IMSUTH And Its Unending Crises

Imo State University Teaching Hospital

BY CHRIS NJOKU

For members of staff and students of the Imo State University Teaching Hospital, Orlu, everything seem awry. To them, life was not what they thought it should be. They are being owed arrears of salaries, which has necessitated a strike action; while medical students’ hope of graduating at the appropriate time appears dashed.

As a kid, Macdonald Eke, the president, the Imo State University Medical Students’ Association, Umunna, Orlu, had told his mother that he would be a medical doctor. So, when he secured admission to study medicine at the Imo State University (IMSU), he was glad that, at last, his dream to become a medical doctor will come true. So, Eke hoped to spend six years in the medical college as the prescribed duration for medicine in the university.

However, Eke’s fate seems to be hanging in the balance as he has spent 10 years pursuing a course, which ordinarily could have lasted six years in the medical college.

Some of the students like Eke, who spoke to The Nation in confidence for fear of being intimidated, revealed that some of them have already spent more than 10 years than the prescribed duration for their respective courses despite paying school fees.

Investigation revealed that Imo State University Teaching Hospital (IMSUTH), has been having varying and periodic problems, arising from frequent strike action, poor funding, inadequate medical equipment, inadequate members of staff, loss of accreditation and lots more.

The sordid plight of the students again, took the front burner within the past weeks, when resident doctors embarked on strike to press home their demands.

Dr. Bright Chukwunta, the Chairman, Association of Resident Doctors, IMSUTH, explained that the strike was a continuation of an earlier one they suspended after reaching an agreement with Governor Emeka Ihedioha shortly after he was sworn in.

Chukwunta said doctors’ demands include payment of full subvention and provision of necessary equipment in the hospital and repair of access roads leading to the hospital.

“We had a gentleman agreement with the state governor seven days after he assumed office when he promised to restore our subvention to 100 per cent and pay arrears of salaries owed us, and fix access roads to the hospital.”

But after more than five months, Chukwunta said the agreement has not been implemented. “It is almost five months down the line and nothing has been done in that regard. This is why on September 12; we recommenced a previously suspended strike on the grounds of breach of agreement on the part of government.”

Again, while grappling with the resident doctors’ demands, on October 17, health workers under the aegis of Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) commenced their own strike.

Speaking to The Nation, Chairman of JOHESU, Imo State chapter, Onyechere Darlington, confirmed that they were on strike in continuation of their earlier strike, which was suspended following the promise by Governor Ihedioha to look into their grievances.

Darlington revealed that the workers’ meeting last Thursday with the government officials broke down because their demands could not be met.

“Last Thursday, we had a discussion in the Ministry of Health with SSG, Commissioner for Health, Senior Special Assistant (SSA) on Health and Special Adviser (SA) on Project Monitoring mandated by the governor to dialogue with us. It broke down because the government was still dragging its feet over our demands.

“They also did not care to dialogue with us within 21 days we issued an ultimatum. Out of the 21 days, that day (Thursday) was the first time they called us for discussion.

“They pleaded with me to shift the date of the strike that was supposed to commence that Thursday. I told them that inasmuch as I am the chairman, I don’t take unilateral decisions except the house mandates me. That time, the workers were disposed to go on strike and anything to the contrary will mean taking laws into my hands.

“They may not find it funny with me having suffered a lot of threats in the past because somebody is receiving 70 per cent of his salary; despite the situation in the country now. We have continued to talk about it.

“The other government left and we believe that government is a continuum. It is the Imo State government that owes us not Ihedioha or Okorocha,” he said.

Continuing, he said: “When the current administration assumed office; the workers heaved a sigh of relief because before Ihedioha took over the leadership of the state, we were on strike when the immediate past governor was paying us 70 per cent. So, we supported Ihedioha and he promised to restore our 100 per cent salary structure. We had to suspend the strike. After five months, nothing happened. The workers were alleging that I have been bought over.

“Before the commencement of the strike, the house gave me the mandate that their three months’ salary arrears must be paid. They were paying us 70 per cent of the net not 70 per cent of the gross. If they were paying us 70 per cent of the gross, perhaps, we would not have been where we are now.

“The other issue is access road even though the present government has come to flag off the road construction. But no work is going on there and then all the equipment in the hospital have all broken down. Most times, most of our patients are referred to other hospitals for dialysis and X-rays that were supposed to be conducted in the hospital. This does not give us the IGR we need to run the hospital.”

The deadlock has continued to have its toll on both the students and patients.

When The Nation visited the hospital, classes were empty, offices and gates were under lock and key. Some of the students were seen in groups discussing their plight.

Eke, who spoke to The Nation at the teaching hospital, Orlu, appealed to the state government to urgently resolve the matter before it gets out of hands.

“We are appealing to the state government to step into the matter. We are also urging the management and the resident doctors to shift ground and come to a common understanding for the sake of the patients, students and the credibility of the college,” he said.

He revealed that the college had suffered some setbacks on the issue of its accreditation, adding that the strike would compound the already horrible situation.

According to him, whenever there was a strike action, clinical posting suffers a setback in the school.

“Whenever there is a strike, we are limited; our training is incomplete and our clinical posting is truncated.

“Since the resident doctors embarked on the current strike, it has affected our clinical posting, most patients have died, many have been discharged.”

The students’ leader, who claimed that he is in his fifth year in the medical school, said he has spent 10 years running a course that was supposed to have been completed six, seven years ago.

Also, patients were seen leaving the hospital as no doctor was around to attend to them. Some of them interviewed said they were leaving for elsewhere to seek medical treatment.

A patient, who did not want her name mentioned, said some of them did not have a place to go for treatment.

“So, they are just there waiting for death to take them as there are no doctors to attend to them,” she said.

Reacting, the Chief Medical Director of the Teaching Hospital, Dr. Chukwuma Bonaventure Duru told The Nation that he has been able to reach the part of the agreement he had with the striking doctors.

Although he did not reveal the agreement reached with the striking doctors, he, however, said he had been supportive of the cause of the doctors.

“I am part of the doctors, they are my colleagues, but I am pleading with them to resume work as Governor Ihedioha has promised to meet their demands.

“We are continuing negotiations until we resolve the issue. It is better to resolve the problem through negotiation than through confrontation. I am not happy; the strike is negatively affecting the hospital. The senior doctors are overwhelmed, the condition of patients deplorable, the medical students are equally affected. For the sake of all these, I appeal to the resident doctors to call off the strike.

“The senior doctors are not part of the strike because they believe in negotiation. I plead with the young doctors to embrace negotiation.”

According to him, the last administration did not pay the salary; the current administration has agreed to pay. The governor is a man who stands by his words,” he said.

Also speaking, the Commissioner for Health, Dr. Vin Udokwu told The Nation that the government was finding ways to resolve the issue.

“I want to tell you that the issue has not been resolved, we are on the matter to find ways to resolve it amicably.”


SOURCE: THE NATION
Meanwhile, the plight of the doctors, students, workers, patients has continued unabated.

Sun News Interview With Adenrele Ogunsanya

Adenrele Oguisanya. Image: Youtube

WHEN DAD DIED IN 1996, ALABA MARKET CLOSED DOWN TO HONOR HIM--PRINCESS ADENRELE OGUSANYA

BY AGATHA EMEADI

Princess Adenrele Ogunsanya, a grassroot politician and first daughter of Prince Adeniran Ogunsanya served as Secretary to State Government, during the tenure of former Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Raji Fashola. Her father was a highly respected and beloved First Republic politician and a prominent leader of the then NCNC and close knit friend of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe, the Great Zik of Africa. It was a friendship that transcended generations. Princess Adenrenle who is of Yoruba and British parentage (able to trace her lineage to the 6th generation) recalls with nostalgia the beautiful politics of her father’s era. In this interview, she talks about women in politics and her father’s relationship with the legendary Zik of Africa.

Ever since you left office, it appears you have been silent. Are you still in active politics?

Yes, I am still very active in politics. I have been in politics all my life because I started quite early. I am a grassroots politician and I am not the type of female politician that just wears big gele. I am very much around doing politics. Recently, I was in my home town Ikorodu doing what I am supposed to do. As a politician of old, I held party positions at federal and state levels. I have been Secretary to the State Government (SSG) in Lagos State and have also been in Federal Board. I am very much involved in politics. Most times, people who are in the forefront are not the people with the crowd. During the election period, I was quite busy.

What have you been doing politically at Ikorodu your home town? Are you positioning people for 2023, or gingering the women to be more active in politics or otherwise?

Ikorodu is my hometown and I am one of the leaders in the area. People who have power are not loud. I think about my people very well. Every profession has its ups and downs, just like we have in politics. One cannot be right all the time or be wrong at all times. We pray that things will get better.

What are these political ups and down you just mentioned?

My take on the issue is that Lagos State is a very cosmopolitan state that needs all hands to be on deck. We also need good balance in leadership to work together like we had in the 50s and 60s. Both indigenes and non-indigenes then voted for others and were voted for. Another thing is that a politician must be close to his or her people; some people are not very close, yet they are up there. I am a people’s person. I have seen big men all my life at least starting from my father, Adeniran Ogunsanya, his friends and the political class across the board.

