Warri: Forty Years Later and… From an UYM (Unknown Young Man) to a Family Friend - Ik Muo, PhD.

 

                    The Imposing Jubilee Center ...       With the Unknown Young Man

My first visit to Warri was around 1983, as a part of my usual cross-country tour. Those where the days when the son of man was young and free, the car (AN3705ED) was also young and strong, could be serviced with N50(including Supper-V oil!) and the tank could be filled with less than N5! (yes; FIVE Naira). The roads were worthy of the appellation, the policemen were civil and professional (wetin-you-carry was uncommon),  armed robbery was few and far in between,  and, there were no bandits, kidnappers, terrorist-herdsmen and Boko-Haram operatives( whether repentant or otherwise). In those days, my annual leave was about one month and I spent it on the Nigerian roads and cities, visiting friends,( mostly classmates) and relatives. I would start the leave by travelling home to inform my parents that I was out of town.  This was necessary because my headmaster-father (we called him WO-his initials- behind him) had this habit  of  coming to Enugu  unannounced to check on me whenever I failed to attend any Igbo-Ukwu Development Union function( usually funerals) at home. In such instances, he would arrive my flat (12 Obianodo Street, Achara Layout, Enugu) before 7 am!    After this ritual, I would clean up my fridge( I used to cook then), pick a few cloths and a few pieces of Naira (not bundles),lock up my flat and hit the road. In that 1983 edition, I had travelled from Enugu to Vom, to Jos, Bauchi Gombe, Azare (where I did my NYSC), Maiduguri, Kano, Abuja, Ikare, Benin, Warri, Owerri, PH, Aba and to Igbo-Ukwu  (to inform my parents that I was back and spend some time with them) and then, back to Enugu  to resume work. From Igbo-Ukwu to Enugu took less than 90 minutes then as I would leave Igbo-Ukwu by 6 and be in the office before 7.30, the opening time. Today, that journey will take about 4 hours and the driver the vehicle will go for a check-up thereafter. My visit to Warri in 1983 was to visit my friend and school mate, Joe Mbakwe (we called him Long Black Joe) whose wife was a magistrate in Warri. They lived in the GRA area of the town and all I can remember now was that the ground was struggling with water for space all over the place.

On 28/8/21, I returned to Warri. I was a Guest Speaker at the 11^th Anambra Day Celebration organised by Ogbako Ndi Anambra( Assembly of Anambra People). I spoke on Aku Luo Uno: Olugo n’Omume (Think Home Paradigm: The Time to act is NOW). Coincidentally, in 2019 I delivered a similar lecture to Association of Anambra Development Unions( AASDU) in Lagos. There must be a reason why all our people in the local diaspora are thinking home nowadays! For the Air-Peace ‘cock-crow’ flight (7am), I was at the airport long before 6. I did not plan to be there that early but the road was so free that it took less than 30 minutes from Okota to the Airport, despite the detour through Ajao Estate. At the airport, I met a cultured gentleman, who reminded me of the good old days. The seat I secured in the bus taking us from MMA2 to MMA1  for boarding was wet and as such, I had to stand. Then this suited gentleman, ( actually looked like a Bank MD), noticed that I was standing and offered me his seat. I did not take the offer but I was amazed and touched by his kind gesture because the days when it was a normal thing had gone. Today, you will be lucky if your student would surrender his seat to you.  And there could not have been more than a 10-year gap between us.

When  we arrived at Warri, I went to appreciate his gesture and asked him why he did so, despite his apparent ‘bigness’ and the fact that he was also an elder in his own right. He replied that it was the way he was brought up. I gave him one of my books ( Proverbs, The Words of our Elders) and incidentally he is also an author and so he gave me his  first book(Bold Steps). It is a motivational book, which I finished  by the time I returned to Lagos and handed it over to Stanek, the last man standing in my household. One day, I may review book but I will tell you in advance, something I found there.  He was a lecturer (Graduate Assistant) before he joined the bank as a Graduate-Trainee. His one-month salary as a banker was in multiples of his annual salary as a lecturer and before long, his salary surpassed that of his dear mother who was an Associate Professor!  That was why I did not join the academia when I graduated in 1980: The take home pay could not take me home!   So, ‘no be today’ when this oppression and suppression of the Academics started! He also confirmed what I suspected. He is a  retired banker and calls the shots at Flobal Financial Services Group.

