A HISTORY OF THE ISLAND ACCORDING TO KPANA CHARLIE

I was born in Nyangai town where my mother conceived me. I was born on 15th August 1958 at 12 midnight on a Saturday. I stayed until I started to walk, then we had Independence because Sierra Leone was colonised by the British.

Nyangai is a poor land.

The First people to stay here was during the dry season, during the rains they will return to their villages to do their farming, especially cassava. But there was a poor man, who usually stayed during the dry season without making any moves during the rainy season. So his colleagues then crowned him as Chief because he never left, he was called ‘Congofoh’.

He lived here peacefully. People felt sorry for him then gave him something. One man, Karim Hanson, and the late paramount chief’s father, who was speaker then, were also coming here to find their living during the dry season together with his brother.

Then the British came who colonised Sierra Leone. They asked how people are living in this Island at night. So they explained to them and they also asked further that at night when travelling can you see the island at night. They were answered that at night when travelling sometimes they miss the island and so the British bought the island a sea lamp because by then there was no electricity. At night the lamp was lit, and every month they gave a can of kerosene to Karim Hanson who was in charge. He was also given small cash to the sum of one pound which was a lot of cash then on this island.

We really don’t know what happened then with the central Government. We were having a prime minister and not a president. Let wait awhile for the boat. So they decide to send it through the Government we did not received anything. We stopped receiving the kerosene, the old man tried to ask but no attention was given to him and we lost that chance.

From that time we were on the island because the people decided that whenever things are difficult for people but as soon as they come to the island it get better. I was very young by then but anything they talk I still can remember.

Old people like George Gabay, Coweah, Comanu, Masengeh. They all sat together and say if we are to settle here we must have a leader in the town. The old man who came, settle here and whom we have all considered as leader God has taken his life. So serious consideration was given and Comanu was appoint- ed. He ruled the island for some time and later died. Karim Hason was later appointed as leader because he had also stayed in the island. He was not in favour of the idea but he accepted it. He ruled for some time and later called meeting asking for him to be replaced and it was accepted.

One old man Pieh Bom was selected as town chief and ruled for so many and later died. Another old man came by the name Doakate. Doakate had his own village and he later decided to return to his village but he had his brother who he left the village to by the name of Toabandeh.

After some time we started having strangers who came to live with us such as the Temne, Mende but the first tribe to come and live with us is a Fullah by the name of Gassimu. We had one pa by the name of ‘Somadi’ who came, lived ,stayed and even married our family and died last year. He had lot of experience because he had travelled a lot and was consulted on issues in the town until ‘Toabandeh’ decided to return to his village.

By then anybody who has money can become a chief. There was one woman ‘Musu Barbay’ she was rich and knows how to do busy. She did not come with any money. but she knows how to do business through exchange of goods such as gari, tobacco for fish. So she was considered to be chief for some time and later married to one of our relative ‘Sasaywokeh’. She got married this Shebro man who was of my father age but did something to my father which I dislike.

My father married somebody to her husband in his village but because of poverty he took away that wom- an from my father because he doesn’t have money. It was the first woman my father had married even before I was born. My father told that the first woman he married ‘Sasay Bukeh’ took her away because of poverty. That one hurt me so much I met the man and asked him. And he answered yes. I told him that i will revenge for my father, I will one day remove a woman from you and indeed I did that.

We went to Bonthe and they later gave me my right. It hurt him so much so he decided to live the chief- taincy saying that am young and should not challenge him. So the District Officer to whom I had appealed told him that is not the case and that everybody should have his own right. The young man said that what your husband did to his father is what he will return to your husband. And he didn’t do it in a violent way but he did it in a right way. So the woman finally decided that she is going leave the Chieftaincy. She then called a meeting and said that she was stepping down.

Samuel Mgabay was elected. He then called me and told me that I should be chief in this town. I told
him no because I was very young and only somebody who is mature should be chief. Bana Nagban was appointed and he ruled us for six years but he had plans for Chairman so he resigned saying he wanted the Chairmanship. He stood for the position and won the election and became the chairman. The town sat down including the paramount chief appointed ‘Joe Chaplain’. He is a young man whom I am older than but he wanted to show that he is a chief and we showed ourselves.

There is so much change between Nyangai then and now. To put it on the scale is more than 99%. The remaining land is only about 1% now. We had plenty of bush here. We had all sorts of trees and fruits. We had mango, wild plums and other wild fruits like “gigboi” and “black tumbler”. They were scattered all over the island and not in the same place. For instance when you see one type of fruit here you go up to half a mile before you see that type again. This land was over a mile. Even two miles. Ask any of the older ones. As children, when we did wrong we ran to the bush and no one saw us. This land was like that. This part of Nyangai is called Morkontang. This town is divided into three. We tell this to all those who come here. We have told Yema too. We have Morkontang, there’s mendeguhun and temneguhun. To move from mendeguhun to morkontang you pass through the bush. From here there is mendeguhun and in the middle is temne town, where we have those boats. From here to over there is a big place. We the Sherbro people first lived here.

