By Mazi Omife I. Omife
( Mbuze Mbaukwu)
omifelord@gmail.com
In my school days, I used to live with my mother, late Pauline Chikeme Omife, nee Madichie, at 100 foot Road, Ogui New Layout Enugu. Some people erroneously call the place Enugu Urban Area or Urban Jungle which it is not.
Urban Jungle designates the areas from Ama Hausa (Hausa residential area, even though I have never known of an Hausa settlement there), the equivalent of Ajegunle in Lagos down to the Asata boundary, which is unplanned and has no street names or numbers.
Whereas 100 Foot Road in Ogui New layout, as the name depicts, is one of the most popular and latest laid out street roads by Enugu Urban Council.
Life was sweet in those days. Members of Obiagu neighbourhood, “ndi ogbe”, lived like brothers and sisters with their peers and age mates. I still remember many of my peers in those old good days of yore. People like late Hon. Jerome Ede ( Ogazi Nkanu) Dr Maxwell Ngene, Jerry Ukpabi ,now a professor, Barr. Okolie, Barr. Nnamdi Muo etc. We all grew up there.
I was then a first year student at IMT Enugu. One of my friends, Okey Ndulue, was living with his parents at Aninwede Street, the next street to mine. He had a pretty though very tender sister of about 15 years.
My friend and I used to exchange visits now and again. Over time, I noticed that his sister took interest in me. I wouldn’t know why.
I only noticed that most of the time, she and some of her friends always came out in front of their house to admire me each time I was coming to see his brother.
I was always cutely and neatly dressed, clad in my bongo trousers and decker shoes. I guess that was the genesis of her crush on me because not many young men were able to buy such wears then. We eventually became friends, call it secret lovers.
The problem we had is that we had no way of talking to each other without attracting the attention and obvious disapproval of her parents and siblings.
Each time I visited their house, we only made signs with our eyes and that was suffocating our verbal expression of love for each other.This did not augur well with both of us. She later devised a trick.
Each time I made a move to leave their house after a visit, she would sneak out before me and lurk at a corner along my way home, and I passed, she would dash out and furtively drop a love note on the ground. All this while, Not even my friend Ndulue was aware of this secret love affair.
Later I made up my mind to call her out.
I got the opportunity of my life when her brother travelled to Lagos on a holiday. The first time I went to their house after my friend’s travel, I pretended to have come to know if my friend Okey Ndulue was back from Lagos.
Deborah was with her mother in the kitchen. But we used eye signs to talk.
After that day, whenever I wanted to see her, I went to a nearby shop and sent a little boy or girl to call her. After a brief discussion, I will buy a few edibles for her and she went back.
Although I had a room to myself where we lived, but because of the strictness of my mum, I dared not bring her into our house.
One day, I took her out for the first time. By then I had become a bit matured and in my OND final year and she was 17 years. Being the first time I took a girl, I was blushing. We went to one shop where I bought her cake and a bottle of fanta. After drinking, I took her to a point near her home to avoid her parents seeing us and went to my house.
While I was taking her home, my mother saw us but we did not see her. When I came home, my mother was furious at me as she queried about the girl she saw me with. I told her we went to a bible crusade. She felt a bit relaxed because she was a very devoted Christian, but I noticed a tinge of suspicion in her.
After I had my OND, I secured employment at the Federal Ministry of Housing and Environment, Enugu which I combined with a part time job as TV presenter at ATV CHANNEL 50 Enugu. I later worked in other places like IMT library department, Nigerian Mirror Newspaper, Palm Promotions Ltd, publishers of Adventures of Inspector Danda, Federal ministry of Works which was later merged with FMH&E and it became Fed Ministry of Works and Housing, Federal Pay Office, all in Enugu.
Like most of my age mates then, I was living in a one room apartment in then popular face-me- I- face- you house style.
To live in a flat then was not popular for young men like us as it was not easy to pay for a flat. Most of the “big boys” today , particularly those in the media were living in one room, some in two rooms, some living with their parents or in a family house.
I can recall some of my mates in those days:
Jevas Chukwuemezie ( Ogbenye one of Umu Ogbenye) of FRCN then was living in one room at Ugwuago, Abakpa.
Emeka Mogo of the then Anambra Broadcasting Service (ABS), Enugu was living in their family house at Boardman Street, Uwani.
Ossy Ugwuoti also of ABS Enugu and later a commissioner during former governor Chimaroke Nnamani administration was living in one room at Owerri road, Asata.
Osseloka Offor, who later became MD of ABS Radio was living in one room at Uli street, Onuasata.
Dr Maxwell Ngene, a former Special Adviser to Governor Chimaroke was living in their family house at Kaduna street, Ogui New layout.
The roll call is endless.
Ayogu Eze, now a Senator formerly representing Enugu North Senatorial Zone was living in one room at Bishop Ayogu Street, Uwani, during his IT.
Chigozie Ozim, then Sunday Editor of Satellite Newspapers then was living in their family house at Eugene Oba street, Uwani.
Chijioke Okibe, who later became a Special Adviser to governor Chiamroke Nnamani was living with his brother in a Boys quarters at the GRA.
