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KWENU: Our Culture, Our Future |
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Ndiigbo need deliverance (2) Ubanese Nwanganga
Friday, January 14, 2005
“…For by strength shall no man prevail.” (1Samuel Ch. 2 verse 9)
Now, returning to our leader, our leader. Many people were not happy with his choice of Uwazuruike, for obvious reasons. The decision to be an Awolowo was not taken with due regard to the circumstances of his emergence as the voice of Ndiigbo. He would be difficult to sell to other Nigerians whom he had fought against in the past. Besides, there was no Akintola waiting in the wings to betray him. Then, came in Internet opinion leaders of different persuasions, some of whom are rightly strangers in their hometowns. They claimed to be speaking for Ndiigbo gburugburu. Anybody who did not agree with them no matter the merits of their arguments were not worthy of even bearing Igbo names. One begins to wonder if the gods are not at work to sow confusion. Otherwise, why the intellectual dishonesty? A tragedy in the making? God forbid. Lest we forget let us remind ourselves of the Ogoni tragedy.
When Ken Saro-Wiwa mobilized his kinsmen against the forces exploiting Ogoni people, some Ogoni elders cautioned him. As much as they were one with him on the struggle to free Ogoniland from exploitation, they were worried that if their struggle was not handled carefully, they could play into the hands of their mortal enemies. Those Ogoni elders and all those who did not subscribe to Saro-Wiwa’s vision were called "vultures." They were the real enemies of the Ogoni people. But the truth was that no Ogoni man, no matter how despicable, would succumb to the crumbs from the master’s table. They were misunderstood and, as a result, overzealous young men fired by Saro-Wiwa’s oratory hijacked the struggle. Consequently, their own kinsmen killed four of the "vultures" at a rally in Ogoniland. Those who killed them did not receive instruction from Saro-Wiwa. They were acting on the spur of the moment and in the mistaken belief that whoever was not behind their hero was against their people. The thoughts of our elders, like their words, are thoughts of wisdom. The worst fears of the Ogoni elders came to pass. Sani Abacha hanged Saro-Wiwa and eight of his kinsmen on 10th November 1995. In one fell swoop, Ogoni leadership was wiped out. The Ogoni struggle was the worst for it and is yet to recover from it.
We are all living witnesses to the Ogoni tragedy. The Ogoni struggle was a just one. It was mishandled and their enemies, formidable enemies who fed fat on their oil, cashed in on it. Today, thirty-four years after the civil war, Ndiigbo are unable to agree on where we are coming from and in consequence draw the right conclusions. We behave as if we are operating in a civilized environment where ideas contend irrespective of who their originators are. We forget that in Nigeria there are no common objectives but sectional interests well camouflaged as national. We have failed to rise above our circumstances in a hostile environment where our interests do not count much, if at all. The pragmatism for which Ndiigbo were known before the war has given way to selfish individualism. We appear satisfied with being described as the traders of Nigeria. We do not appreciate our self worth. We struggle to play the second fiddle. In the new dispensation anything goes for us. Instead of a realistic assessment of our situation we boldly tell one another blatant lies. Those who enjoy the safety and comfort of North America and Europe mislead their brothers back home. We are still like a fishpond without an owner.
One overfed brat from the north writing from Saudi Arabia sometime ago advised Ndiigbo to forget about 2007 because power will have stayed away from the north for too long then. Ndiigbo should look forward to 2015, when the north would have satisfied itself with two terms of four years each. In the meantime, Ndiigbo should concentrate on showcasing an economy that will be the envy of other parts of Nigeria and indeed Africa. In advising Ndiigbo to concentrate on their economy he did not tell them how to go about to overcome the obstacles the north and Yorubaland have mounted on the road to economic prosperity of Ndiigbo. No modern economy can perform well without infrastructure. Ndiigbo were the first and only Nigerians to build an airport for themselves, the Imo Airport at Owerinta. There is an international airport at Kano. Lagos has one too. Enugu international airport? No way. Ndiigbo must travel either through the north or Yorubaland. Whether at the wharf or at the international airport, customs men and women of Yoruba and northern extractions hold sway where Ndiigbo must prostrate to them. Meanwhile, it will take hours upon hours to travel from one part of Igboland to another. The individual efforts of Igbo traders must be ruined so as to cut them to size. When they are forced to invest in other parts of Nigeria, their presence arouses envy as well as bad feelings. From time to time they should be dealt with. Ask those traders based in Kano. Their experience in 2004, which has become like annual ritual, speaks for itself. Ndiigbo live in the east. Yelwa and Panshin are in Plateau state. The quarrels between the Tarok and their Fulani neighbours had nothing to do with Ndiigbo. Yet, Ndiigbo must pay with their lives and businesses for the quarrels. The federal government watched while innocent people were slaughtered for no justifiable reasons. They must endure humiliation because they lost a war.
