Out of the number of prominent places of tourist attractions in Nigeria, the Zuma Rock majestically distinguishes itself in Madalla, a rural settlement in Suleja Local government area of Niger State. In a 45-minute drive from Abuja, it is situated West of the Federal Capital Territory along the major road from Abuja to Kaduna, off Madalla, thus the sobriquet—The Gateway from Abuja to Suleja. With its approximate 725 metres elevation above its surroundings and 3.1 kilometres circumference, it towers above even the Aso and Olumo rocks combined, earning for itself a place among the highest and largest monoliths in the world. Hiking this rock takes about five hours and since 1999, this natural monolith has featured in the older versions of the One hundred naira note.
The Zuma Rock is an igneous intrusion composed specifically of Gabbro and Granodiorite. Its most interesting feature is the imprint of a human-like face with features similar to eyes, nose and mouth, caused by the natural runoff of water down the rock. The residents believe that fire alights on the rock in the rainy season, which is disproved by the laws of physics causing the phenomenon on the rock, contributed by lighting angles and the rock formation process.
The natives of Madalla have many myths and superstitious beliefs about the rock, all pertaining to spirituality. The facial imprint on the rock is perceived as the physical representation of the deity and ancestral powers protecting their community. They believe that the spirits of the dead transition into the rock. While there are worshippers who believe in the spirits residing in Zuma Rock, there are also those who dread the mountain despite being witnesses to tourists who have successfully hiked to and fro the mountain without harm.
Interestingly, there is no precise account of the origin of the Zuma Rock, further adding to its mystery. The common narrative is that in the 15th century, the Zuba people first located the rock in a thick forest and upon finding an abundance of guinea fowls in the forest, named the rock Zumwa meaning A place of guinea fowls. The Zuba people, now identified as Koro, were a part of the Kwararafa that had begun to spread in that century across the northern states. They are also a part of the Jukun who are in diaspora. They settled permanently in the middle of the thick forest where Zuma Rock was, by instruction of their soothsayers. Having settled, they further founded settlements thus Shinapa, Chaci, Luki, Esa, Zumwa, Yeku, Huntu, and Wagu of the upper and lower lands. Leadership was in Shinapa.
The mysteries surrounding the Zuma Rock could contribute to the curiosity of tourists and modern-day residents of the area, yet the monolith is very much neglected. While some of the leaders past played roles to channel this curiosity into a revenue generator for Niger State, the citizens complain bitterly of neglect and lack of infrastructure.
It is important to note that on May 28 2008, Akin Alofetekun in an article for The Sun News reported that the then Niger State Governor, Dr Muazu Babangida Aliyu, signed a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) with Texas Pacific, USA Construction Ltd., a Canadian tourism development company, where both sides had at the top of the mountain agreed to invest about $700 million in the development of a tourism resort village around Zuma. Today, one would appraise such a partnership to have landed the state among remarkable tourist locations in Nigeria, bringing home both the revenues and recognition that it had long deserved.
However, the most important questions remain, ‘Did this investment happen? Why are the citizens of Madalla unhappy?’ The towering height of Zuma Rock in its magnificence calls for tourism and admiration. Could it also be that the recent changes to the human-face imprint on the rock, emphasize the unhappiness of the spirits about the neglect of the Madalla natives and cries to everyone born from curiosity, everyone who seeks to walk the Zuma rock?
