The History of GUZANG VILLAGE

There is no written record on the history of the Guzang people. What maybe accepted today as history is remembered history handed down from one generation to another. The facts which build up the history of Guzang people as outlined below have been obtained from some literate persons in the village. They kept on scraps of paper some information obtained from some elders who today, can remember in a chronological order what was told to them.

Guzang village was born some 500 years ago, when Njong-Moken and his elder brother Tegwi, both sons of Njei-Teghen migrated from Gowih in Batibo and settled first at Kwondum in Batibo

Because of lack of enough land to accommodate them as there were already many people settled there, that moved further north and settled at kurekwei in present day Guzang. Njong- Moken later moved to a site where the present palace is situated. Tegwi also moved to a place which he named Ewai in Nyeregwi.

Asobo- Tebid, another son of Tembekah, later came from Anong where he had learlier settled, and settled first at Egham in Mbunjei and later at Gwonum in Guzang. Moken - Anyen, another son of njei - Teghen who came later from Gwowih, settled at Kwoken. Munjei-Tebid who later came from Tad settled at Bad-Tebid, which means Tebid's plain or flat land.

Movement of people from Tad to form what is today known as Guzang.

Njei- Teghen used to pay visits to his sons Njong-Moken, Tegwi and Moken-Anyen at their new settlements. As the number of their followers gradually increased through births and later migration, Njei-Teghen decided to make his sons head (chief) of the new settlement. In the presence of Tegwi, Asobo Tebid and Moken-Anyen, he traditionally declared Njong-Moken chief. And so Njon-Moken became the first chief of Guzang, while Tegwi, Asobo Tebid and Moken- Anyen became his advisoers as well as chief makers with Tegwi as leader.

Chief Njong-Moken ruled Guzang with his black mystical scepter known as "umbang-Njong" until his death. His grave in the palace remains a place of remembrance on special important traditional occasions, while the scepter has been handed down from chief to chief.

In remembrance of the kindness shown to chief Njong-Moken at Kwondum in Batiboon his way to Gowih to Guzang. It has become that all that all Guzang chiefs make brief stops at Kwondum on special occasions which take them that way. For instance, the present chief John Ngendab Mbanyamsig II made a brief stop at Kwondum on his way back from the divisional officer, Batibo where he was presented to himafter his enthrownment by the chief makers.

The chiefs who reigned in Guzang from Njong- Moken till date are
1.Njong-Moken
2.Tebong-Tewah
3.Ndom- Angye
4.Awum-Tebo
5.Tenya Tembei
6.Ngo-Tifuh
7.Asanji
8.Mba-Akuh
9.Mba-Ambug
10.Gwan MbayamsigI(1939-1978)
11.John Ngenda Mbayamsig II (1978-..)
12.Gwan Mbanyamsig III (. present)

Njei-teghen, the father of Njong- Moken and Tegwi, migrated from Tad in Batibo where his father Tembekah and his mother Akumankah were believed to have mysteriously emerged from a hole and chcame the ancestors of some villages in Moghamo and Meta.

This theory of the origin of Tembekah and his wife may or may not true. It may be true that Tembekah and his wife migrated from the south, probably from widikum and settled at Tad where they delivered several sonswho settled and founded some of the villages in Moghamo today, Guzang being one of the villages.

This fact is supported by the fact that the seven clans in Momo Division- Widikum, Menka, Moghamo, Meta, njie, ngwaw and Ngemba fall under the Widikums tribe. These clans acknowledge Widikum as their place of origin.

Guzang land at the time extended from its present southern boundary northwards to River Momo. But the Balis came from North of Cameroon. Aided by the Germans, they fought the Guzang people in a war which ended with the Guzang people pushed back to the River Atukneken. This has since become the disputed boundary between Guzang and Bali. Guzang lost 2/3 of her rich land to Bali. This was during chief Mba-Aku's reign.

Guzang people speak the Moghamo language. As in all villages in the Widikum tribe, there are eight days in a week. The days of the week in Guzang are: Koeh (the day on which Guzang markets hold) Tang (otherwise called Mboh) Tad, Ko-oh, Mbon, Adjei, Kweh, and Ngong.

Bah J.A Ngwa
Guzang Village