Okigbo’s 50th memorial revisits the
Civil War
The Trenchard Hall of the University
of Ibadan (UI) was host to the literati, academics and more at the conference
marking the golden jubilee of the demise of legendary poet Christopher Ifekandu
Okigbo. The event resurrected discourse on the Nigerian Civil War and current
political shake-ups in the country, EVELYN OSAGIE reports.
He lived and died a soldier. First,
he fought with his pen, and later took up arms against injustice.
Widely-celebrated as an outstanding post-colonial English Language African
poet, who wrote and fought against injustice, Christopher Ifekandu Okigbo (1932–1967),
was also one of the major modernist writers of the 20th century.
The writer whose friends called “The
Renaissance man” and his legacies were the focal points of a two-day conference
at his alma mater, the University of Ibadan (UI) in Oyo State capital.
Tagged: Christopher Okigbo
Conference, the event, which was a collaboration between the Christopher
Okigbo Foundation and UI, through the Departments of Classics and English, was
to mark the 50th year after Okigbo died fighting for Biafra secession in the
Civil War.
With its theme: Legacy of
Christopher Okigbo – 50 years, the conference revisited the Nigerian Civil
War and current worrisome political concerns, particularly the violent
agitations across the country. It also bought back Okigbo’s ideals, prophetic
endowment and poetry collections – now fused into a new collection, Moonglow
and Other Poems – to the front burner. It brought together Okigbo’s
contemporaries, family members fellow poets, members of the cultural industry
and institutions worldwide that have been instrumental in upholding his memory
to date.
While recounting the life and times
of the late poet, his friends and colleagues also expressed worries over the
growing security and political concerns. They noted that the issues that led to
the war in which Okigbo died have confronted the polity 50 years after.
Recounting his moments with the late
poet, Nobel laureate Prof Wole Soyinka said the anniversary was fitting
in the wake of the rising insecurity and political concerns. In his view,
Okigbo’s most important legacy was choosing to put his life on the line for his
conviction. He noted that aside writing, when the time came, the late poet
joined the others and took up arms for his convictions. He called on the
leadership to pay attention to the grievances of all in order to end the
growing restiveness.
“It is for me a very sweet-sad day.
I begin on a solemn note but I promise you, I’d end in a light-hearted one
because this is a celebration. The reason it’s a sweet-sad day for me is
because of the legacy of Okigbo as a human being. He was somebody who based his
life on his convictions. And I ask myself, will that aspect of his legacy spell
IPOB in the end – I-P-O-B. I use it in a generic way, not as referring
specifically to any region.
“We are celebrating Chris who was a
poetic embodiment of that movement at that particular time. I am looking at the
young people on the streets behind the banner, once again, reaching that stage
when they are also preparing to put their lives on the line. This anniversary
is taking place at a critical moment for the nation as a corporate body and for
many of us as individuals – for millions who are not here today, who are
confronting a choice, which is come about as a result of mass misgovernance in
this nation, leadership alienation, maginalisation across regions and across
classes. And it is these societal contradictions within the society – this
resentment which leads sooner or later to what is confronting the nation at
this moment,” he said.
Praising the Army’s effort at
fighting Boko Haram, Soyinka condemned military excesses, saying such acts
fuelled “separatist movements”. He called on the military to probe the video of
IPOB youths being punished by soldiers, as they were seen lying in the mud, while
urging that more should be done to protect lives and security of the citizenry.
In his words: “It is not enough to
put up Python dance and crocodile dance; it is not enough to say“we are ready
for you” while the other side says “we are waiting for you”. This rattling
around us is as if we are about to repeat history.” When people see that they
cannot look to the responsible structure of governance to look after their
security and livelihood, then they’d move towards their own structure that can
lead to violence.”
Fifty years after, celebrated poet
Prof. John Pepper Clark said he was still deeply moved by Okigbo’s death and
the trauma the period brought. He lamented that five decades after, Nigerians
are seeking restructuring, observing that there is a need for a genuine system
that would make everyone to have a true sense of belonging. In joining the
Biafran army, Clark opined, Okigbo was asking for the restructuring of
the nation; however, stressing that ever since the death of Chris, nothing had changed.
He said: “Fifty years after the war,
where are we as a people. Restructuring is what everybody is crying. The war
has changed nothing. Chris took on so many of the trauma and pain we went
through and to fight for restructuring. Fifty years after the war, we are all
still very moved by the pains.”
