Ekpe society in Amangwu Ohafia 

Ekpe is from the Ibibio word Egbo, which means Leopard,little wonder then why their ceremonial outing uniform(ukara)  has Leopard colour.

Membership in the Ekpe (Egbo), or Leopard, society, is available to wealthy men who can meet the expense involved, confers high social status and political authority; these men participate in ceremonies concerned with ancestral spirits and are believed to protect the community through magic and religious ritual.

From a very distant past the Efiks and the Igbos have maintained a relationship.The Efiks who were originally called Eburutu,during the course of their migration settled in many parts of Igboland.The Igbos particularly those in the boundary area have been described as the Cross river Igbos, among them are Ohafia people.Inter tribal relationship has  existed between the Igbos and the Efiks;in their mode of dressing and social functions.There had been acculturation between the two ethnic groups.While the Efiks learnt Obon play at Itu-Mbauzor in course of their migration push;Igbos learnt one thing or the other from them..Early Ohafia traders across the river(Elu anyim) also learnt and imported a lot from Efik land.For example Ekpe, Okonko,Mboko and Akang societies are some of them.Ekpe is therefore one of those societies from Elu anyim,which Eziafor people play to everybody’s satisfaction and you can hardly differentiate them from the Efik players. Ekpe society is never complete without Efik language and an average Eziafor person speaks Efik without crossing the river.Most household and cooking utensils are commonly known by their Efik names,for example,usani,moi-moi ikong,ukom,ekpeteshi etc.

Therefore, Ekpe society originated in Efik-Ibibio and imported to Eziafor Ohafia by the early itinerant traders across the river in the early part of the eighteenth century and migrated into other part of Igbo land.Ekpe song is never complete without its Efik version.

Ekpe is not a cultural society rather a social society that admits members through initiation. There is no age limit for whoever wants to be a member of the society. But then, only men of proven character and without any shameful past were accepted into the society.

The Ekpe was composed of the leading men of the community, and its higher grades were open only to those who could pay the heavy entrance fees. In its original form, it functioned as a force for tribal unity, as society members from one village were accepted by members in another village. Unlike in the Efik-Ibibio axis; Ekpe exists in its dominant role in legislative, judicial, and economic affairs but such functions are performed by Akpan Cultural group in Amangwu Ohafia.