When you joined politics, how did you succeed in the terrain as a woman?

I started with my father, the Obiajulu who was in Lagos Cabinet years ago used to put me in the open van with big speakers and I would be singing NCNC campaign songs and follow them to campaigns. I am not a political jobber but must confess that I had the advantage because of my Dad’s personality and clout.

Who was the man Adeniran Ogunsanya?

My father was called ‘Gaius Marcus politicus’ because he was a very bold young lawyer, outspoken and an intelligent politician. He was in the House of Representatives, a parliamentary Secretary and was strong in NCNC. He met Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe (Great Zik of Africa) in 1937 in Kings College when Zik came to give a speech about Pan-Africanism. It was during the beginning of the fight and struggle for independence and after Herbert Macaulay who later became the Secretary General of the NCNC, their relationship continued from there. In our home here in Lagos and Manchester where I was born, there was always a beehive of activities with flow of dignified men in and out of our house. My dad also saw that I had the attribute and fire of politics in me, so he encouraged me. I am my father’s first daughter and his girl.

You rose in politics because of your background unlike most women who venture into politics. What do you tell women today?

I think we should be fair when we are talking of women issue. Women have broken the roof in different fields of endeavour. I admire them. My dad had this belief that what a man can do, a woman can do better. He believed in girl-child education. But most times, women themselves have not realised the quality we are made of. We do not seem to value ourselves that much. We need to call ourselves to order for the benefit of the future generations. If we do not act fast, it will become a vicious circle of lifestyle. It is important we know ourselves, realise that we are great, strong and focused. I salute Nigerian women today because a lot of them are breadwinners in their various homes. Women in politics therefore should not be entertainers and cooks only. No, politics is a serious business and women who are involved should equally be serious. They should not be seen as singers, dancers and clappers. They should also not be there for cooking purposes alone. It should not be their main agenda; instead, they should be active, contest elections, address the crowd, make value point and support each other.

If women come out the way you said, will their votes count? Will they be given a fair ground to play the game?

Women’s votes count. When we have ward and LGA meetings, women come out in large numbers. If you sit at home without coming out to vote, be rest assured that your vote will not count because you did not cast

it and those votes will be lost, so it is better to come out and perform their civic responsibility. I want them to gear up for 2023 general elections.

As a grassroot and seasoned politician, what do you think about restructuring?

I think the government should pay attention to what people are clamouring or hoping for. It is important. I hold the opinion that creation of more states has divided us further. Even when it comes to growth, it is neither here or there. When I was growing up as a child, I had friends and did not realise we had an Igbo neighbour until during the war when she started packing to go home. We could not understand why the person was relocating. That was how it was, we are more divided now and it bothers me. I think there is more to think about, there are other countries who try to live together and build a nation. The people making things difficult and bringing things that divide us are after their pocket and we Nigerians have to take cognisance of them and make sure we are aware of these people. At the end of the day, they will get on their private jets and go while we suffer it here. So I pray that attention is given to this unity we keep mentioning especially in our coat of arms and National Anthem. Nothing is as good as being peaceful and happy. We need to know about each other more and I think history is an important element in the education of our children. I do not know who decided to cancel history from the curriculum because it does not make sense. So, it is my prayer that we are able to solve our problem as quickly as possible and save our nation from a lot of hardship.

The 2023 general election is by the corner and the clamour for the presidency is getting hotter among the geopolitical zones. The Igbo say it is their turn. What is your take on this?

I think everybody is entitled to be part of the very high position of the presidency, we just need to look at the statistics and know where it is missing and keep ourselves in a position of those people; and as I said it will be important to keep the peace and unity of this country together. We are such a brilliant nation, forget our lapses, all we need is a stable country and a good Nigerian leader not particularly from a tribe to move our country forward.

What do you think about insecurity in the land?

It is appalling. A lot of things are happening now. When I was a child, very rarely were people involved in suicide, but today, in my town, a young man made a video of himself explaining why he needed to commit suicide, and he went ahead and committed suicide, even as a young upcoming musician. I have been stopped a number of times to address the youths who try to drown themselves. We counselled such people and I call them in Lagos State to support them in the hospital. There are so many things that are uncommon to Nigeria that have been happening now; it affects a lot of things. The pictures we paint outside Nigeria either bring in a good thing or take it away. It is unbelievable the stage we are in now. I loved travelling by road then; we could take off from Lagos in a convoy to Benin, Onitsha, Owerri and up to Port Harcourt with friends to have nice time and fun. Now nobody can try it because of the situation in the country. But we all have a role to play, even if it means crying out that we want a change of what is happening. We want something done about it. Constant crying will surely get to the leaders because some of them are just after their pockets.

How did you become a princess? Can you trace your root even as a half cast?

Over 500-600 years ago, the prince moved from Ijebu Ode to Shagamu and to Ikorodu and founded it. My dad taught me that my great grandfather to the 6th generation is the 9th Awujale Oniran. When my dad was given a chieftaincy title in Ijebu, he was kept in Ikorodu for 13 days because he was a prince. It happened that there were two ruling houses. ‘Raademo’ and ‘Lasunwon’, those were the two houses that alternate the ‘Anyangburen’ the title of the Oba of Ikorodu. That time it was the turn of the Raademo who is my cousin, we share the same lineage. His grandfather and my grandfather were brothers from same parents. Oyefusi was the name of the younger brother of Ogunsanya, and that happens a lot in Ijebu. The present Oba is from Lasunwon, his mother is my relation from my own ruling house; he too is also my relation. My root is not difficult for me to trace because that was the way my dad brought me up. He made me to be interested in the history of my people. In my family, I can tell who is who.

Who taught you how to speak Yoruba?

I picked Yoruba language at the age of five when my father brought me back from Manchester. He was a young lawyer then and brought me back home.

Tell us about your relationship with the Easterners.

I have spent Christmas in the East over the years, precisely in Abiriba in Abia State; I enjoyed witnessing the various age grades celebrations and their fanfare. Remembering and going to one’s root is one way of honouring parents. Other Eastern towns I know very well include, Orlu, Avutu (Late Sam Mbakwe’s town), Oguta, Atta, Ikeduru (Emmanuel Iwuanyanwu’s town) Ohafia, Ovim (Ike Nwachukwu’s town), Amawbia, Nri, Enugu-Ukwu, Awka, 9th Mile, Ngwo (CC Onoh’s town) and Nsukka, my big Daddy’s home – The Great Zik of Africa. He was there and my dad would send me there to represent him or something else. When Zik died in 1996, I was with Dr. Uche Azikiwe, receiving the guests. When my dad was the National Chairman of Nigerians Peoples Party (NPP), I campaigned in the East for four months. We did politics then like families. Some of us the children of old politicians still relate well unlike now that enmity has become part of politics.

Then, I used to drive from Lagos to the East just to have fun, we will stop at Benin, Asaba, Onitsha, Enugu, Owerri and finally at Port Harcourt. Igbo people are warm to me and I love the Easterners. I have not forgotten the day my dad sent me to a function in Enugu. When our flight landed, I beckoned at an airport taxi driver who said to me, “Ada, I will not collect money from you, you are our daddy’s daughter. I have driven you to Nsukka and had always seen you at the airport with different entourages off and on.” When my father died in 1996, the whole of Alaba International Market closed down to honour him. Everybody regardless of party was in Ikorodu for my father’s burial. I have a good experience with the Easterners.

You look good at over 70, what is the secret?

Maybe it is the mind of my own that I have. I learnt a lot from my dad especially that one cannot sleep in more than one bed, room, car, one outfit. My son wrote on my 70th birthday that when everything falls, my mum would say, keep moving. There is a limit to what one can do. For having ideas about one’s idea, one might get victimised. I believe that we have moved away from being colonised, and I refuse to be colonised. If you want me to do anything, call me and explain to me. When instructions are being thrown or dished out, a lot of people follow suit, but I do not follow it. If you have children, you must do well for other people’s children because you would not know what will happen to your own children when you are no more.

What do you like to eat, what is your favourite food?

I am an Ijebu girl, I like to drink garri and eat eba with Egusi Ijebu soup. My children are the ones that like amala because they are from Ibadan.

Where do you worship?

I worship in my room from time to time. At a time when I was due for secondary school, the school year abroad started in September, while here in Nigeria ended in December, so from September I had to wait to go to a boarding school abroad, so I was enrolled at Our Lady of Apostles schools. Before then, the first nursery school I went to was Catholic, so I mix my worship centres. Sometimes I go to St Dominic or St. Saviours because I like reading about the saints. Some Sundays might not even be for you because of other people’s activities.

What is your beauty therapy, how long have you done nails?

I have always done nails, I am a girly girl.

Punch Interview With Igechi Amadi...

