The baobab tree you see in the picture is in Yendi. It is not just one of the ordinary baobab tree, it's a strange baobab tree. This particular baobab tree can be located in Yendi just within the premises of "BABA YILI" and 'Balo?u-Fon?' to be specific. According to oral history, this strange baobab tree has lived for more than 332 years.
The strange baobab tree is popularly known in Dagb?? as "Naa Binbi??u Tuwa". It is different from 'NAA DATAA TUWA'. The baobab tree is named after one great king in Dagb?? called Naa Binbi??u(1687-1700) who happens to have been the eldest prince(Zuu) of Naa Zangina(1648-1677). Naa Binbi??u was the same person referred to as Zuu Jin?li. It was named after Naa Binbi??u(Nuwa Karili ku nyan? jan? ?ub'bu, Daboba kobga ku du?i zuu ?an daa, Zangina zuu ?an daa, Zangina Zuu Jin?li) because its present location was where the Gb?waa palace was located and it also served as a place where Naa Binbi??u used to mount his afgods and idols. When Naa Binbi??u was given birth, he was given to Naa Bi?li Zoh? Naa to groom. It was always the norm for chiefs who occupies the 'Warizohe' chieftaincy sect to groom princes of kings of dagb??. History states spans that, Naa Binbi??u could not find life easy at the place where he was being nurtured. We're told, he was almost mistreated by those he was given to on a daily basis. It was also normal for any person who was given out to be groom to be treated that way but Naa Binbi??u's own was out of normal and worse off if you ask me. Naa Binbi??u at his grooming place in Zoh? was task to feed the Zoh? Naa's horses, this he combined with his miserable life of going through difficulty just to stuff his own-self and feed his face. Naa Binbi??u was always starving. One day, Naa Binbi??u having returned from looking for the horses feed, got hungry to the extend that he almost became unconscious but for the timely intervention of one of the Zoh? Naa's wife who provided him with a very hot TZ and a soup. It will surprise you to note that the TZ that was provided him was even given to him on his palms. He ate the food on his palms and left some morsels of that for a particular purpose best known to him. Naa Binbi??u then sent the morsels to those leather works for them to tan an amulet for him. From that day henceforth, he began wearing the amulet on a necklace as his very own protective charm.
The kind of life Naa Binbi??u experienced at his parenting home was so unbearable. It was through that he had this illness of rashes and spots all over his skin. Some people says that the illness is what we now termed in Dagb?? as "GBANI". His illness of "GBANI" was largely attributed to his inability to bath regularly. This illness made a lot of people within the Zoh? Naa's palace court to treat Naa Binbi??u with disgust. In fact, Naa Binbi??u was subjected to all manner of contempt and scorn. The treatment of contempt necessitated Naa Binbi??u's decision to go out of the palace in search of medicine to cure his illness. Naa Binbi??u was sent away by almost all persons he reached out to help him cure his sickness; notable among these personalities were the Balo Naa and Kum-Lana. The trial of sending him packing by all those he reached out to did not in one way deter him. One day, Naa Binbi??u headed for Kpatin?a to meet the then Kpatin? Lana. When Naa Binbi??u got to Kpatin?, he paid homage and explained to the then Kpatin? Lana the reason behind his sudden visit to them. The then Kpatin? Lana was saddened to hear the plight of Naa Binbi??u but was more devastated when he thought he could have done something about it but didn't want to overstep his bounds. The then Kpatin? Lana's position was clear, loud and convincing in the sense that, if he(Kpatin? Lana) had offered to help Naa Binbi??u would have been indicative of the fact that the then Zoh? Naa was a Bad parent and uncaring as well. The then Kpatin? Lana was confronted with the situation where he could help but was hopeless in that regard since he didn't want to provoke the senses of his colleague chief.
