KWENU! Our culture, our future

Destination Toronto

M. O. Ené
egbedaa@aol.com
New Jersey, USA

Wednesday, August 28, 2002

If you want to know how stress-full the Great New York metropolis is, do yourself a big favor: GET OUT! There is something strange about the feeling you get once you leave the air out here. Every Summer, I go on a two-day retreat to Pennsylvanian woods, but it is so close to New York area one still gets the vibes.

There must be less stress-full but “civilized” places one can visit to escape drudgery and depression, direct consequences of the hustle and bustle of urban life. The suburban areas are already contaminated. It must be something everyone is doing. Ah ha, I know: the cell phones!

But where is the whole wild world is phone-free? Not even Osama and his Taliban troops are free of phones; of course, camels don’t travel too far these days, and he definitely cannot afford screaming across mountain tops.

Did I say “Get out”? Well, that was what we, a group of friends, decided to do: Get out of the country. Destination: Toronto.

Talk of Toronto and any politically literate Nigerian would tell you it is currently synonymous with “fake,” not even imitation. You know why? Here is the gist: 29-year-old Nigerian, Alhaji Salisu Ibrahim Buhari, won a seat from his native Kano. As if being under-aged by 12 months in not enough, the young man went on to pad his résumé. Get this: you only need a high school diploma, which has.

But ambition can be a disease. Alhaji Buhari ran for the position of Speaker of the House of Reps and won. Now, why would he attract attention to himself by padding his credentials? Only God knows. But Buhari did just that, and he chose the University of Toronto, Canada of all places. With the help of the Internet, the media checked him out, and the cookies crumpled. He had forged his certificates.

It all ended well for democracy. Buhari resigned and profusely apologized like a baby. He was charged to court, prosecuted, and convicted.

At the same time, Lagos State Governor Bola Ahmed Tinubu was reported to have allegedly “forged” a certificate from the University of Chicago. Actually he has a degree from Chicago State, not University of Chicago. It was a misrepresentation nonetheless. But Tinubu is not under-aged; he had been a senator and he had anti-Abacha credentials. The media went soft on him, and he survived. He was charged to no court, and he did not resign.

Last July, precisely early on Friday, July 26, 2002, a group of guys set out to see these two cities: five guys on a BMW X5 that did everything but make coffee! Call it “international hanging out” if you like. We have Obi Taiwan, the CyberLord Himself, on the wheels; Don, an NJ-based attorney, has the front for his long legs; Peter, a business magnate, has the clear view of the back; Victor, a real estate appraiser, and me MOE, the writer covered the flanks!

Did I tell you the X5 did everything but make coffee? Well, almost. The destination and maximum speed were plugged in, all systems checked, and we were on the way; the GPS telling which exits to take and when to slow or cruise.

Some roads can be a stretch, you know. Syracuse to Buffalo was a drag. But the ride was as smooth as on a float. Eight hours on, we drove across the border, spending as much time as you would spend crossing GWB on a Sunday afternoon.

Canada stretched out.

First call was Niagara Falls. One wonders what the first people that saw it thought: the end of the world? It is awesome. You should see it. The trip to Toronto was a blast. The Queen Elizabeth Way takes you there like a concrete snake along the banks of Lake Ontario.

The travelogue is a book of its own, so I will spare you the details. Of note is that Il Papa Giovanni Paolo II, that’s Pope John Paul II, was in town. So we have spiritually covered. About those two priest caught propositioning to young boys, I didn’t hear nor see! We stayed at Toronto Sheraton.

You cannot go to Toronto without going to the CN Towers. Dinner at 1800 feet and at 72 rotation/minute show of the city was fun. We walked though the University of Toronto. Alhaji Buhari could not have been there, or he wouldn’t be telling those silly lies!

One thing I will never forget is the tidiness of Toronto. I have traveled widely on three continents; I am yet to see a cleaner city. And the people are great. A Sunday Barbecue at the marvelous Mapps family in the suburb Brampton reminds me of the home.

A planned swing through the Windy City did not pan out. The tax out there in Canada is outrageous, a whopping 15%! But you could see the tax at work. See we headed back for an all-night cruse back to base.

So, if you ever get tired of weekly beer parties, plan a trip up north. It will be worth every minute. I had fun, and we heard ourselves talk. It was all good!

While in Canada, someone called (oh, yes, the cell phones follow you across the border, no matter how crappy your service). News: Alhaji and Alhaja Ajibola were hosting birthday bash for Obi Taiwan. I thought it was the usual come-buy-booze-and-hang-out. It wasn’t. The man pulled the stops and threw a bash of the year.

Forget the Grand Mariner of 150 years and Remy XO and the specially prepared meat and the pleasant crowd; of interest here is the band called “Labure.” Wherever those guys are based, someone should move them to this area. The band is such a pleasure you want to stay all night listening to them. If you doubt it, check out with Odudua and see them next time they play.

Two points to note: First, the much improved security at Odudua should endear it to many more people as soon as the parking place is completed; any gate fee charged is surely welcome. Secondly, the flexibility of the management in going out of its way to stage live band shows with a personal touch surely endears; I won’t be surprised if many more parties happen on slower Sunday evenings.

Owambe? You’ve got it!