Elechi Amadi. Image via Press Reader

BY SIMON UTEBOR

Igechi Amadi, an entrepreneur and Theatre and Film graduate from the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, is one of the children of late Elechi Amadi, a celebrated author and academic, whose most popular novel, The Concubine, was one of the best sellers in Africa. She talks about her father’s passion, lifestyle, ideals and contributions to the literary world with SIMON UTEBOR

Could you tell us about yourself?

My name is Igechi Elechi-Amadi. I am 27 years old and a graduate of Theatre and Film Study from the University of Port Harcourt. I am a very easy going person. I am tilting towards my father’s passion, which is writing. I am an aspiring writer and a playwright. Currently, I am an entrepreneur.

Tell us about your siblings and background?

I come from a polygamous home. My father had three wives and I am from the third wife. Collectively, we are 17 children of my father. From my mother, we are just two – my elder sister and I. My elder sister is a very humble person. She is a graduate of Chemical Engineering from the University of Port Harcourt. She is strong-willed and a go-getter. She is my best friend and we discuss everything possible.

How was growing up with your father like?

I grew up in a very strict home. My father was a very great disciplinarian given his military background but he was a very loving person, so there was a very fine balance between discipline and love. He set a very high standard for his children. He was a very gentle man. He was a very rare person. Sometimes, when something happened, I would think what would my father do in that situation, because I really loved his ways and he never disappointed me because he would always fix things right. I would like to imbibe those standards.

What were your father’s core values?
He believed in the power of kindness and he also believed in the intangible ways of reward. I mean those things money can’t buy, such goodness like love, kindness, friendship and companionship. He believed so much in traditions. He was a traditionalist. He believed much in our traditional heritage – he liked traditions a lot.

Can you recall any fond memory with him when you were young?

There are many but let me pick the very appropriate ones. My father loved nature a lot. One of my best days was to sit with him. Our compound has so many trees and flowers. I would sit with him quietly, he had this traditional chair and we would just sit in front of the house and just explore the environment and he would engage me in meaningful discussions. We just enjoyed each other’s company.

Then he used to do that with all his wives and children. Every night, we would have a kind of tales by moonlight. We would all hurry to eat our food quickly so that we could go and sit down to listen to the story. He was a very good story teller. So, we would sit down around him and he would tell us beautiful stories. It was something we always looked forward to and it was something that also united the family.

In polygamy, feuds between the wives are common. As a polygamist, how was he able to settle those kinds of feuds?
My father was very wise. I am not saying this because he was my father, neither am I saying it out of sentiments. He was truly a very wise person. Sometimes when there was conflict, there were quarrels and everybody shouting, raising their voices, he had the best way of handling those situations. He would just say something and everybody would just keep quiet and then they would begin to talk and explain why those were happening. He tried also to get everybody’s point of view. He had great empathy, he was able to put those involved in the shoes of each wife to understand where he was coming from and with that he was able to address exactly what the problem was. Most times, it turned out harmoniously and everybody would become happy again.

What were his likes and dislikes?
One of his greatest dislikes in people was dishonesty and lack of integrity. He would not have any dealing with people he perceived to be dishonest and lacked integrity. He also disliked people who were not real, people who were living fake lives. For his likes, he cherished intelligent and brilliant people. He also liked open-minded people. In those days when we had boyfriends, we made sure they had those qualities that our father loved because it was like something we were going to be judged with because at the end of the day, he would sit down and have conversation with him and if those attributes were present, he would have a smoother relationship with him.

How often did he use the cane on you or any other children when they misbehave?
I don’t want to say often, but fairly often he used the cane on any child who misbehaved. I recall one time he was flogging me and I ran, he chased me, caught me and continued flogging me. He was a core disciplinarian. Apart from using the cane, he also tried to reason with us by advising us on the right behaviour. However, it was such that when we misbehaved to our mothers and they said they would report to our father, you would just freeze. Sometimes, when our mothers reported us to him, you would think he would flog us because we were ready for the flogging but he would disappoint us. He would tell us to sit down and begin to reason with us by telling you not to do what you did and the consequences of such misbehaviour next time. For me, that sank well with me than the flogging anyway. It had more effect as he took time to reason with the person. At the end of the day, you find yourself a changed person.

Your father was a famous writer and academic, did any of his children follow in his professional path?
Yes, as a matter of fact, I do. I am a writer myself. I am an aspiring novelist and also a screen writer. I did theatre and film study. It was my love for the art that took me to study theatre and film. I think I am following in his career path. We have others who took other aspects, not necessarily in writing. We have a designer, musician, a pianist and others. My father used to play the piano a lot. It was one of his favourite past times. I have a brother who has taken that part of him. That brother plays the piano and the saxophone.

He wrote many books. Could you tell some of the books he has written and what lessons you have learnt from some or all of them you have read?
He has written many books. Some of them are The Concubine, Remote Ibadan, The Woman of Calabar, The Great Pond, Sunset in Biafra, When God Came, among others. I have read all his books and the things I have learnt from them are his belief in African culture. In his works, he always evoked great memories of African traditional society. It has made me to greatly appreciate our cultural heritage. I love culture. For example, I always insist on my being called my native name, Igechi. I don’t subscribe to English name and all that and I am able to achieve culture in every form. It is one of the influences his books had on me.

Why was he so passionate about the African culture?

Like I said, he loved culture a lot and he used his works to express that in every way possible. He grew up in a traditional society and I think that also had influence on his passion for African cultural heritage.

What did he study in school?

He studied Mathematics and Physics.

Is that not an irony considering his mastery of art and writing?
It is really an irony. But I think his writing prowess was triggered by his passion.

He served in the Nigerian Army and retired as a Captain. But he left the Army so soon. Did he at any time tell you why he left the military?

I can’t say exactly what actually happened but he said a few things. He said he could not stand to be almost like a robot, taking orders and having to carry out the orders willy-nilly. In his book, Sunset in Biafra, there were sometimes they gave him orders and he had contrary opinion and when he tried to reason with his superiors, they would not agree and he had to carry out the orders regardless of what the consequences would be, he said he did not like that. He also said he did not like violence, because as a soldier at some point, one has to be aggressive to protect oneself and the people one is protecting, he did not like that at all. He was a very peaceful man. I think serving in the army went contrary to his personality and he decided to retire.

He was twice arrested and detained by the Biafran Army. Did he tell you what happened?

He said a little of that. It had to do with the war but I don’t have details on that. I recommend more research should be done on that.

But did he tell you he was arrested and detained?

Yes, but he did not really delve into that. So, I do not have reliable information on that. He could have told that story to his wives but for his children, I don’t think he really mentioned that development.

He was reportedly kidnapped in 2009 for about three weeks in his hometown in Ikwerre. Could you recall the incident and what actually led to his kidnap?
Yes, he was kidnapped but not three weeks. He was kidnapped for only 23 hours. It was in our compound and we were all very much aware. In fact, we were all very disturbed. He was kidnapped about 8pm on that day and released about 7pm the next day.

How has the family been coping since his death?
Quite frankly, his exit created a void. We try to live harmoniously because we know what he could have liked. It has not been easy but so far so good.

He was also said to have fought on the side of the Federal Government during the Nigerian Civil War, rejecting the notion of Biafra. Why did he not support the Biafran cause as an Igbo man?

My father was not an Igbo man. He was an Ikwerre man not an Igbo man. I don’t have any reliable information about his reason for not supporting the Biafra.

He coincidentally left Zaria three days before the coup that claimed the life of Tafewa Balewa and some people felt he was in the know of the coup. Did he clarify that allegation in his lifetime?

That is very controversial information, but again, I do not have any reliable information concerning that.

His best known novel, The Concubine, published in 1966 was said to have sold millions of copies. Did he confide in you about the fortunes of the best seller novel?
No, he didn’t. We knew the book was a best seller because most people associate Elechi Amadi with The Concubine. Till today, it is a best seller. We knew the book did well but as for the numbers sold, I don’t know.

What lesson did you learn from that book?

The book is about destiny – what will be will be. The book was about a beautiful and enigmatic woman destined to be a concubine because she was married to a water god. The book taught me the virtue of womanhood because Ihuoma, the main character was a virtuous woman, that was why she was very respected in the community. I take a few lessons from her character and it has helped in my personal my relationship (laughs).

His works were greatly admired by even his fellow writers in Nigeria and he had a large readership throughout Africa, but he did not attain wider international reputation of the likes of Chinua Achebe and Wole Soyinka. What do you think it happened that way?

He was a very simple man and he was not very ambitious. He wrote for the love of writing. Other people may also write for the love of writing but then there is a significant business angle to it. They set out to promote their works, go out there to get international recognition and all that. My father was very comfortable; he believed that his works would speak for themselves. He did not go all out to promote his works and make them known more.

He attended the same Government College Umuahia with Chinua Achebe. What was his relationship with Achebe like before their demise?

He was under the tutelage of Chinua Achebe. They were friends, I don’t know how close. They had a huge respect for each other, that is the much I know about them.

Which places did he really work?

He was onetime commissioner for education in Rivers State. He was a teacher, he was a lecturer and he used to give lectures at universities and he was also a writer among others.

What were his political philosophies?