Naa Binbi??u was seen wandering around in Kpatin? until he chanced on one AFA ABDULAI. AFA ABDULAI was seated in front of his house reciting the Holy Quran when Naa Binbi??u bumped into him. The two exchanged pleasantries with Naa Binbi??u narrating what happened to him and why he was in Kpatin?. AFA ABDULAI took Naa Binbi??u as his guest and welcomed him with a porridge and a honey that was prepared for the guest by the wife of AFA ABDULAI. AFA ABDULAI gave Naa Binbi??u some company whiles at the same time instructed his wife to get Naa Binbi??u a somewhat hot water to bath and refresh his body. AFA ABDULAI summoned his children before Naa Binbi??u to inform them that Naa Binbi??u was the eldest prince of the then Yaa-Naa, Naa Zangina but was treated as an outcast simply because of his sickness. AFA ABDULAI entreated his sons and daughters to treat their guest with honour and reverence since he was also a king in the making. After the address by AFA ABDULAI, he instructed his sons to help him bathed his guest. After the bathing, AFA ABDULAI smeared his guest body with the local herbs, concoctions and from which the humble AFA ABDULAI started writing some of the Quranic verses for his guest to drink. In no time, Naa Binbi??u's sickness vanished into the thin air with no traces of it and the scorned Naa Binbi??u was back to normal. Naa Binbi??u didn't go back to where he came from where he had relief. He remained at AFA ABDULAI 's house whiles farming and learning the Quran in the same vain.
AFA ABDULAI and his guest continued living happily until such a time when AFA ABDULAI thought of visiting Yendi with his guest to seek for forgiveness from Naa Bi?li Zoh? Naa to whose hands Naa Binbi??u was entrusted into to nurture. AFA ABDULAI and Naa Binbi??u arrived in Yendi and moved straight to the Zoh? Naa's palace which was supposed to serve as their lodging place. AFA ABDULAI & Naa Binbi??u paid homage to the then Zoh? Naa before revealing the secret behind their presence before the Zoh? Naa. The secret was to seek for Zoh? Naa's forgiveness on grounds that Naa Binbi??u left his( Zoh? Naa's palace) to seek for treatment without informing him. Naa Bi?li Zoh? Naa waved the negative feelings he initially had about Naa Binbi??u for leaving his palace without his permission AND AFA ABDULAI for taking Naa Binbi??u into his custody without informing he(Naa Bi?li Zoh? Naa). The pardoned duo of AFA ABDULAI & Naa Binbi??u then requested for Naa Bi?li Zoh? Naa to lead them to pay homage to the then king of Dagb??, Naa Zangina who doubled as the father of Naa Binbi??u. Naa Bi?li Zoh? Naa told them point blank that the eldest prince of a king of Dagb?? does not set eye-to-eye with the father in a broad daylight, so he advised them to reschedule that meeting to that day in the evening. AFA ABDULAI & Naa Binbi??u heeded to Naa Bi?li Zoh? Naa's advise and on that same night, they all went together to the Gb?waa palace to pay their homage. Their visit exhilarated the king as they used that rare meeting to chat for a while. Haven returned from the visit to the Gb?waa palace, AFA ABDULAI on behalf of the two requested permission from Naa Bi?li Zoh? Naa to return to Kpatin?a as they had to attend to their respective Yam-Farm activities.