So, instead of appealing to the conscience of his brothers who ruined Nigeria, our compatriot now domiciled in the land of black gold chose to lecture us on why we should have to wait until 2015, which from his analysis is not going to be automatic. In other words, we are not even sure of 2015. As if to underline the point made by the man from Saudi Arabia, the governors of the old north have spoken with one voice to warn Ndiigbo to forget about 2007. Now, the high priest of PDP, from Uromi, has spoken. The gods have informed him that Ndiigbo and the south south should forget about 2007. Nigeria is in the pocket of PDP otherwise who said that only one party could win elections in the country? No elections will be held come 2007. It will be selection and the high priest, (or is he the oracle?) with questionable political credentials for national leadership, has ruled Ndiigbo out of the selection process. Why, if I may ask, are we not lucky like the Yoruba who had power given to them on a platter of gold? Is it because they employed mass action to harass their political opponents and in consequence forced them to make concessions? Is the problem in us or our stars or both? I see the hand of fate in it all.
While Ndiigbo are being killed and advised to wait for their turn, the Muslim north refused to give their children oral polio vaccines from the World Health Organization. Reason? The vaccines were contaminated as part of the grand design of the West to reduce the population of Muslims. The Muslim north considers itself more important than Saudi Arabia, the custodians of Islam’s holy sites. The Saudis do business with the West in every aspect of human endeavour. Instead of moving to Iraq to die for their faith, the lazy clerics and mullahs choose to make noise in Nigeria and to intimidate Obasanjo’s government. If the West decides to pay attention to them for one month the Nigerian question will disappear overnight. So, the federal government must provide alternative vaccines, which meet the approval of the Muslim north. If the federal government failed to do so and the Muslim north boycotted the WHO vaccines, the Niger Delta would underwrite the cost of the mistakes of the Muslim north. If the Niger Delta were not called upon to do so, Ndiigbo would be forced to stop breeding so that the Muslim north, which would have become population disadvantaged, would catch up. And when they are disadvantaged in anything through their own fault, it becomes a national problem. Since the Yoruba have become politically ‘correct’, that is, equal partners to the north, and the Niger Delta can buy freedom with oil wealth, Ndiigbo women will have to stop having children to close the gap.
By the personal account of one of our Internet "opinion leaders," Biafra was recognized more than thirty years after its collapse by the United States of America. Dim Odumegwu-Ojukwu was received on the White House lawns while the land of free speech, human rights, and fundamental freedoms stood still to recognize the Biafran icon, the Igbo essence. What a contrast! The yet-to-be-born Oduduwa Republic may gain international recognition before it is declared!
Now consider the number of Yoruba ministers of God. The Pentecostalism revolution in Nigeria is essentially a Yoruba affair. Where are our own men of God? I mean, where are our own Adeboyes, Kumuyis, Olukoyas, Oyedipos, etc? Although Ndiigbo form up to forty per cent of the congregations of the major Pentecostal churches nationwide, Igbo men of God are very very few. Those who pray for 419ners do not enjoy God’s vision. And let us not dismiss the importance of these men of God. Although they pray and intercede for everybody, they are no fools. They know that the Yoruba blood flows in their veins. No amount of spiritual transformation will make them forget their roots. They will never tell their congregations how much they intercede for Yorubaland and Yoruba leadership. The prayers of righteous men, the bible says, avail much. Looking for an example? The universities founded and owned by Yoruba-led Pentecostal missions are not located outside Yoruba land.
Every right thinking Igbo man or woman should be unhappy with the series of happenings as narrated above in addition to those not mentioned. Our enclave witnessed a lot of blood letting during the war. Is it that the spirits of those whose lives were wasted are on the prowl and have to be appeased? Do we embark on a symbolic mass burial so that their souls and spirits will have rest and leave us alone? We have intellectual frauds who use the Internet to advance positions they know are untenable for Ndiigbo. Every other Nigerian would not wish us well. In a letter to Ken Saro-Wiwa to mark the ninth anniversary of his execution, which appeared in The Guardian on either 9th, 10th or 11th November 2004, Joi Nunieh, an Ogoni lady, had this to say:
“…the marginalized and endangered people of Niger Delta who were previously derogatorily referred to as ‘Mba Mmiri,' which means ‘people who live in the Delta’…Today, those who referred to us as ‘Mba Mmiri’ have successfully acquired the leadership of the Commission,” [referring to the Niger Delta Development Commission].
Sorry for Ndiigbo!