He did not like politics. He abhorred the way politics was practised in Nigeria and did not want to be associated with that kind of life. He wasn’t a politician.

How would you describe your father?

He was a very kind-hearted man, liberal and loved enlightened people. He loved nature, he was selfless. My father was a traditionalist, educationist and a philosopher. Quite frankly, without sentiment, he was a perfect gentleman.

What was his favourite food and drink?

His favourite drink was water, he liked water very much. He liked fufu and our native soup, Okazi with dried fish and dried meat.

What was his favourite kind of music?

He liked classical music.

How did he reward his children whenever they made him proud?

He would commend whoever made him proud. He was not fond of giving any physical material gift. He believed that his commendation was enough to encourage you to do more.

How has his name opened doors for you?

His name has really helped. Quite frankly, I would like to carve a niche for myself. When I was in the University of Port Harcourt, I happened to be in a department where he was well known and people liked me. In the labour market, it has also helped me in my entrepreneurship.

Did he pamper his children when they were growing up?

He did not pamper anybody. He was a disciplinarian. He believed very much in carrot and stick approach. He was never one for pampering. When any of the children misbehaved, he would punish the person appropriately.

Can you consider yourself as a privileged child?

I do very much. Not for material reason but for the things I was able to learn from him. For that I consider myself very privileged.

What remarkable achievements can you attribute to your father towards societal development?

He contributed greatly to African literature and in current tradition. He is one of the pioneers of African literature and has contributed greatly to current tradition.

Were there places he took you and your siblings to for bonding?

There is a popular Port Harcourt Club he usually took us to. He loved playing tennis. We would go there on Sundays and have wonderful treats and fun. In our compound, we have a lot of trees. We just sit around and have discussion and fun, among others.

What are things Nigerians do not know about him?

He liked playing the piano. I think that is probably the only thing people don’t know about him. He knew I liked music and he was always playing classical music with his piano. That is something he enjoyed doing most times.

Between your mother and father, who was tougher?

They were both tough in their different ways. My mother is also a very great disciplinarian because she is a lecturer at Ajuru University of Education. She is currently the Dean of Faculty of Management. So, I cannot really say who was tougher. As for my father, he chose the moment he would like to discipline us, but as for mother, there is no time. As soon as it happens, she metes out punishment to you.

Okey Ndibe: Writing As Activism

Okey Ndibe. Image: Wikimedia

BY OLUWOLE COKER

Hewett (2005) describes the third generation of African writing as a group whose account “is one of triumph over adversity, a story of courageous individuals refusing to be silenced and the greater community supporting them. It is a remarkable story, one that is still being written by critics and the writers themselves.” (74) As such, they exhibit certain literary idiosyncrasies in thematic and stylistic explorations. In addition to this, Ndibe is an active participant in social media as evidenced by his personal blog, www.okeyndibe.com and he is a celebrated personality in Nigerian social media space.

The topography of Nigerian literary history does not follow a bold straight line as many of the writers in generational brackets are still writing, however, the generation of writers classified as ‘third’ generation of Nigerian writing emerged soon after the fiery second generation which includes such names as Niyi Osundare, Olu Obafemi, Tanure Ojaide, Femi Osofisan, Odia Ofeimun and several others. This second generation shares a lot of affinities with the generations before them. More importantly, this generation of writers, according to The African Writing Magazine, “are writers of a disillusioned Africanist enterprise, who are not naïve about international realities but have become more hesitant about blaming outsiders because they have experienced a lot of enemies within”

The third-generation writers are heirs to a heritage of socio-historical commitment from their antecedents. This has been described as a major feature in African literary enterprise. In Chinua Achebe’s words: “It is clear to me that an African creative writer who tries to avoid the big social issues of contemporary Africa will end up being completely irrelevant, like that absurd man in the proverb who leaves his burning house to pursue a rat fleeing from the flames” … If an artist is anything he is a human being with heightened sensitivities; he must be aware of the faintest nuances of injustice in the African writer cannot shy away human relations. The African writer cannot therefore be unaware of, or indifferent to, the monumental injustice which his people suffer.” (Achebe, 1975, 78-79)

Indeed, the “Achebean” mandates makes it incumbent on the writers to engage issues that are of social and political relevance to their contexts. While of these writers are home-based, a number of them live in the diaspora. Through their artistic renaissance, they share the same vision to reposition Nigerian society for the common good. Members of this generation include Chimamanda Adichie, Helon Habila, Sefi Attah, Jude Dibia, Lola Shoneyin, Toni Kan, Okey Ndibe and several others. These writers have been described as products of peculiar socio-historical circumstances which motivated their writings.

Okechukwu Ndibe was born in Yola, Nigeria on May 15th, 1960. Ndibe is of Igbo extraction and hails from Anambra State, Nigeria. His family was forced to relocate from Yola when the Nigerian civil war broke out in 1967. A chance meeting with Chinua Achebe in a filling station shaped his career forever when he was invited to the United States by Achebe to help co-found the journal, African Commentary. Before his relocation to the United States in 1988, Ndibe worked in Nigeria as a journalist and magazine editor and has over the years remained one. He has published essays across various news media in Nigeria as a columnist and contributor. As an essayist, Ndibe is known for his satirical writings and political commentaries. Like several writers on the continent, Ndibe combines several roles as an academic, journalist and public intellectual. He is an active participant in social media as evidenced by his personal blog, www.okeyndibe.com and he is a celebrated personality in Nigerian social media space.

Ndibe holds MFA and PhD degrees from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He has been a Professor in Universities and Colleges in the United States. These include Brown University in Providence, RI; Trinity College in Hartford; Connecticut College in New London, CT; and Simon’s Rock College in Great Barrington, MA. From, 2001-2002, he was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Lagos, Nigeria, and he was a Shearing Fellow at the Black Mountain Institute at University of Nevada, Las Vegas (2015-2016). In recent times, Ndibe has been actively involved in book readings across the United States of America.

Okey is married to Sheri Fafunwa, the daughter of a foremost educationist and former Minister of Education in Nigeria, Prof. Aliyu Babatunde Fafunwa. She is a Professor of Art at Central Connecticut State University, Hartford, Connecticut Area in the United States.

Ndibe is a prominent member of, what is known as, the third generation of African writers. His first novel, Arrows of Rain, Okey was published in 2000. This was followed by another, Foreign Gods, Inc. in 2014. Foreign Gods, Inc. was identified as one of the best books of 2014 by Janet Maslin of The New York Times, National Public Radio, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Cleveland Plain Dealer and Mosaic magazine. His memoir entitled, Never Look an American in the Eye: Flying Turtles, Colonial Ghosts and the Making of a Nigerian American (2016) won the Connecticut Book Award for non-fiction in 2017. He has also edited Writers Writing on Conflicts and Wars in Africa, a book of critical essays, with Chenjerai Hove, a Zimbabwean writer. Ndibe is a regular columnist for The New York Times, BBC online, The Financial Times, The Guardian, Al Jazeera online, The Mail & Guardian (South Africa), Fabian Society Journal, and the websites www.saharareporters.com and www.thisisafrica.me. He has been preoccupied for over twenty years with issues around Nigerian politics and culture in his role as a journalist and newspaper columnist. His next novel will be entitled Native Tongues. In his works, Ndibe presents a globalised vision of social satire.

Arrows of Rain, is set in the fictional country of Madia. It features the burden borne by a Bukuru, the “madman” who was the last to speak with a young prostitute who runs into the sea and drowns. His testimony was used against him as he was charged with the prostitute’s death. The novel dramatizes the precarious state of the nation as encapsulated in the metaphor of the drowning prostitute narrated from the point of view of Bukuru whose testimony in court becomes revealing and damaging to the country’s political leadership. The novel stresses the fact that, “for the self to triumph, the psychological disposition must embrace pragmatic engagement” (Coker, 37). Thus, Ndibe, like several members of his generation fictionalizes the development challenges of his enabling context. This is probably why Wumi Raji describes the novel as “the narrative of a postcolonial nation” (145).

In other words, Arrows of Rain narrates the experience of a nation under a political leadership best described as “messiahs of pain”. This clearly agitates the mind of Pa Mathew Ileka Ata, father of Reuben, the corrupt Madian minister when he asks rhetorically: “Can anything be done?’ I asked. He sighed. Yes. First, we must ask ourselves, what is the identity of this space called Madia? Why does our present bear no marks of our past? What is the meaning of our history? These questions can only lead us to one truth, namely that we live in a bastard nation. Then we must decide what to do with this illegitimate offspring. The first step is to turn it into a completely different nation. Not by means of violence but symbolically through our constitution.” (Ndibe, 2000,123)

In a sense, one can say Ndibe’s association with Achebe clearly rubs off on him. Actually, his novel, Arrows of Rain is in many ways preoccupied with the Achebe’s central thesis in The Problem with Nigeria as Ndibe also thematises leadership questions and deploys artistic insights into providing pragmatic solutions to political corruption in Arrows of Rain.

