For the past seven centuries, Dingep community in Ganye Local Government Area of Adamawa State has been under the leadership of females, a situation that is rare in Nigerian societies where patriarchy reigns.
The kingdom in the community is called ‘Arnado Debbo’ and it has been the exclusive right of women to ascend the throne since the 1700s till date.
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Arnado Debbo is a Fulfulde word (Fulani language) and the village is named after the phrase and metamorphosed to several sub-villages which continued as a result of the rule by females.
The village has a population of about 1000 people, and the queen manages all the affairs in the palace as men traditionally do in other kingdoms.
The people of the community believed that there has never been a man who ruled the kingdom and lived longer, hence they forfeit the throne to their female counterparts over centuries.
The Kingdom of Arnado Debbo is an ancient kingdom full of history because it is the symbol of the establishment of the Ganwari Ganye kingdom and even the formation of Ganye town as a whole, which includes some districts under it — Dimaeb, Dapellum Sayikmi, Daurea, Naburapeu, Dimkolum, and Samjerum.
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In accordance with the tradition of Arnado Debbo, visitors are kept waiting for some time at a small round hut made from mud and a thatched roof as the aides work to complete the process of final confirmation from the queen.
As soon as final confirmation is received, visitors are ushered into the modest and traditional compound that shows the history of the throne. The ruler occupies the central hut, which is surrounded by a few others. In the central hut, she sits on a simple chair on a thatched porch, with a female aide to her left and male courtiers sitting on a sprawling mat before her.