Thomas Ashun’s son Karim liked people. When he first came, the place was so lonesome. People only came to fish after which they leave. So he encouraged people and said whoever came to fish must stay on the island. He was a rich man and that time whatever a rich man said happened.

They held a meeting and decided that people stay. They were powerful because they had power. When Kain Ngabay died his son George Ngabay, the late Samuel Ngabay’s dad, became paramount chief. After that my own grandfather named Beah Charlay, after whom I was named, came and divided the place. That time here was divided into four sections to settle. Yo, dema and cheppo had theirs each and the other for the strangers. The strangers were mende’s and temnes because here is Sherbro land So it was during Kain Ngabay’s reign that women and other people came to live here. They all accepted because the place was centrally located. When the strangers came everyone was happy because this chiefdom is not populated. To date there are many strangers here even more than the indigenes. Not all the strangers are good, nei- ther are all of them bad. The strangers changed Nyangai a lot. For instance, they enlightened our people to start selling fish. Before that time people only smoked their fish and kept them. Sometimes for months. It was them who taught our people how to sell fish which was the only product they had. That was how our people started taking fish out to sell.

Yes they showed our people money. Before then our people did not go anywhere. Not even to Bonthe because they feared being eaten by cannibals. That time Samboi was in Bonthe, a very fat man renowned for cannibalism. That time there were no engine boats. They traveled on big dug-out canoes that used sails. They spent days to get to places like Mattru and Sumbuya. Gbangbatoke only came later. Some- times they took two to three days to get to mattru or Sumbuya depending on the weather. When the weather was favourable they took only a day because the wind took them faster on to Momaya and from there they paddled.

The coming of the strangers changed our culture. The first is the way of dressing. Before then our peo- ple dressed scantily. They go around with only pants barely enough to cover their essential parts. The strangers have brought so many changes. Before that time nobody cared for money. Goods were sold by barter system. When they fished they exchanged for garri or rice no matter the cost. This how lots of mende people were able to build their homes.

Before this time Nyangai was different from other islands. But time comes with changes. That is why everything has transferred to Hoong. There are certain cultures that can only be practised where there is forest. Because they came, that’s why everything has moved to Hoong and all the other islands are free for strangers. In fact, in the entire chiefdom, Hoong is now the place where cultural activities take place. For all cultural practices now, you go to Hoong including the male secret society. Those days before women came to live here, life was comfortable. Like you if you had anything here we all shared. When one came with his fish, anyone can take some to eat. Such was the life here. It was not by force because you too can take from the other person when you want to.

When they sell the fish there was plenty food, which made us happy as children. For the elders, the wom- en cook and the men gather in one place to enjoy. They eat a lot, drink, dance, gamble and wrestle. They never built nice houses for fear of being bewitched. This only changed with the coming of strangers.

Before this time if anybody came and asked for a child to take away to be educated, our people refused to give their children for fear of them being sold or eaten.

When we were young we fish molit and bait when you see those fish you will wonder if indeed we catch those fish. By then the fish were stupid for example the Kuta fish will jump in the sea until it ends up in the land but that one was has stopped because bad fishing has been practised. The smaller fish are been caught and if don’t have money now you can’t do proper fishing. You always find it very difficult. Back in the days there were laws that you should not fish using machine to avoid the fish been scared but when people with money start coming they started using machines. But that is not the problem, the problem is the kind of chain they using which is not picking on the kind of fish to catch even the new born is being catch.

Before our people have those big boats which they build .We were not thinking about lance, out board machine. These boats are by area and so they all go out and fish after which they gather all the fish then combine before they go and sell or do exchange or barter system but this can take long time maybe up to two months. That was how we were living and we considered it as better. Those days when an elder has spoken everybody will know that he has spoken. Your right will be given to you. Now nobody has right except you have money this is how we are living before people had unity.

During the war the military, civil militia and other war faction were visiting us but the ones that did bad to us are the Kamajors. They capture an innocent man and killed in front of me. If you were here you would have also felt bad so we decided to leave the town.

A poor man should not live somewhere where other things are disturbing your life.

You see this island flooding doesn’t just take over they give notice. We have two seasons; sea breeze pushes the island, Two; dry season also pushes the island. So when we have the high tide it washes the sand gradually. For example if the sand is 4/8 inches thick every year it removes about one inches every year until goes down. The island will not just finish like that and be told that somebody has lost his life because the water comes up and go down.

It’s not like flooding in Europe when you will be told that flooding has took over and has wiped out some houses. Our flooding is a gradual process and it gives notice.

Everybody has realised that the island will finish because it’s not how it was.

But we still love the island for the better life we are living.