In Foreign Gods, Inc., the central character, Ike, is a New York-based Nigerian cab driver. The protagonist embarks on a suicide mission to steal a priceless artifact from his home village in Nigeria with the aim of selling it to a gallery in New York. The novel narrates the experience and despicable lives of immigrants in the United States and elsewhere. The pain of rejection on account of Ike’s identity propels him to indulge in several vices to manage his myriad of problems, and to escape the trauma and travails of his existence. The poignant message of Ndibe’s Foreign Gods, Inc. hardly lies in the immigrant tribulation. Rather, it comes out strongly in how Ndibe weaves his narrative to capture the many foibles of existence and other extremities. He strikes a delicate balance between modernity and tradition deploying humour and satire as mechanical tools of his artistic engagement.

By foregrounding the disillusionment that accompanies the immigrant, especially one coming from Africa, Ndibe offers a commentary on the illusion of grandeur fueled by paternalistic ideology. Thus, the decline in human value which necessitates a consumerist mentality results into an ultimate fascination and the thrills of modern life. The novel thus confronts global angst through individual aspiration, which leads to frustration, in the final analysis. Foreign Gods, Inc. therefore engages the globalised world in a most creative as well as critical way.

Ndibe’s memoir, Never Look an American in the Eye (2016) is a different kind of narrative than the novels. It chronicles a first-hand experience of Ndibe’s migration to the United States. He also deploys humour to reduce the real pain of integration, especially his battles to retain his dignity as a human being in face of unending hostilities. There is a connection between Ndibe and his protagonist in Foreign Gods, Inc. It is a fact-fiction binary intersection that makes one to complement the other. Ndibe’s experience challenges man’s inhumanity to his fellow man as well as condemning racism which continues to be prevalent in the United States, despite the effects of globalisation. In a commentary on the book, Elnathan John underscores that “in many ways the book is a tale of towering giants and mythical figures, of ideals and illusions. America is majestic, casting a shadow over the author and invading his consciousness”(33). This suggests that Ndibe’s memoir is a tale of his own (mis)calculations and immigrant troubles in aspiring to come to “dreamland”. There is no doubt that Ndibe’s motivation for writing this memoir stems from his personal encounter with the contradictions of American society when he arrived. According to him in an online interview: “ I was a victim of a police arrest ten days after I came to America. The police arrested me for bank robbery. The police saw me at the bus stop, picked me up and said I fit the description of the robber. The story ended well because I told them I had just come to this country. The officer drove me to my apartment, and I gave him my passport. He realized I had just come to America and unless I was a genius, I would not have been able to pull off robbery.”

In a sense, one can assert that Ndibe has contributed to migrant fiction in a distinct way. He not only fictionalizes it, he deploys his artistic insight to engage the trope of migration in his memoir. The texts are two sides of the same coin – relaying the experience of migrants and denouncing the unceasing clamour for migration prevalent in postcolonial African states. On another level, Ndibe can also be said to evoke Diaspora consciousness which is an element found across the corpus of third generation Nigerian writing. The majority of third generation writers belong to the Diaspora, but they constantly write back to the homeland. They show the “brain train” phenomenon in their engagements; bringing their experiences in the West to bear in their thematic explorations. Clearly, Ndibe’s Diaspora’s fiction is a refraction of his own experiences. He states this fact clearly in relation to Foreign Gods, Inc.: “There are always pieces of myself when I write. I don’t know if that’s true of every writer, but it’s true of me. Whenever I write there are aspects of my experience, conscious or unconscious, that permeates the narrative. Once my book came out, at readings somebody would get up and propose that perhaps I was Ike.” (n. pag)

Even when both texts homogenize under a theme; one is borne out of experience and the other, from imaginative fiction. This implies that, Ndibe’s fiction is a blend of literary aesthetics and factual accounts skillfully rendered to optimize objectivity of his story. With the lucid style of writing, both are easy reads especially as Ndibe’s wit flavours his writings. It is noteworthy that Ndibe combines the political tradition of activism in Wole Soyinka’s works while also embracing Chinua Achebe’s lucidity and literary tact. The two writers are important to his evolution and he regularly acknowledges this.

Ndibe is also an activist and social critic preoccupied with social and political challenges in Nigeria. His activities as a journalist and public intellectual have earned him arrests and intimidation from the agents of the Nigerian state. At a time during the reign of late President Yar’adua of Nigeria, he was tagged an “enemy of the state”. His offence, according to Ndibe himself, was that: “I call out the corrupt in my column, and expose the scam that passes itself off as governance in Nigeria—and occasionally elsewhere. I can’t see much of a future for a country that makes a point of shielding, even glorifying, scoundrels, but hounding innocents.” (op. cit,18)

His literary activism, expounded through his writings, further complements his roles as a social activist and public intellectual. One can only asset that he is a quintessential African writer with huge barn of humour. One can therefore infer that Ndibe is a totally committed African writer as described by Ayo Kehinde: “Despite all odds against their lives and arts, Nigerian writers continue to disentangle their dilemmas but as writers and public intellectuals. They refused to be caged, and they constantly intervene in the public sphere of their nation.” ( Kehinde, 2010, 98)

Given this commitment, it is to be hoped that Ndibe still has a lot to offer. While he has firmly established his presence as a writer of note, Okey Ndibe is still poised to showcase his creativity in greater variety and depth. One would not expect less from a writer who not only honed his skills under the master storyteller, Chinua Achebe, but also is an engaged public scholar who regular intervenes in the affairs of his homeland, Nigeria. Only time will see Wole Soyinka’s reference to him as, “a fresh talent at work here” come to optimum realisation. All said, Ndibe and his generation, in their socio-political vision and artistic instinctiveness, have faithfully taken up the baton and crusade “to confront the social realities considered responsible for the failure of the country to live up to its widely-acknowledged potential” (Akingbe, 158). As Okey Ndibe continues to thrill with the creative pen, his avowed commitment as public intellectual is certainly not about to wane.

• Dr. Oluwole Coker, Senior Lecturer, teaches African fiction and oral Literature at the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife.

SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN

The Mona Lisa Charm Of Chikadibia Benedict Enwonwu

BY CHJINELO EZE

Every art masterpiece has as allure and charm that revolves around it adding to the value and mystery of the work. When such works are showcased, a cluster of wonder is centred on who the sitter may have been, the relationship between artist and sitter, the working disposition of the artist and more. These and more have guided and led the famous works of Leonardo Da Vinci especially his most prevalent work Mona Lisa. The Mona Lisasmile is a smile that gives credence to the historic renaissance painting of Leonardo Da Vinci believed to have been painted 1503-1519 and probably was not finished due to the death ofthe creator Leonardo Da Vinci. The Mona Lisa painting has lasted a century, as well as it has lasted a lifetime.

The western world has been known to be the hallmark of art, a world exquisitely decorated with beautiful artworks of various artists and let us not exclude that these beauties are laced with what was shipped away from various African countries through the devastating history of Africa, as they add it to their endless collection of art and beautification.

In the African domain of Nigeria, Benedict Chikadibia Enwonwu was a famous Nigerian painter and sculptor, the first professor of arts in Nigeria at the University of Ife (now Obafemi Awolowo University) and fondly called the father of modern art.

His works as it is for unimaginable reasons have recently been making a comeback in the 21century after being lost for over 60 years. His famous work for details of grandeur called the “African Mona Lisa” is the picture of an Ile Ife princess Adeutu warmly called Tutu. Being of noble birth just as Mona Lisa by Da Vinci was and having her as a sitter took tedious patience of 6 months of study and persuasion by her creator Ben Enwonwu, before her family approved. The hesitation leans on the just-ended civil war (Biafra), having an Igbo and Yoruba relationship at such contentious time was like an attempt to commit suicide. The intricacies of Tutu is similar to Mona Lisa with the lost and found curse of great pieces as Tutu was found in a conventional home in London.

Tutu also branded as African Mona Lisa is an embodiment of love, hope and reconciliation at a muddled time of Nigerian history. She may not have suffered series of wars like her counterpart Mona Lisa, but she was affirmatively the beauty born out of war, a symbol that projects the rebirth of a nation. She holds a cultural significance of the Biafra war and the unity sort, in the aftermath of the war therein having an Igbo sculptor and painter work on the Yoruba princess Adetutu.

Mona Lisa definitely does not share this unification trait as Tutu, but she has conquered the hearts of powerful men like Francis 1 of France and the infamous Napoleon Bonaparte hanging on his bedroom wall for years, whilst surviving abduction, war and amputation. Tutu also made a headway for herself as she first conquered her master who could not let her go and therefore drew two more in order to hold on to the first and original which he considered a masterpiece though still missing after a robbery attack in his home.

As fate may have it the second painting emerged as earlier stated in faraway London. She was put up for sale February 28,2018, in London’s Bonhams auction house and was streamed live in Lagos, carting off with the sum of 1.2million pounds. While another of his portrait, Christine Davis recently bagging the second-highest sale of Enwonwu’s works at 1.1million pounds. Both work beating the expected estimation.

