Fifteen eyes
or so on me as I walked in. Derrick’s are so small the two could pass for one
normal one. I’d come in to larger broods before, but there was something about
this one. White people can be queer.
I proceed
to my desk, dropped my books, and thought about piercing the awkwardness of the
moment.
“What?” I asked the eyes that were
watching me. But it seemed no one had been nominated to speak, so my question
remained unanswered for a little moment.
“You’re from Biafra aren’t you,
Jude?”
“Biafra?”
“Yeah,” Lancelot’s large eyes
fixated on me. He would be the spokesman for any group.
“Is that the name of a place?”
“A country actually!” Kathie quips.
I roll my
eyes, and then from one face to another, I searched for where this was headed.
“What’s your take on the vibes
coming out of Nigeria?” Derrick was the oldest, but his reserved nature meant
his age mates had left him behind, and everyone else in this group caught up.
“Wait!” I search for any sense in
the situation… of coming into class and finding myself in the middle of a
rather tense topic of discussion.
“Is this
interview academically inclined?”
“It doesn’t have to be, mate,”
Callaghan, the defacto leader, said as he rose from his chair and walked
towards me. Then, placing his right hand on my left shoulder he said, “We know
you love books, Jude; we know you love learning and academic milestones; but we’re
all concerned about your country, and we think you should be too.”
“You guys think I’m not?”
“Well, if you are, feel free to
discuss it,” Jane says. “Are you for Nigeria or Biafra?”
I didn’t answer,
only gazed from face to face, wondering if I’d missed any news from back home. Here
in the UK I was supposed to be safe from the incessant disturbances and unrests
of Nigeria, but not today – it seemed.
“If you guys must know, it’s hard to
pick a side: one is a path to unnecessary bloodshed that will not achieve
anything, and the other is a vote for second class citizenship and subtle marginalization.
So…” I heaved and sounded like one cornered.
“But what if bloodshed were ruled
out?”
“Wha?” I was a bit dazed there were
still pursuing.
“What if the split could occur
without bloodshed? Would you be for it, or against it?”
“I don’t know if that is possible.”
“I’m saying… supposing it is?”
Lancelot wasn’t even a Law student, but damn!
“Well… it needs to be critically
looked at. Whoever is routing for a Biafra has to be sure all constituent
states can be on the same page and remain there. I mean… there are various
things to look at…”
They all
pulled up chairs and surrounded me.
“Why don’t you look at them, Jude?”
“How do you mean?”
“You’re a research student… figure
out how we mean!”
“TO GAUGE THE PULSE OF A NATION,”
Jamie worded; “May be a fitting title!” Then he shrugged.
I conceptualized
what was possible, but of course presented the financial challenge. Schooling in
the UK was hard enough. This bunch of guys said they’d put together a five
thousand pound fund to support my ‘looking at’ what was supposed to be looked
at prior to supporting or not supporting a secession.
I asked
them for Terms of Reference, they said to generate one and present for
comments. Fine.
I have two weeks
to make necessary phone calls, and to send and receive necessary emails as I prepare
the Ts of R. After I submit, it won’t take too long to reflect their comments
and suggestions in the final paper. Then I’ll be ready to embark on the
journey. I catch the Liverpool vs Chelsea Game at Anfield on the 26th
of December, and celebrate my birthday on transit to Nigeria the next day. With
the new year will begin my ‘looking at’ the things that brought me home.
HERE ARE MY
TERMS OF REFERENCE AS THEY ARE COMING TOGETHER
1. Have there always been agitations for
a Sovereign Biafra?
2. If yes, from what quarters?
3. Is this new agitation coming from
the same source?
4. How many states originally made up
Biafra?
5. Are elements from all states
involved in this new agitation?
6. What are the voiced and unvoiced
reasons for wanting to secede?
1. What is the current socio-economic
plight of the Biafra states?
2. What is their combined IGR?
3. What is the size of their land mass?
4. How much of their plight (good and
bad) is caused by the Federal Government?
5. How much by the State?
6. Is any current governor of the
states Biafra President material?
1. Is the new Biafra agitation a reply
to the Boko Haram-marred administration of a Southern President?
2. Would this agitation exist if an
Igbo man was president?
3. How do the agitators conceptualize a
return to Igboland of all Igbos?
4. Will negotiations for property
owners to retain ownership across the two countries should they separate
succeed?
5. Will an assurance of retention of
ownership of property make secession easier and choicier for the rich Igbos?
6. Are there Igbos who have been forced
out of the North due to violence?
7. Do they still retain ownership of
whatever property they owned?
8. If no, is it possible that their
angst is part of the inspiration for a louder agitation?
9. How would returnees fare at the
hands of current feudal lords of the Igboland?
10. How long before goods and services
get to be determined by normal economic forces rather than by circumstance?