It’s that time of the year again. Labor Day weekend is now the marked weekend for major ethnic conventions. Before then, Enugu folks gather in Dallas, Texas for their annual jamboree. With an election slated for Sunday, August 25, the association should be gearing toward a new phase. It appears the association has survived initial obstacles, so it is time I moved on.

With the success of Enugu, Anambra State has formed a nationwide association. The Edo of Nigeria’s midwest are gathering in San Francisco. Their setup appears to be surviving. And I still like it. World Igbo Congress meets in Houston, Texas. No elections are slated, but New Jersey is set to feature prominently. Again.

New Jersey’s Igbo-USA wants to host the Convention next year. And they should get it easily. Come on, this is the NY metro. The votes could be secured by deploying the right lobbyists and playing the right cards. First, Igbo-USA, one of the two NJ affiliates should keep its house in order. Secondly, it must secure the two votes and confidence of Igbo Bu Igbo, the other NJ affiliate. Thirdly, it must get New York to play ball. Then, it also needs the strings of Chief Austin Egwuonwu, the immediate past Chairman of WICongress, who is still very much a player. Anything else is courting hurdles before the context. NOTE: No one sharpens arrows in the battlefield, and you cannot fight on many fronts and expect to win.

All politics is local, they say. There is a growing tendency in New Jersey to marginalize the people of Enugu State. I don’t believe that this is all deliberate. It is a bad mixture of sociopolitical illiteracy and blatant insensitivity. Waawa people of Enugu are to be blamed also for always turning the other cheek and for inability to rally round an umbrella in New Jersey.

There are many instances of disregard of Enugu State, which houses the political capital of Igboland. There is not one Enugu rep in Igbo-USA delegation to WICongress. Last October, when Ikemba Nnewi visited, I had to intervene personally to get an Enugu person to speak! Recall that Mrs. Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu is a Waawa women through and through. Then there was a parade of awards by Igbo-USA, and not one Enugu person was deemed qualified; other states including Anioma-Delta were fully recognized!

At every event, it always takes a reminder to ask Enugu to pick up its kolanut, the exception being Chief Egwuonwu’s effort during the Abia-Imo Day. At the latest Egbuoma fundraising, Enugu was blatantly ignored. When reminded, the MC said he had no time for politics! It is no politics: Kolanut communion is the most sacred Igbo ritual; no one should be sidelined.

As if that was not enough, some chronic offenders have taken disregard of Enugu to the Nigerian stage. I understand that a group of people are planning a bash at Governor Jim McGreevey’s place in Trenton, NJ to celebrate the Nigerian independence. Guess what, every small town organization was invited. Not ONE Enugu person was invited.

I did say it was a mixture of factors. Some no-nothings don’t get that Enugu is NOT part of Anambra State. But there is no excuse: how come they don’t make the mistake with Ebonyi State, a newer Waawa State? Again, some people still harbor the archaic mentality that Waawa people are laid-back and that they won’t bite. Well, have we got news for them: Since eleke the bird has learned to fly without perching, Enugu people should shoot without missing.

There is the perceived absence of Enugu organization, since it is shadowed by Anambra-Enugu States Association. This is perception, not reality. There is a dully registered Enugu-USA in NJ. It is about time it stepped out for all to see and respect.

Igbo-USA has refused to bulge with regards to admitting Abia as a state, but it recognized Ebonyi—which is good. Enugu State should get in with its own delegation before the next election and before the Convention comes to New Jersey, or the matter could escalate beyond mere semantics.

With the emergence of “Igbo bu Igbo,” Enugu-USA, NJ should also send at least a delegate to its Board of Governors with a view to future free participation of its members as per the constitution of Igbo bu Igbo.

There is nothing anyone can do about the ignorance of some people and their insensitivity to Waawa pride. The only way to make them sit up and notice is to hit them where it hurts and as often as possible. The next time Enugu is bypassed in any pan-Igbo event, be it kolanut or awards or speeches, every Enugu person present should get up and walk out. No ifs, no buts. Enough is enough.

It is all well and good that a group of guys are getting together to attend the Independence tête-à-tête with the NJ Chief Executive. The fact still remains that this is an ad hoc arrangement: There is really no representative pan-Nigerian association in the State. The nearest we have is NPF, Nigerian Peoples Forum. Unfortunately, NPF is not structured to be all-inclusive. But nothing stops the members from making it the pan-Nigerian group in New Jersey with a slightly modified constitution to incorporate the heads of ALL State organizations — not hamlets — in a Board of Trustees.

Politics is about money and block votes. Anything built around individuals who are not rooted in any local organization is bound to be a hit-or-miss, ad hoc arrangement that will fizzle out as soon as the interest of the individuals are no longer being served. It is human nature; I don’t blame anyone, and I am not pointing fingers, not yet. We just have to face the facts squarely.

Until next month, travel safe and be well. Don’t take politics so seriously, it is a contest of constant conspiracies; it is an art, not war.

Everything else — as written in my calendar of causes and consequences — is embellishment.

It party season all over again. 2003 will soon be here. Those who are interested in politics should no longer shy away from politics. As I predicted, PDP-USA has fought itself to a standstill. It needs one thing to get it out of its coma and internal squabbles, which are no longer state secret: another political party.

With the registration of three new political parties, there is no longer a scarcity of choices. Tune in next month for FULL details.

www.kwenu.com: Simply surprise yourself yonder!