Thanks to the recent rising popularity of African contemporary arts, her worth was realized. These sales have made history to probably be the highest selling Nigerian artwork to have sold over a million in dollars and pounds.

In comparing both images of Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa and Ben Enwonwu’s Tutu, one thing is unmistakable, and that is the natural or quirky beauty of both sitters, compared to this time of 3D and HD makeup artistry. While both portraits have a perplexing demeanour, they also exhume an aura of grace with Tutu’s perfect blackness and voluptuous lips and cool look away gaze, as Ben Enwonwus’ works are known to celebrate the African melanin skin being a keen supporter of the negritude movement at the time.

Suffering attacks in 1956,Mona Lisa was therefore replaced with a bulletproof casing; it was further attacked in the years 1974 and 2009. Portraying like Enwonwu’s Tutu, not just of a woman but of history and its times of slavery and war thus revealing the disparity in times and centuries. Tutu so far unlike her western counterpart has had no harm meted out on her as she makes her grand awakening breaking barriers as with other works of Enwonwu.

A year and months after the African Mona Lisa made her debut, so did Christine with an amazing sale. It is believed there is a 50/50 chance of Tutubeing alive or dead coming from a home of over a hundred siblings and relations. She again might have been a sister of Christine in another life because the resemblance is uncanny.Like every great work of art, there is always a history of mystery and fascination befitting it which Tutu and Mona Lisa represent. Like fine wine, the older it gets the better it gets.

SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN

Nwodo: Restructuring Will End Clamour For Rotational Presidency

Nnia Nwodo, President General, Ohanaeze Nd'Igbo.

BY LAWRENCE NJOKU

President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo, told our Southeast Bureau Chief, LAWRENCE NJOKU why the country needs restructuring over other agitations in the land.

Why have you maintained the call for restructuring against the agitation for Igbo presidency in 2023?

It is undoubtedly Igbo’s turn to produce the president in 2023, under the current Constitution. Anybody who denies this fact is deliberately throwing the country into chaos. It is incontestable and if there must be justice and fairness in the system, it must be the Igbo’s turn, and I implore all political parties to take cognizance of this fact.

I have been misunderstood on the issue of restructuring, as I have continuously said the only way to stop this sectional politics and deliberate leadership marginalization is to restructure the country. And I refer to the pre-independence period, when we had a Constitution that was agreed to by our forefathers, which I am praying we return to, as it achieved better result for our economy.

The Premier of Northern Nigeria rejected to be Prime Minister of the federation because the region was more powerful than the Federal Government. In a restructured Nigeria, the craze to become President or Prime Minister and to operate the zoning system will fizzle out, because the restructured independent components will have sovereignty of their natural resources and the country’s economic growth will be determined by the regions, and not the Federal Government. The Federal Government’s responsibility should be limited to defense, external relations, as well as customs and excise.

The presidency is attractive to people because of the country’s vast resources, which is being centrally held. The President has so much power and anybody who wants to use it to feather his nest will do so, as long as he has legislative majority. This has been the pattern since the 1999 Constitution took off. All I am saying is that, once the 1999 Constitution is overthrown and there is an agreement among Nigerians to restructure, the clamour over where the President comes from will no longer be an issue.

It does not vitiate the point that, as long as the current Constitution is used, the rotational tradition cannot be stopped. When we had regional governments, we were doing much better and our institutions were working.

Where did we get it wrong as a nation?

You know that the army’s incursion into governance destroyed the country’s evolution of democratic terms. Then, we detested the lack of absolute transparency in the electoral system, which led to thuggery and sometimes rigging. But what is happening these days is much worse than what we had then. The thuggery and rigging have developed to a sophisticated scale, far in excess of what obtained when we had regional governments.

In fact, the reason a state of emergency was declared was because the coalition of NCNC and Action Group won the election, but it was declared in favour of Akintola’s party. And to show Akintola that he did not win, the coalition decided to ensure there was no governance in the country. They filed lawsuits, and maimed Akintola’s followers. They burnt people alive. It was clear that the majority of the people on the streets were those who won the election, and the Federal Government that supported Akintola decided to appoint Majekodunmi as the administrator of Western region.

The unfortunate thing is that people of this generation have not been given opportunity to read history of what happened in the past and so, when we say these things, it looks like we are just talking, that it is not grounded in history. But the truth is that those of us that witnessed it feel so demoralised, because life was much better then.

Presently, the demand for oil is going down. The direction education is going globally will do away with old methods of producing oil. Those countries developing these technologies have left us behind. Even our teachers have no capacity to teach the children new modules because they have not been trained for it.

You blame military incursion for the country’s woes, but you served as minister in Abdulsalami Abubakar’s administration…

The Abdulsalami Abubakar regime was a transition government. We assumed office in August and handed over in May. We were basically in government for eight to nine months, and the sole agenda was to return the country to civil rule. As the Minister of Information, it was my responsibility to mobilize all transition agents to ensure that the people were aware of the electoral rules and procedure for election, voter’s rights and rules governing the process.

So, since we were focused on having a new government, there was no need introducing fresh policies we could not complete. Because of its short stay in power, every Minister that served in Abdulsalami’s administration must not be held responsible for the country’s under-development. What I did in the Ministry of Information has not been erased.

As Minister of Information, I changed all the television studios of NTA and FRCN. I gave instant broadcasting capacity to NTA and FRCN, using brand new motorized studios. I insisted that the manufacturers supplied us directly, which they did at a discount. The engineers from the two corporations watched the assemblage of the facilities, which is why they are still working. I also bought new vehicles and new cameras.

You are one of the Igbo leaders marked for attack by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), though you supported the group for some time. At what point did you disagree with them?

I think IPOB is misguided, and what I feel is that sometimes when their revenue is low, they look for cheap publicity, just to create the impression that there is disunity in Igboland. Nobody has defended IPOB in Igboland more than me, and I am wondering whether some us deserve what we are getting from the organisation.

Only a few days ago, an Ambassador sent me a film of the invasion of the Nigerian Embassy in Conakry, and I am yet to understand why it happened. The people that invaded the Embassy are clearly Igbos and some of them had the Biafran flags and were chanting, “Iwe n’ewe anyi,” meaning ‘we are angry.’ They made it obvious they were Igbos.

They tore the Nigerian flags, as they went with Biafra flags. They broke air conditioners and windows. For crying out loud, why would you fall into the trap of the Nigerian government declaring you as terrorists? Is that how people undertake lawful demonstrations? I found it funny.

If there is a war today, will the people doing these things be able to fight? I was a Biafran solider at an impressionable age of 17. These boys cannot be more Biafran than I am. I worked under Col. Onwuatuegwu of blessed memory. It is easy to sit in an arm-chair in their comfort zone, with funds donated to them by Nigerians all over the place and make pontifical pronouncements. It is rather unfortunate.

These people have masterminded all kinds of things. My house in the village was burnt. I get telephone threats everyday. I used to absolve them in the past, but now, I am going to prosecute all those that have been fingered in some of these things, because this is not in our character.

Tell me why Ekweremadu, in whose home the strategy for Nnamdi Kanu’s release was conceived, should be dealt with the way they did?

The former governor of Abia State, Theodore Orji was the one it fell upon to get Nnamdi out on bail, but he was also on bail from a trump-up charge by EFCC, and you cannot take somebody on bail when you are also on bail. So, Ekweremadu suggested to Abaribe to bail him, and the latter agreed. All of them supported Abaribe. The former Minister of Aviation, Chidoka, volunteered his land as part of surety. Neither Abaribe nor any of those that ensured Kanu’s release has been contacted by IPOB since their leader jumped bail. And we have been pleading with the Federal Government to forgo the charge, but what do we get in return?

There is no Igbo man that has attacked the Buhari government more than I have. I am not trained to be insolent. I only attack Buhari’s policies and not his person. They call Nigeria a zoo; they call people all kinds of names. But that is not the issue. Our point is that we are being marginalised in our country. We are being treated like second-class citizens. The system we are operating is repressive, and it looks like there is an arrangement to hold the Igbo down after the civil war, because all our savings were reduced to 20 pounds.

We were only given five states, while others have a minimum of six. We were given 95 local governments, while others have over 100. When we were given quit notice in the North, I took a census. I found out that there were over 11.6 million Igbos in northern Nigeria. In the last election, there were over 3.6 million registered voters in Lagos State alone. We also found out that there were one million Igbos living in Ghana. There is more Igbos living outside Igboland and clearly, our population is sizeable.

Now, Fulanis are invading Nigeria, crossing our borders, and registering as Nigerians in our national identity card scheme and overthrowing our immigration and international laws. This is bunkum and I say it every day. Do they want me to take up arms and fight the Federal Government? No generation survives a war twice.

What is your take on insinuations that Enugu International airport was deliberately closed to keep Southeast’s economy down?

The current government has shown that it has bias against the Southeast and is concentrating every development in the North. We have things in the Southeast that could be used to boost our economy, if the Federal Government is interested. Government knew that the airport was going down, that the runway was not good, but refused to maintain it until it became hazardous. You now closed it for safety reasons and said you would repair it before the end of December and suddenly you realised you had no money to do it.

