King Charles Douglas MacPepple Jaja, Jeki VI, has been crowned the sixth Amanyanabo of Opobo Kingdom in Rivers State.
The ceremony which took place on Saturday held at Jaja Square, Opobo Town, bringing to a climax his emergence as the new Paramount ruler of the historic Opobo Kingdom on September 17, 2026.
The colourful ceremony was attended by former President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife, representatives of Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara; the Obi of Onitsha, Nnayelugo Alfred Nnaemeka Achebe; representatives of the Bayelsa State Government; the Amanyanabo of Grand Bonny Kingdom; representatives of the Rivers State Council of Traditional Rulers; the Olu of Warri; the Dean of Agbor; the Obong of Calabar; members of the Ijaw National Congress and other dignitaries.
The coronation comes more than 150 years after the establishment of Opobo Kingdom, one of the historic Ibani kingdoms of the Eastern Niger Delta.
The kingdom emerged from a political conflict in Grand Bonny in 1869, when Chief Jack Jaja Annie Pepple, known in Ibani tradition as Juwojuwo, and members of the Opubo Annie Pepple group departed Bonny and established a new settlement near the Imo River estuary.
December 25, 1870, is traditionally recognised as the date of the establishment of Opobo Kingdom, with Jaja becoming its first Amanyanabo.
Under King Jaja, Opobo developed into a major political and commercial power in the Oil Rivers region, particularly through the palm produce trade.