That day happened to be Environmental  and  thus, the town was on ‘lockdown’. Consequently, we were detained at the airport for almost 3 hours. I strolled into the restaurant to wait and also to settle my rumbling stomach. I asked for toasted-bread, with egg and tea but these were not available. Surprisingly, they had assorted swallows with assorted soups. For breakfast?  If I took pounded yam for breakfast, what would I have for lunch? Anyway, na how-for-do make white man drink garri! I settled for 4 pieces of ‘poff-poff’ (my dietician must not hear this) with plain tea( no milk, no sugar)  for a princely sum of  with N1000.  The bag with which I carried some of my luggage (mostly books)  got torn into pieces( you know how they throw peoples luggage recklessly at our airports) and I wanted to replace it. I bought the bag for N500 but the replacement which I saw at the airport( about half the size of the original one) went for N4000!  I had paid 1000 for a few pieces of poff-poff and now they are asking for N4000 for a small GMG bag. This airport people sef! They think everybody who enters the airport is a political bandit, an oil and gas magnet or  something like that. You know I wouldn’t buy a GMG bag for N4000!  A porter who had ferried my luggage to the restaurant took N500 from me, ‘cellotaped’ it neatly and  that was that.

One of my hosts, Arinze Ezeanochie, the FinSec of the association took me to the beautiful Jubilee Retreat and Conference Center, which became my house for two days. The facility, owned by the Catholic Church, was expansive and imposing and hosts a good number of A-Class events in the Efurrum axis of Warri. When I was in  Kumasi,  in 2018 on a WWME ( World Wide Marriage Encounter) activity, our team  visited the  ‘Catholic Village’ there.  There is an equivalent of a ‘Catholic Village’ in Warri; a neighbourhood, which hosts the Conference Center, Holy Martyrs of Uganada Juniour Seminary, Diocesan Music Academy, Mother of Redeemer Catholic Secondary School( MORCASS) the 60 year-old Our Lady’s High School, and  The Redeemers Catholic Parish. The only difference between the Warri ‘Catholic Village’  and the Kumasi version is that  the later is an enclosure but the former is criss-crossed by roads and footpaths. I attended 6.15am Mass  at the redeemers Parish on Sunday, 29/8/21. The choir was melodious and vibrant and the young Priest (Dr John Edenaire) delivered a very captivating homily. He categorised Christians as people of the 3H: Head (  focus on rationality/reason); Heart(emotional) and Hand( practical’ living out their faith ) and held that as Christians, we needed( and still need) the 3H. He also differentiated Religiousity (external manifestations) from Spirituality( internal) and regrated that most Christians concentrated more on religiousity while we actually needed the two in  this our non-stop battle between the flesh and the spirit

 Back to the lecture, it was well attended and everything  went well.  I had the honour of breaking the kolanut to declare the event open as a representative of Igbo-Ukwu the cradle of Igbo race.

      Breaking the kolanut…  On duty                         and with OMM(Ogbuehi Main Market)

 Nze Nwanonobi Onuorah, an elder from Orifite who presided over the kola-nut rituals directed that I should break the kola-nut. You can go and find out the place  of  Igbo-Ukwu ( originally called simply, Igbo until a few years ago)in Igbo history.  Unfortunately, the organisers who went out of the way to invite two of us, Dr Chinedu Enwonyw, an Associate Professor from Odumegwu Ojukwu University and myself, did not have time for us because they were  more interested in  ‘other matters’: The launch of a book( Ogbako Ndi Anambra Elites) and Awards.  It has been my usual experience with such events. The Item7 was also good and consisted of roasted yam, barbecued fish, exotic and ordinary drinks and other such things as are usual in such occasions. Unfortunately, I am not a man of foods and drinks.  I also learnt about the association’s unique leadership recruitment model. It is not by do or die electoral war. The association would identify a member with good leadership qualities and go and beg him to lead them. At times, it takes a while to convince such people.  This is the first time I have come across this model and as an OB person, I may have to research into that. The event was compered by ‘Ogbuehi Main-Market’, Mr I-Go-Tuk, a comedian who specialises caricaturing  the antics and intricacies of Onitsha Main Market trading community including how they sell even while they are praying. I also met many of my towns men digging it out at Warri, including  Prince Iruka Odunukwe, Emeka Mbanefo and Owku Ewenike( The Commodore).