Shortly after the return of AFA ABDULAI & Naa Binbi??u to Kpatin?a, they had this sad news from an emissary from Yendi informing them of the demise of the king of Dagb??, Naa Zangina. This was so shocking news to AFA ABDULAI & Naa Binbi??u especially when they recently had visited the king. Without delaying time, AFA ABDULAI did what was expected of him in terms of preparation and handed over Naa Binbi??u to Naa Yab-Ku?u Naa for onward installation as the regent of Dagb??. Naa Binbi??u was supposed to rule Dagb?? on an interim base until such a time when he has performed his father's funeral and pave way for a substantive ruler to succeed his father. Within the shortest possible time, Naa Binbi??u in consultation with elders of Yendi and family members initiated the funeral observation of his father and in no time they successfully brought that to a close. A new king in the person of Naa Andani Si?ili(Bili-Bili ni nam polo--polo ku nam yoli, Ba so ?un ny? O karimban bindi ni Vaai O karimban bindi, Gbu?indaa kumsi ni yirigi ti?a, No gali muni ku ban? naani, Savi?u-sun? ni la?im kuriti, Zawuri baligu ni la?im nohi). Surprisingly, Naa Binbi??u was not compensated with a cottage let alone a community as its chief which inform his decision to move back again to Kpatin?a where he was treated whiles Naa Andani Si?ili ruled for 10 solid years until the year 1687 when he died. A delegation at this moment was once again sent to Kpatin?a to inform AFA ABDULAI & Naa Binbi??u. Naa Binbi??u initially had wanted to cry over the death of Naa Andani Si?ili but AFA ABDULAI consoled him and motivated him by saying that the death of Naa Andani Si?ili could see he, Naa Binbi??u rising to the fount of authority in Dagb??. During this particular era, any person born as a prince of a Yaa-Naa was eligible candidate for the Yani skins even if you were not a chief but a mere prince. So Naa Binbi??u was honouring his father's predecessor's funeral as a candidate in view of the standard set at the time for a person to assume the Yani skins.
Naa Binbi??u at this stage gathered all his belongings and headed for the funeral of Naa Andani Si?ili. During this era again, majority of the chieftaincy regalias were always with the princesses of the kings at the Gb?waa palace royal museum(Katini), princesses such as Gund? Naa, Kpatu Naa, Ku?u-L??u, Shilin Naa etc.. Naa Binbi??u was one of the contenders who made it a point to always greet his aunties in the persons of the princesses on a daily basis since from the beginning of Naa Andani Si?ili's funeral till the end. During the period in question, anytime Naa Binbi??u goes to greet the princesses, they will make fun and mockery of Naa Binbi??u pass comments such as; "Naa Binbi??u, you're best suited for this vacancy in Dagb?? but your ugly and poor statues might deny you the opportunity to rule Dagb??". On the day of the circumambulation of the Gb?waa palace to climax Naa Andani Si?ili's funeral, Naa Binbi??u as usual went into the Gb?waa palace to greet his aunties. Naa Binbi??u's aunties as usual started teasing him to the extend that they insisted and persisted on him to put on the chieftaincy regalias on a test mode. Naa Binbi??u was forcefully adorned with the chieftaincy regalias by the princesses. The princesses sang tunes of Damba songs with the hope that Naa Binbi??u will dance to but he never did. The princesses pressed on Naa Binbi??u to dance and when Naa Binbi??u finally succumbed to the princesses request, He danced back and forth from the princesses position to the door leading to the Gb?waa palace main hall. Through the dancing of Naa Binbi??u and on the third try of his testing mode, Naa Binbi??u with all seriousness rushed through the palace main hall to which he was met with the "GINGAANI" tune by the chief drummer of Yendi, Namo Naa and his follow drummers under Naa Binbi??u's appellation names of "Binbi??u Yi polo ku lahi s??u". This event on that day, signified the installation of the predecessor of Naa Andani Si?ili. Naa Yab-Ku?u Naa shockingly heard the sound of the "GINGAANI" tune from Ku?u and quickly rushed for the Gb?waa palace with his elders(Gomli,Kpatii and Tu?iri Nam) whiles Naa Yab-Gush??u Naa who was at Mal??ri also rushed through to see things for his own eyes. These chiefs responsible for installing a king for Dagb?? sent Naa Binbi??u to the royal museum as the king so selected. The necessary rituals were carried out to confirm his legitimacy.
Naa Binbi??u reigns lasted for 13 thirteen years. Naa Binbi??u as the king of Dagb?? gave birth to some princes. Naa Binbi??u's eldest prince was Pi?n?-Lana Mahanman?/Mahami. Next to his eldest princes was Pi?n?-Lana Abudu, Next in the princes were Nasa Lana Amu?utaani, Nabiri Naa Mbariba and Nabia Y?n? Tukasa. Naa Binbi??u's regentess was Pa?abi Lana Ataya.
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