The traditional ruler of
Ndikelionwu, Prof. Chukwuemeka Ike, who chaired the event recounted that that
the outbreak of the war in 1967 disturbed the late poet so much that he
could not resist the urge to enrol in the Biafran Army, even without military
training. “I was at Stanford University, California, United States, in 1966
when, Chinua Achebe, Chris, and many others fled home primarily from northern
and western Nigeria owing to the tragedy that befell eastern Nigerians. Chinua,
Chris, Arthur, named Citadel Press, at Enugu, with Chris as manager. I was to
join them on my return from Stanford. When I learnt that the first enemy air
raid on Enugu had dropped a bomb in the premises of Citadel Press, I drove to Enugu
to size up the situation.
“Providentially, Chris, was taking a
short break from the warfront, and was in his office. After giving me a hug, he
described his unconventional troop formations, which usually confounded the
enemy. The watch on his wrist belonged to a white mercenary fighting for
Nigeria, killed with a hand grenade lobbed by one of Chris’ courageous boys
into the Nigerian armoured vehicle the mercenary was driving. ‘I noticed your
uniform has no rank’, I observed. ‘Yes’, Chris replied with a smile. “I’m a
Major. If I wear my rank I will be obliged to salute a Lieutenant Colonel for
whom I have no respect’.”
Oyo State Governor Senator Abiola
Ajimobi, praised the organisers for holding the event at a time when Nigeria is
straining from inter-ethnic and inter-religious tensions. Ajimobi, who was
represented by Deputy Governor, Chief Moses Adeyemo Alake, observed that
the conference and its theme, underscored the unifying role that literature,
including writers and scholars represent. “And even though every effort is
being made to resolve this highly volatile issue, one very low hanging solution
can be found in the country’s Literary and Cultural spheres. Nigerian writers
and scholars apart from the strident unifying themes of their writings, have through
their belief in humanity and altruism, continued to show other Nigerians how to
live in harmony with one another.
“And despite the current religious
and ethnic intolerance in some parts of the country, it is remarkable that
today, here in Ibadan, we are celebrating a distinguished Nigerian from the
South Eastern part of the country who once studied and lived in this part of
the country. I thank the organisers of this conference, including the friends
and colleagues of our late brother, for not only making it possible to
celebrate one of our own but for situating the celebration here in Ibadan,” he
said.
Prof Dan Izevbaye, who gave the
keynote address, described Okigbo’s entry into the field of conflict as
an act of heroism. While highlighting Okigbo’s stance as poet-prophet and the
legacy his poetry represents, he lamented that the battlefield does not
differentiate between the poet and the ordinary soldier. He said: “It should be
remembered that the period of political time leading to the Civil War was a
period of heightened political awareness and discussion in nearly all parts of
the country. In the period before the Civil War, Okigbo would not hear any talk
of political commitment. The reality of political events forced the poet, who
had all along lived by his own myth, to confront his destiny in his own flesh
and blood. But it was at the cost of the sacrifice of the real self for which,
as the last poems prophesied, the poetic persona of the early poetry was only
the template.”
Two-term member of the House of
Representatives, Chudi Ofodile, reiterated Izevbaye words, describing Okigbo as
“a perfect hero”. While noting that heroes like Okigbo were not given the
honour due to them, he noted that Nigeria’s complicated history frustrates the
march to nationhood as different sections of the country see things differently
and oftentimes interpret the same set of facts very differently. “Our different
accounts of historical facts cannot all be true, and that makes the teaching of
history rather problematic. The solution is not to remove history as a subject
in our school curriculum or to engage in the dangerous dance of pythons with
needless fatalities, but to commit to the universal ideals of justice and
fairness…
“Because he fought on the side of
Biafra, expectedly, opinions differ on his place in history. But he was a hero.
A hero need not be perfect, but a martyr is a perfect hero, for there is no
better way to die than for a cause you believe in. Christopher Okigbo died a
martyr.”
The Okigbo Poetry Prize, endowed by
Soyinka and which ran for some years before it was suspended owing to funding,
was reinstituted during the conference.
The President Christopher Okigbo
Foundation, Obiageli Okigbo, said the conference is one of the ways the
foundation is immortalising Okigbo and his legacies.
Also in attendance were his wife
Ambassador Judith Sefi Attah, and other family members; Deputy Vice Chancellor
(Academic) UI, Prof Yinka Aderinto; Prof Olutayo Charles Adesina, Prof.
Oluwatoyin Jegede, Prof. Babatunde Omobowale, Prof. Ademola Omobewaji Dasylva;
Prof. Dele Layiwola; Prof. Mufutau Temitayo Lamidi, Executive Editor of The
News Magazine Kunle Ajibade; Chairman, Safari Books Limited, Chief Joop
Berkhout; Director, Bookcraft Limited, Bankole Olayebi; Prof. Ayo Ogunsiji; Dr
Doyin Aguoru; Dr Kazeem Adebiyi and Dr Tunde Awosanmi, among others.
http://thenationonlineng.net/okigbos-50th-memorial-revisits-civil-war/
