By joshua 
Pomp, Pageantry As Maigari Celebrates165th Anniversary Since Lokoja Was Founded
The Maigari of Lokoja, Alhaji Ibrahim Gambo Kabir, Maikarfi IV at the weekend celebrated 165th anniversary of when Kogi State Capital, Lokoja was founded in 1857.
The colourful ceremony featured turbaning ceremony of six newly decorated chieftaincy title holders, book launch on the emergence of the new Maigari of Lokoja and traditional display, took place at the he Maigari’s Palace in Lokoja on Saturday.
The. Mayaki of Lokoja, Mallam Ali Lawal kick– started the programme with a book launch were over N12 naira was realised.
The Chief launcher of the book launch, Sen. Tunde Jonathan Ogbeha who was represented by his Senior aide, the former chairman of Lokoja local government Area, Mallam Danlami Yabagi Bologi started the launching of the book with 500,000 naira, while the former Minister of FCT, state, Hajiya Ramatu Aliyu donated 3million Naira. The present commissioner for solid minerals and Natural Resources, Alhaji Bashir Gegu cough out a whooping sum of 2million naira.
The current serving Senator Sunday Steve Karimi also gave out the sum of 5million naira for the support of the book, while a businessman based in Abuja, Zakari Ola donated 2million naira.
His Royal Highness, The Maigari of Lokoja, Alhaji Ibrahim Gambo Kabir thanked the prominent indigenes and other stakeholders who have attended the 165th anniversary of Lokoja, saying that he is overwhelmed by the response from them.
Lokoja’s history is shaped by its strategic location at the Niger-Benue confluence, serving as a significant pre-colonial trade center and a crucial base for British exploration and administration. It became the capital of the Northern Protectorate and, after the 1914 amalgamation, a key center for the new nation of Nigeria under Sir Frederick Lugard.
A melting pot of cultures, Lokoja was founded by Scottish explorer William Balfour Baikie in 1860 and now the capital of Kogi State.
The area was home to diverse groups including the Oworo-Yoruba, Nupe, Hausa, and Bassa-Nge peoples before the arrival of the British.
In 1860, Scottish explorer William Balfour Baikie established the settlement of Lokoja, building on an earlier British model farm.
Colonial Administration: Lokoja served as the first British consulate in the interior from 1860–69 and later as the headquarters for the Royal Niger Company. It became the capital of the Northern Protectorate.
Amalgamation of Nigeria: After the 1914 amalgamation of the northern and southern protectorates, Lokoja remained an important administrative town, with the first Governor-General of Nigeria, Sir Frederick Lugard, governing from here.
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Lokoja transitioned from a colonial capital to the capital of Kabba Province and later became the capital of the newly formed Kogi State in 1991.
Today, Lokoja remains a commercial hub, a meeting point for diverse ethnic groups, and the capital of Kogi State, where ancient and modern aspects of Nigerian life coexist.