          ‘Thou shall not’ orders……….Taking a walk……………. With Ndi IgboUkwu

And then back to the Conference center. I enjoyed the place with its expansive compound where I had a walk-out and the green scenery. But as a customer service enthusiast, I have a reservation, a very serious one at that. The had a billboard, telling the customers to dress well, avoid sagging and bump-shorts and refrain from smoking. They also had another notice about check-in and check-out protocols. However, there was nothing about what they would offer the customers; their Customer Service Charter(Things like courtesy, empathy, warmth and respect). This is a minus for that wonderful center. As I said, I enjoyed the place and I may well be there on my next leave so as to explore the town fully as I did 40 years ago.

 I could not pay a courtesy call on the Olu of Wari but as I departed on Monday morning( 30/8/21), I asked my guide( Mr Arinze) how the young and articulate Olu was crowned  despite the missing crown and all that . I wont ‘unveil’ our discussions (You know people now unveil everything, including the first kiss with the 10^th baby-mama!). However, I learned that high-wire intrigues were not just limited to Igbo-Ukwu, Anambra elections, the management of repentant bokoharam members  and Abuja appointments. It is everywhere.

 From Unknown Young Man to a Family Friend

On Monday, 6/9/21, I was driving from Lagos to school. I left early and as such, the multiple evil spirits of dare-devil drivers, Otedola Bridge accidents and inexplicable traffic jams were yet to wake up. Consequently, by 8am, I was already getting close to OOU, just about 20minutes away. And then, it happened. I had a flat tire at the middle of nowhere and the only thing I saw were dense forests in all directions.  There was this eerie feeling and I was REALLY afraid.   In this era of UGM, UKM and UCM, it was frightening to be stranded at such a place. I don’t think I have had to undertake a change of tires by myself in the last 20 years and I was not in the physical mood to do so that morning. And then, I saw this young man riding  by in an okada. I wondered whether he was ‘one of them’ on a reconnaissance mission. Well, I had no choice and so, I waved him down and pleaded for his assistance. He dismounted from his okada and he cheerfully and ungrudgingly changed the tire. It was a little difficult because the spare tire has not left its shelf since the car landed on our shores 2 years ago. He was ready to leave when I engaged him in a small conversation. He said his name was ‘More Blessing’ and that he was on his way to the farm. I remembered that in those days whenever we were going to the farm off town, we had to take ‘something along’: raw yam, the fire with which to roast it and some oil or left over foofoo from the previous day. And so, I asked him about his lunch park, especially as he said he would return to town around 4pm. He said he had nothing with him because he could not afford anything that morning but that he would look for water along the road. Just water? He further said that his wife was pregnant, on admission in a local hospital and that he was going to the farm to see what he would harvest to sort out her issues. I ‘shook hands’ with him, thanked him profusely for stopping and helping an Unknown Stranded Elder. As I wanted to leave, he in turn started thanking me and thanking God that he came across me that morning. I collected his telephone number and we dispersed.

 Later that day, I gave him a call thanked him again and we agreed to meet the following day on my way to work. On Tuesday,7/9/21,we met as I agreed and I visited his family, and saw his wife, who is incidentally is my sister( from Abia State).  I thanked him again, took pictures with him and posted on my family platform and so   More Blessing has become a family friend rather than just an Unknown Young Man. On Saturday AM(11/9/21) I received the cheery news that the wife had safely ‘manufactured’ their first baby. Of course, I will soon be there in solidarity with the young family. That was how  an Unknown Keke Man carried me from the road where I was about to be drenched, to my house and refused to collect any money for his labour. We have also become family friends. Some of these unknown elements are human like us with their families, dreams and life issues.  It is not good when we always look at all  of them with ‘one kin eye’( suspiciously) and keep as far as possible.

- Ik Muo, PhD. Department of Business Administration, OOU, Ago-Iwoye. 08033026625

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