He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is really cooperating with it. ~ Martin Luther King Jnr
I love that saying about standing for something or falling for nothing.
It is an adage of bravery. There will always come a time when one has to take a stand. With or without the majority is inconsequential.
Like when I decided to boycott Arik after many disappointments without any compensation. It’s now over a decade and frankly, I don’t even know if the airline is still in operation.
Anyway, I decided to revive my writing practice with brief anecdotes as we continue the exciting Potent Quill Writing Cohort that will herald what promises to be a hectic autumn.
Here goes…
I used to do my weekly grocery shopping in a certain African shop.
The owner was from my tribe and we got along very quickly.
On many occasions, I met customers there and we all got into the usual diaspora topic of the deteriorating situation at home.
My guy is pro-Biafra. And while I’m not against Biafra, I am strongly against IPoB so we often argue a lot.
After the gruesome murder of Dr Chike Akunyili, I confronted him with the grim reality of a new dimension of violence in our homeland.
I told him that long after IPoB would have failed, the scars of their horrific savagery would remain with our people.
He was adamant that IPoB would succeed in actualising Biafra, claiming they are prepared to do whatever it takes. I found myself trying to explain why the violent tactics would only result in self-harm and the following dialogue ensued;
“We are not like Fulani people. Igbos are brave but we abhor senseless violence. Can you strap explosives around your waist and walk into a market in Kano?”
He started laughing. I said it was not funny and repeated the question.
“I can’t but we have boys who can do it if it comes to that”, he replied.
We?? Wait..wait..wait who are the “we” he was referring to here?
Igbos or ESN?
I had to ask, “Who are the we?”
He replied gleefully, “IPoB, our boys in the forest can do anything for Biafra”.
I was taken aback. All along, I thought this guy was just another passionate but misinformed believer in the actualisation of Biafra.
To learn that he may actually be a member of IPoB filled me with disgust.
I thought about the horror and bloodletting back home.
I mean these ESN guys were committing atrocities considered taboos across Igboland to the extent of beheading and cannibalizing people.
It is only a matter of time before they start perpetrating suicide bombings in public places like Boko Haram.
What manner of freedom fighting is that?
No, the average Igbo man has too much at stake and has no belief …
Memories of the 90s flooded my consciousness. I recollected how we used to drink by the roadside into the night and gasped at the thought of doing that now when shops close at 8 pm for fear of the so-called “unknown gunmen”.
So I quietly asked, “Would you send your son to do the suicide bombing?”
The atmosphere immediately turned cold and still.
It was like Pentecost day for some seconds.
When he recovered his composure he retorted with a wry smile, “Why would I send my son to do it?”.
There you are!
From time to time I see this guy’s family.
From his wife to the last child, he has managed to get them involved in the shop in one capacity or the other.
And his kids are lovely well-mannered teenagers.
Here is a guy with a beautiful family and a thriving business abroad.
But while raising a family here and laying a good foundation for the future, he is sponsoring mayhem back home in the guise of a fraudulent agitation.
A strange anger overwhelmed me.
Everything around me suddenly smelt nauseous.
The guy, his shop, the items..every damn thing!
So I looked him in the eye and said;
“You are willing to fund idiots that brainwash and scam our young men to death but ask why your son should be involved? You will never see me here again”.
I left. And that was it.
My €30 weekly shopping may be little. And of course, it pales in comparison to the huge amounts contributed by IPoBists.
But I was determined to embark on that solo protest knowing that while it may not stop the unconscionable acts of IPoB, it will no longer contribute to the coffers of a ruthless man who funds them.
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