Kinsmen, Clansmen, Townfolks reflect on life of their famous son
Though, Chinua Achebe, the legendary writer fondly referred to as the ‘father of African novel’, prefers to keep his entry into the octogenarian club a silent affair — at least on this side of the Atlantic — his kinsmen and folks in his land of birth are high in spirit, full of praises to God for bequeathing to them such a magnificent character, whose name and works have become world renowned. Through his work, especially the famous Things Fall Apart, he has taken simple and rural Ogidi town to global attention. Achebe himself is not tired of garnering encomiums; only recently he earned the 2010 Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize, conferred on him in the United States. CHIJIOKE IREMEKA visited Achebe’s hometown to feel the pulse of his kinsmen, clansmen and townfolks about the man who is easily the ambassadpor of the town… one resonant theme is the massive love the people have for the man, who was once an ordinary boy stalking the blessed grounds of Ogidi, tucked few kilometres away from Onitsha, the commercial city of Anambra State. Folowing in the next seven pages is a collection of voices on what the community feels about the man who clocks 80 on Tuesday.
MARCEL NWOSU, Omenife I of Ogidi
CHINUA has made his name indelible in the world history, through his work ‘Things Fall Apart, where he showcases Ogidi culture to the rest of the world. As if that wasn’t enough, it was put into home movies for more impact on people.
There are bad elements in the town, who do not like and cherish good things. To them, Achebe may mean something different.
He is a hero and Ogidi saw that in him and agree and made him the PG of the union, which he did with great success, though he could not do more because of the backbone injury he sustained in an accident.
But in everything, anybody that will rule a community well must have enemies; whereby he doesn’t rule well, there will be more friends. So Achebe is a strong-willed man and determined to do the best for Ogidi people.
Achebe is God’s gift to this community; he is an Iroko tree that can’t be pulled down easily, but the problem is that his people don’t appreciate him for his worth. He believes in his people and their culture. To see how good he meant for his people, it was on his way back to Ogidi for a meeting that he sustained that backbone injury that moved him out of the country. Thank God he is alive today.
Ogidi jointly gave him an honour in recognition of his laudable works and outstanding intelligence, as well as contributions to the development of Ogidi community.
Achebe is a brave man. The ‘whites’ have taken hold of him because of his wisdom and intelligence. The whites do not take anything that will not be beneficial to them, so our brother is a rare gem. I respect him because he is an honest man.
Copyright, Blaise APLOGAN, 2010,© Bienvenu sur Babilown
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