But you know that movement of goods and services in the region where the airport is situated, is one of the things that can catalyse the region’s economy. Interestingly, in less than six months, we built an international airport at Kaduna, used by no airline.

How independent is the judiciary and INEC under this government?

This is the only country where politicians who belong to different political parties appoint electoral body exclusively. The President was elected on a party platform. The National Assembly members are elected on a party platform, and in this instance, both the President and majority of the National Assembly members come from one party. So, the members of the electoral commission are chosen by one party and given to the National Assembly, which rubber stamps it.

This is the only country in the world where after an election, you spend over 180 days in court disputing who won the election.

Tell me any other country in the world where election petitions have lasted for six months after an election; where people who have spent six months in office were removed by the court because they were not properly elected. The same applies to the judiciary.

The governors appoint judges in the state, while the President appoints the judges at the federal courts, the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court. This is not right. In the previous regional arrangement, the bar association nominated these people. And our revenue system does not allow consolidated fund for the judiciary. So, if a member of the judiciary wants to buy a car, he/she goes to the governor, they want an office, they go to a governor. If they want police, they go to the Inspector General of Police.

In other places, the court has its own police, so that when there is to be enforcement of judgment, the court police go to undertake it. They take orders from the Chief Judge. The judiciary has minimal contact with the executive and legislature, but that is not the case here and nobody wants to address it.

SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN

2023: Igbo Town unions Meet With Ohanaeze

Chief Nnia Nwodo, President-General, Ohanaeze Nd'Igbo. Image: Wikipedia

BY RAPHAEL EDE

The Association of South- East Town Unions held a closed-door meeting with the President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo, in Enugu on Saturday, to strategise and plan for the Igbo to produce President Muhammadu Buhari’s successor in 2023.

The meeting, which lasted for over three hours, was preceded by a meeting of the National Executive Committee of ASETU.

The National President of ASETU, Chief Emeka Diwe, who spoke to Sunday PUNCH on the outcome of the meeting with the leader of the Igbo apex sociocultural organisation in his Enugu residence, said they discussed other issues affecting the Igbo’s interest and welfare.

Diwe said, “Part of the reason for the meeting was to douse the tension in the land; there is too much tension and suspicion.

“Ndigbo will remain in Nigeria and get what is due to them in Nigeria.”

On Igbo presidency, he said, “We are still consulting, the coast is not clear yet, but we want to see how to first address the rising tension and suspicion in the country and we feel it’s necessary to send the signal that Ndigbo will remain in Nigeria to get their due.

“The meeting we had with the President-General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo is an outcome of the brainstorming we had before we moved to the residence of Chief Nwodo for a closed-door meeting with him.

“There are a lot of eye opening revelations obtained from our consultation with Chief Nwodo, and that will lead us to further seek more interrogations and consultations from other Igbo quarters and hierarchies.”

The ASETU chief said the union had become a formidable platform to articulate the interest and welfare of Ndigbo and galvanise them towards a particular direction which should be viewed as the metamorphosis of the defunct Igbo Union.

“The Association of Igbo Town Unions is a continuation of Igbo Union; it is not a recent development. Ohanaeze is the apex Igbo sociocultural organisation with elitist colouration,” Diwe said.

The group a fortnight ago ended a retreat in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State capital, where, among other things, they agreed to set up a joint community-based Vigilante Outfits and Security Trust Fund to check the rising cases of insecurity and invasion of Igboland.

SOURCE: PUNCH.

Sun News Interview With Elder Umah Eleazu

Uma Eleazu

BY DANIEL KALU

AT 89, elder statesman and former presidential candidate, Elder (Dr) Umah Eleazu has seen it all, not as a spectator, but as an altruist player who wanted to be part of a genuine change to usher in a better Nigeria. With the benefit of insight, foresight, and hindsight he traced for Sunday Sun where the country is coming from, the conflicting vision among its founding fathers, the challenges ahead, as well as what the younger generation needs to do to secure a country of their dream.

EXCERPT:
At 89, looking at your antecedents, you are an accomplished statesman by every standard. Take us to the memory lane of independence and where we missed this genuine development the foundational leaders of this nation established?
Well, how we got independence is already at the public domain and quite explanatory, but I think we missed it when the military took over, all the coups, that was when we started to derail. You know there comes a time when a group of people with vision and integrity and courage will say no, it’s time to stop. Some people came out in 1966 with the problem that was in the country from 1964 to 1965 and they said look, this is not the vision of our leaders, our leaders: Awolowo, Azikiwe, Ahmadu Bello, etc; the vision was different and that first coup was to set things right, but they bungled it and from then that is really when we started going down the lane. So, the quantum change they wanted did not happen and gradually power fell into the hands of those who didn’t know what the visionaries wanted to do and we have been downhill since then. And from that 1966 till date, about 53 years or so, it has been a continuous slide which is gradually taking us to where we are today, moving towards a precipice. Successive leaders of the Nigerian state over the years have failed its citizens as the government has not been according to the grand norm (constitution) that connects the government to the people.

You said power fell in the hands of those who did not understand the vision of our leaders. Did they have the same vision as some political experts have argued that what we had at independence were liberation fathers, not foundational fathers because they had different views about the country at the time of independence? Do you share this view?

I think that is one way of putting it, but I would say that the people we call the founding fathers their minds were not the same, they were not on the same page, I mean they did not agree, they were not in agreement, not on the same accord on their perception of what Nigeria should be, given their different statements or speeches. What Azikiwe and Awolowo believed to be unity, Ahmadu Bello did not believe the same to be unity. They were using the same word, but with different interpretations. If I may remind you when Ahmadu Bello was asked on his thought about Nigerian unity he said: “It is good that the British has handed power back to us”. This was around the 10th of October, 1960 that what they are going to do now is that they will continue the Jihad which the British stopped. This was 10 days after independence. When Azikiwe and Awolowo were talking about Nigerian unity, they said we can maintain our diversities, but will be united as one country. That wasn’t what the people in the North represented by Ahmadu Bello wanted. The then Sultan of Sokoto in 1952 in reply to a letter from West African students union in London, asking that he should make sure that we have unity in Nigeria replied to them and said that: ‘there will be no unity unless all of you are prepared to become Muslims.’ I am talking about 1952 before independence, so the leaders of what became independent Nigeria did not have the same mind about building Nigeria. They liberated Nigeria from colonial rule, but they were not able to find a country that is why I think my good friend, the late Chinua Achebe said: “There was a country”. There is a lot that the people should know unfortunately they have banned History in the school and people are not producing good history books. I am writing the history of Nigeria from my perspective because I saw Nigeria from colonial times to independence to the decay we have now, next year I will be 90 years, by God’s grace I will be able to finish the book. I intend to situate everything in that book, so don’t let me pour out everything here.

So, how can we get things right looking at what is on the ground now or is it impossible?
No, another generation has to come up and say enough is enough with the older generation, let us take over from you. The old ones, I mean, those that are still around can tell you where we were going, it’s for the young men, the young ones to decide whether they are still going in that direction or they are not in a position to take Nigeria to a different direction of their dream and vision.

Given the clamour for restructuring of the country, do you think it can be part of the solutions that may stabilize the country?
What do we mean by restructuring? The Northerners don’t believe in what the people of the Middle Belt, the Southeast, Southwest, and the South-south are saying about restructuring. Do you know that President Buhari is gradually restructuring the demography of Nigeria?

How?

By changing the demographic base of all the regions, infusing people from outside Nigeria to go and live in that place. That is what the RUGA is about, that is demographic restructuring, I can see that is what he wants to do and is doing. So, when you now come to Ebonyi State or Enugu State or Ekiti State etc and you say who are the indigenes? They will come out and they will say: we have been living here; that is the problem in Bauchi, that is the problem in Taraba, part of Adamawa, that is the problem in Benue State, name them. So, the problem they have already put in those Middle Belt states they want to bring it to the East and the West and that is going to create more problems for the younger people. But this is the time to now do the constitutional restructuring, which means that we have to take back the legislative list in the constitution and restructure the devolution of powers. Some of the things the Federal Government is doing now actually, it has no power to do. For instance, in the area of agriculture, Agriculture is a regional or state matter, so there is no point why agriculture should be there. Maybe their involvement in agriculture will be on the level of controlling pests. It’s a pity I don’t have time now for an elaborate interview I would have liked to open the constitution and count for you those powers that have been usurped by the federal, including the power over finance. What they call financial federalism, when the South-south is still saying that we should have resource control, the resources in a particular region or state belongs to the people who live there. They should exploit their minerals, add value to it, and pay tax or royalty, which is shared between the federal and the states. The issue of security. What are they saying about security now? Internal security is a matter for police and the police should be even at the state level and the local level. If you go to the United States of America (USA) there is county police, there is state police, community police, there is even the university police. The Army is for territorial control, to control the territorial integrity of the country. Their role is to make sure that no foreign powers enter the country, so instead of being at the border to check the security of Nigerians as a whole, they are now being sent to go and dance python dance, tiger dance or crocodile dance or whatever they call it. The Army has no role inside the country except when law and order break down as it is in Borno State and you then declare emergency powers and then the president will use his emergency powers to send the military to a particular place otherwise you don’t just send soldiers to any state, it is unconstitutional. It is unconstitutional for the president to get up and tell the Central Bank to give money to certain people, it’s unconstitutional, it’s part of the financial federalism, our Central Bank is independent of the president and even the legislature. CBN makes the monetary policy to make sure we have a stable currency. They are confusing fiscal policy with monetary policy. It is sad that in this country they don’t follow rules, they don’t follow the constitution, people are just doing what they like.

