her apart.
While the IPADA Celebrations 2025 may have come and gone, the echoes and memories still linger. From the impressive and historic performances showcased in the course of the 10-day festivities, the celebration, which is now in its second edition, lived up to expectations.
But one very unique spice at this year’s edition was the royal presence, particularly by the Obongawan Barrister Marie Ikpeme Erete, otherwise known as Queen Aruk II.
Her majesty, the Queen Aruk II, came prepared. She stole the show at the celebrations with her incredibly large entourage comprising of an ensemble of princes, princesses, friends from United Kingdom, maidens, and over 100 aides as well as a rich ensemble of cultural troupe that entertained the people, with end-to-end theatrics and cultural displays.
The above are the carriage and spectacle that grace her royalty, while endearing Queen Aruk II to her people of Eniong Abatim in Odukpani, Cross River State.
Her presence not only enlivened the festival but added royal presence, colours, excellence, grace and poise that exuded majestic aura and power to the festival. She bestrode the entire scene with a radiance and exotic presence that only a queen of her status could muster. She was the cynosure of all eyes through the event.
Of course, her royal outfit and carriage were unique and attracted attention. She was perhaps the only royal at the event with an overwhelming presence that was magnified by the impressive number of people on her entourage, which indeed outnumbered every other royals at the cultural tourism celebration that was a showpiece of the best of Africa arts, music, culture, dance, drama, fashion, and lifestyle, culinary, entertainment and business that was signpost by the Business Unusual, Artificial Intelligence training sessions for African youth and Blossom, a workshop session dedicated to young entrepreneurial African women.
Queen Aruk II presence and theatrical showpiece displayed at this year’s gathering typified the essence of IPADA Celebrations, a brainchild of Wanle Akinboboye, founder and president, La Campagne Tropicana Beach Resort, Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos.
She came prepared to showcase some of the memorable, exciting, colourful and entertaining cultural heritage, customs and traditions of her kingdom.
To show her selfless dedication to the promotion of her cultural heritage and kingdom, she arrived La Campagne Tropicana Beach Resort, venue of this year’s festival, days ahead of the official December 28, 2025 arrival day. She and her entourage were warmly received and treated to the unique signature hospitality of La Campagne Resort by Akinboboye and his team, all through their stay.
With her and her team, there was no dull moment, as it was back-to-back entertainment by her cultural troupe, which teamed up with Atunda Entertainment, the musical and entertainment arm of La Campagne, to treat the audience to a rich and colourful, as never witnessed before by many people, of the unique and impressive Efik cultural heritage.
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One of such cultural activities that She treated the audience to some exciting cultural displays, especially the very rare one; the Nkugho tradition, which is known as the ‘Fattening Room’ tradition of the Efiks. Nkugho is the Efik traditional maiden ceremony. As disclosed by Queen Aruk II, it is the finishing school for every Efik would-be bride.
The maiden fattening room tradition is a pre-nuptial period where a maiden is secluded and prepared for marriage and womanhood. She is actually pampered and treated specially as she is well fed, massaged; beautified and treated with all the known and available beauty spices and ointments to make her glow, radiate beauty and attractive to the male beholder or groom to be as well as skills to manage her home, comfort and satiate her groom.
The audience was treated to this sacred traditional rite of marriage in a very unique and entertaining manner. This climaxed on the last day of the 10-day celebration, a with colourful dance procession, featuring elements such as the maiden sitting comfortably on a chair carried on the shoulders of hefty male bearers, flaunting her beauty to the admiration of the ecstatic audience.
She was presented before the queen, who was majestically adorned, to be certified ready for marriage. The rite came with ceremonial cultural dances and songs. A marriage proposal was added to the mix to make it a wholistic and symbolic event, which educated and entertained the spellbound audience.
Meanwhile, an elated Akinboboye commended the queen for her presence and showpiece, especially the display of the rich Nkugho tradition, which he noted, added colours, elevated the event this year, as well as leaving memorable imprints in the hearts and minds of the audience.
He called on women to learn from the ancient tradition and apply the teachings to their marriage in order to save the marriage institution, which, he said is the pivot of the society.
According to him, the Nkugho will be a permanent feature at the resort for young maidens in Africa and throughout the world to experience, so as to enjoy the beauty and knowledge of the tradition.
The IPADA Initiatives is a forum that welcomes the exodus of Africans and lovers of Africa from across the world to Africa for an immersive experience of the cultural tourism offerings of the continent and also an avenue to contribute their resources, time and ideas to the development of the continent.
Lagos and Abuja are the designated gateways to the continent, as visitors coming through Nigeria and then on a long-haul journey across the continent, all year round to the IPADA Celebrations, which holds annually from November 28 to December 6, in Lagos. It is an aggregation of the experiences that await visitors and African returnees to the different parts of the continent.