How can a sane person who is not out to look for trouble where there is none make this quoted irritating statement? ‘Mba Mmiri’ is an Igbo word for people, communities, villages or towns living in the riverine areas, where there are many rivers and creeks. It is not and has never been used derogatorily. It is a true reflection of the topography of the riverine areas. Ndiigbo refer to the north as “Ugwu Awusa,” which means the "Hills of the Hausa." Early Ndiigbo who travelled to the north and Hausaland noted that many hills were passed to reach there. Even “Ndiofemmanu” -- used by Ndiigbo to describe the Yoruba -- refers to the oily soup of the Yoruba. It simply describes the people who use a lot of oil in their soup. The Hausa-Fulani and most part of the north refer to Ndiigbo as “Nyamiri” because of the frequent use of “Nye m mmiri” in Igbo speech. The elevation of these imageries to derogatory remarks is a product of the Nigeria-Biafra War.
I know this is not an essay in social anthropology. My argument here is that it is sad for a well-educated lady like Joi Nunieh to make the above quoted statement in which she did not hide her hatred for Ndiigbo. She forgot that Ndiigbo have three or more oil-producing states and that rightly we belong to the Niger Delta, as defined by the law establishing the Commission. In case she does not know, the territory from Ukwa to Ikwerre to Egbema across the River Niger up to Ndokwa across the River Niger again down to Oguta constitutes one of the richest in oil deposits in Nigeria. That territory is part and parcel of Igboland. There is no drop of oil in Hausa-Fulani land. Even the Ishan people of Edo State, who now determine who will produce the president of Nigeria, have no drop of oil under their soil. It would be well with Joi Nunieh if Tony Anenih took over the Commission.
She would have preferred the Hausa-Fulani or the Yoruba to take over the Commission, instead of Ndiigbo (Let us for the sake of argument agree with her that Ndiigbo have taken over the Commission). Any group other than Ndiigbo could control the Commission. In her own admission, she joined the ANPP, the party of the north for the north by the north. I recall here that at initial stage of its formation the party was known as Abacha Peoples Party because all the chieftains of the party were pro-Abacha politicians. They were one with Abacha in the atrocities he committed in the Niger Delta including Ogoniland. Yet, an able lieutenant of the undisputable leader of the Ogoni people whose life was wasted for standing for the rights of his kinsmen opted for the party formed to promote and further the ideals of the man who hanged him. If she could not join the PDP or AD with substantial Yoruba influence, could she not have settled for the APGA, Jim Nwobodo’s party (UNPP), or Ike Nwachukwu’s party (NDP)? Do we need any soothsayer to fathom the depth of hatred Joi Nunieh and others like her in the minority areas of the east have for Ndiigbo?
Our house is divided. Those who claim to lead us have not the right guts. Those who have the guts are bad commodities to sell in the Nigerian enterprise. Who will save the situation? My conclusion is that we should return to God who can turn the tide in our favour.\
For 2005, I suggest we try the following recipe: (i) Let us not deceive ourselves. We should see ourselves as we are and whatever is wrong must be addressed squarely. We should receive criticisms and use them as mirrors to correct ourselves. (ii) Let us fear the Lord. This is the beginning of wisdom. Let us anchor our lives this year on the Lord so that we can be guaranteed success. (iii) Let us get wisdom. We must be wise to avoid the mistakes of the past. But only God can give wisdom. So, we must go to him for it. (iv) We must put on the garment of love. Pure love overcomes obstacles and problems of any description. Pure love is the love of God. God can have mercy on us if we accept his love and live by it. (v) Live in peace with all other nationalities. Seek peace not only for ourselves but for others as well. It secures spiritual and material success in life. (vi) We should avoid unfriendly friends. We should not allow those who do not wish us well to mislead us. Not everybody who opens his teeth is laughing. (vii) Let us plan our lives according to the purpose of God. We define achievable goals and objectives and seek God’s approval. (viii) We should avoid danger at all costs. We should not put ourselves on the path of a moving train.
God can save us from ourselves as well as from those who do not wish us well. The whole is made up of the parts. Individual Igbo families should return to God and it definitely will affect us collectively. It is no point erecting unnecessary evil altars and belonging to different secret societies in the vain hope that they can change our fortunes. They failed in the past and will continue to fail us in the future. That Ngige could go as far as swearing to a local shrine in order to become governor of Anambra State speaks volume on our morality. The Yoruba are gradually abandoning secret societies for us to take over.
May God’s will be done in our lives.
Amen.
Biko, Umuigbo, unu egbule m. Abu m nwaafo; abughi m 'sabo.' O ga-adi mma ka ihe gaara anyi nke oma. Ma onye huru ezi okwu, ya kwuo ka ekwensu hapu anyi aka.
Ngozi diri unu niile.
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