Do you think that with the rotation of the presidency the system can stabilize?

The rotation has no place in our constitution. Rotation of posts and offices creates a situation where you cannot get the best to rule because by the time you rotate and zone and do all that is involved in it you end up selecting a mediocrity. Somebody may be the best person you need for the position, let us say the position of the president, but it is not his zone that will produce the president, but the other zone. And when you go to the other zone they may not have somebody of his stature, standard, quality, with the exposure, experience, intelligence, courage, etc needed for the job at the point in question. Zoning is a way of enthroning mediocrity.

The Igbo are saying the 2023 presidency must go to their region, Southeast, do you think they are prepared?

For me that is nonsense. President of which country?

President of Nigeria sir?
Will this country still be what it is in 2023? Let them try. You heard what somebody said about the circulating elite? Those in the APC and those in the PDP, they are the same, they have the same attitude towards power. If they give an Igbo man the president, to begin with you have to be in a party that will nominate the Igbo man. It is the political parties that will decide to say: who will run? It is then the party that will position the Igbo candidate, and you have to come out from a party that has the strength to win. But there is more to that. People are saying they are dancing to Buhari so that he will give them president. That is rubbish.

Are you saying that it will be impossible for an Igbo candidate to emerge?

Nothing is impossible in this country where the president can wake up and do what he likes to do. In other words, they can pick a person of their choice, the Igbo man they will pick may not be the kind of Igbo man that the people want to be there for them. They will pick a stooge. They will just go and take one of their slaves and say: you go and sit on that seat, can you speak Igbo, yes, so they tell you to sit there, but whose interest? Even Buhari that they put there is it Buhari who is running the country? Don’t you know the unelected president of Nigeria in Aso Rock? We all know this, so to say they will rotate it to Ndigbo to become president for me, it is rubbish. If we don’t restructure this country nothing is going to work well. Remember my definition of restructuring is re-devolution of powers from the centre back to the states. Secondly, geographical restructuring: you re-combine the states (the old regions) into one state. This is because the cost of running 36 states plus Abuja is huge and outrageous. Let’s take the Eastern Region, the region now has nine states, remember Akwa Ibom, Cross River, Rivers, Bayelsa were all from the old Eastern Region and the five states, making it nine. You are talking of nine governors; give each of the governors 12 commissioners, that is 96 commissioners. And you know what goes with the positions: jeep cars and other retinues, you know them. Before independence, the entire Eastern Region was governed by just one governor, three vices about 72 district officers and ADOs and things were running. So, geographically, and legislative list, that is the restructuring, not the one that Buhari is doing with his RUGA project.

SOURCE: SUN NEWS ONLINE

Onitsha And Aba: The Beauty Of Leadership Failure

Motorists and pedestrians' gridlock in Onitsha. Image: Ikechukwu Amaechi/News Express, July 2018

BY ACHILLEUS-CHUD UCHEGBU

I was at a mass at Awada Layout in Onitsha recently. As we drove through to locate the church, I wondered if it was the same Awada that dominated talks when it was developed in the 1980s (Hope I got the date right?). The sprawling estate has high-rise buildings on all streets. But there was neither paved road nor pipe-borne water. Where there were paved roads, they have given way to bumpy earth roads that would make you think your driver just dropped his learner’s badge. Almost every street was dominated by shops – a feature of almost every street in Onitsha. I left Awada that fateful Sunday wondering if Onitsha, generally, was also as chaotic and dirty. I thought to myself, that the city was not planned.

But when I took a tour of Onitsha off Google Earth and Google Maps, I was left speechless. It had always been a carefully planned city. I do not know who planned Onitsha, which has a population estimate of 7.4 million (2016 estimate: Wikipedia). But whoever he/she was, the city ought to host a memorial to his/her honour. Onitsha was a very well-planned city, with green areas and public utilities. The streets were carefully laid out. The markets were properly designated, making movement in and around the city free and easy. But that was on the map. In today’s reality, Onitsha is a dirty, unplanned and chaotic city with markets at every street corner.

The Onitsha that was host to Nigeria’s biggest brands and Igboland’s biggest businessmen and women is no more. When it was, it worked for all, becoming the Igboman’s first port of call, long before Maroko became Lekki and a desert became Dubai. I don’t know if it will ever be recovered because to correct the indiscipline that has turned Onitsha into a dungeon will be herculean. It will need the thoughtful mindlessness of a leader who will move in the bulldozers, remove illegal structures and petrol stations built in residential areas, clear the refuse heaps, restore the streets, open the drainage, roads, public utilities and rebuild public infrastructure. Like many other cities in today’s Nigeria, Onitsha begs for the touch of a visionary who will make it habitable for humans.

When Onitsha worked, it was considered an industrial hub. The industrialisation of the South East, I suspect, was meant to derive from the city. I guess that was also why the industrial estate in Owerri was built off the Owerri-Onitsha expressway. The development of Onitsha prompted the industrialisation of Nnewi as well. And as primary school pupils, we read in social studies that Onitsha was the largest market in West Africa.

When I first got to Lagos, I recall encountering a lot of Customs clearing agents through my twin. Most of the containers they cleared from the ports at Apapa and Tin Can, ended up at Onitsha Main Market. A lot of Igbo guys grew to become big freight forwarders from accounts that came from Onitsha alone. That also gave rise to establishment of haulage companies by Igbo entrepreneurs. In all these, jobs were created and lots of Igbo youths were employed. Today, that glory is gone. Alaba International, ASPAMDA, Balogun, Ladipo all in Lagos, dominated by traders who ditched Onitsha, now hold the ace. There are a lot of factors that made their relocation to Lagos possible. But that should be a discourse for another day.

For now, the chaotic state of Onitsha makes life in the city nasty. A beautiful story ended abruptly. This was exemplified by the recent fire incident that razed part of Ochanja Market. Despite the narrative of lack of functional fire service stations in Onitsha, the issue of inability of available fire trucks to access the market or locate fire hydrants, are testimonies to the chaos that Onitsha now is. They are also testimonials that call for a total makeover and transformation of the city because it is now about crime, filth, indiscipline and total absence of governance.

Markets spring up at every space. Traffic lights are decorative ornaments. The streets are as dirty as they can be. Waste management is almost non-existent. But the market merchants don’t care because they feed from the rot. They impose and collect all manner of levies from every shop and remit to the state government as agreed. Despite contributing a huge chunk of the IGR of Anambra State, Onitsha lacks the governance that it needs to remain a prime city and gateway to the orient.

What you see in Onitsha is exactly what you see in Aba, Abia State. And like Onitsha, almost every business in Nigeria also had an Aba address.

The last time I visited Aba, I had to abort my trip at Osisioma Junction and return to Owerri. I was to visit Ariaria Market and it rained. The reality at Osisioma Junction made me wonder what the city itself was like. Osisioma Junction was the gateway. And it has not gotten any better. The pictures that fly out of Aba every day make one want to ask why exactly the Ngwa people campaigned, and insisted, on an Ngwa son becoming governor. Before Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu became governor, almost every Ngwa argued that Aba was an eyesore because an Ngwa had not become governor. They got one in 2015.

Today, I am told that even driving around Aba with an Abia State government-registered car could earn you stones from some residents. Aba is another sad story of failed political leadership and vision. Like Onitsha, it presents a study in how leadership failure eroded the vision of having industrial hubs in Aba and Onitsha. Those cities have become two industrial hubs of Igboland, whose potentialities were stillbirth by failed leadership. They are cities that now need focused and visionary leadership, one that would embark on demolition, reconstruction and rebuilding to return them as industrial prides. It won’t take much to do. First, it would take only focus. Second, it would take political will and stubborn fixation on correcting mistakes and restoring the master plan.

Both cities need the sort of leadership that would dislodge merchants that feed on the rot, reclaim city roads and make them passable for regular vehicular traffic and take traders off the streets and back into market stalls. But first, the markets have to be provided and also made accessible by road. Leadership must enforce building discipline and provide green spaces and parks for recreation, green areas add value to the life of a city and those of residents. The leadership must also make the people to understand and, appreciate, that not every open space must be built up. If you have to demolish illegal structures to reclaim the cities, do it. I grew up learning that petrol stations are not to be built in residential areas. Today, both petrol stations and gas plants are built at every corner and you wonder when the regulation changed.

SOURCE: SUN NEWS ONLINE