Okechukwu Okereke of then FRCN was living in one room at Nike road, Abakpa.
Kanayo O. Kanayo, now a Nollywood celebrity was living in two rooms with his senior brother at Uwani.
Chinwetalu Agu, also a Nollywood star was living in one room at Onuasata.
Emeka Obinwa then of NTA “Zik Nna” fame was sharing a flat at Eugene Oba street Uwani with one Theo and Jude Onyeagolum also of NTA then .
Charlie Okwesili of then ABS was living in his father’s house at Obiagu road.
Emma Ikwueze, then Features Editor in Daily Star and later chairman of old Anambra State NUJ was living in two rooms at Bishop Anyogu street, Uwani.
Charlie Ede, “Okwulora”, a popular radio broadcaster at MINAJ Obosi was living with his uncle at Chief Alum extension, Ogui New layout.
Okey Iyama, then a popular broadcaster at ATV Channel 50 Enugu was living with his uncle at John Agbo Street.
Eddy Buster Anikwue of NTA Variety Show was living in 2 rooms at Udoji Street.
Sam Manley Okoh of NTA Sound City was living in two rooms at Awolowo Street.
Chuma Anyadiegwu of ABS then was living in his father’s house at Obiagu road.
The few people I knew living in a flat then were D. N. D. Onyeachor of the NTA Express Wagon then living at Nanka street, New Haven. Danquah (Victor) Oye, then Editor of Satellite newspaper Awka and former National Chairman of APGA, living in a well decorated flat at Awkunanaw and Tony Edochie, younger brother of Peter Edochie living in a flat at Achara layout.
I have listed these senior media men because they are popular people known to most people. Because of time, I don’t want to mention other big boys then like Fred Iwenjora of then Outlook newspaper who was living with his parents at Abakpa Nike.
Living in one room in those days did not depict poverty though. It was just the vogue in those days and people were happy and content living in their one room.
All you needed were beautifully designed door and window blinds, a clean set of chairs – one 2-seater and two singles – which one room can accommodate, a center table and may be a writing desk and then the latest radio cassette recorder and you are good to go. That made you a big boy.
Once I came back in the evening, sometimes in the night, I put on my blue or red light bulb and pressed my cassette recorder or Sanyo player for the newest music in town. Then I put on my Panasonic Television and my standing fan and that was that. The entire neighourhood knew the big boy is back.
That was what life was then, and everybody was contented. Not in this generation when young men want to have millions in pounds and dollars and still not satisfied.
A few years later, my senior brother, Ifeanyi, who was living in a flat at Osmund Crescent, Abakpa Nike, travelled to London and I left Obiagu and moved to Abakpa. A flat then was in the neighbourhood of N100. The house was owned by Pa Ofoje, the father of Ikechukwu Ofoje of Rangers International Enugu then. Next to our flat lived Cy, who later became the Manager of John Holt, Enugu. Next after was the Okwarajis, parents of Sam Okwaraji formerly of Green Eagles who later slumped and died on the football pitch during an international football game.
It was at Abakpa that I started media freelancing as a hobby which later led me to active participation in the media industry as a television artist and programme presenter, notably at Anambra Television Channel 5.0 in the old Anambra Broadcasting Service (ABS), Enugu.
One of my first clients was the then National President of Nigeria Civil Service Union, David Ojelli who was living at the Thinkers Corner then where I went with my friend, Emma Motanya to interview him. After the interview, he took me back to my place at Abakpa in his Volkswagen beetle car which was in vogue then. I became a hero of a sort that day as co-tenants and many residents of our street trooped out to welcome Ojelli to our street. He was very famous in those days as President of Nigeria Civil Service Union.
Now that I had an entire flat to myself and far away from my family house at Obiagu, I had the freedom to invite Deborah to my house without fear of my mom harassing and embarrassing me.
During one of the times my lover came to my house, I wouldn’t know who gossiped to my mother that a girl was in my house. As early as 6.30am the following morning, there was an authoritative knock on my front door followed by another authoritative call of my name. The voice was unmistakable. My mother!
How on earth could she have arrived to Abakpa from Obiagu so early, I wondered. The haste and urgency in her voice gave us no time to play any hide and seek as I rushed with full speed to open the door for her. I knew why she came, so there was no need for me to ask her. She instantly rushed into the parlour with the force of a suspicious investigator, almost pushing me down. Once inside, she went from one room to another. My heart was nearly jumping out of my body with fear and trembling.
There was one family friend Jude Okpala,now in America
and a young student who visited me often.
He was very familiar with everybody in the family. Though dark in complexion he had a facial of a girl just like my lover.
As my mother rushed into one of the rooms and saw a figure lying on the bed, fully covered with a wrapper and facing the wall, showing only the back of the head, she came out to ask me when Jude came.
I silently heaved a heavy sigh of momentary relief. So she did not recognize it was Deborah, I said to myself. I quickly replied her that Jude has been here for two days now. She left with the same haste with which she came. She said I had no need to escort her as she needed to rush back to start her business for the day.
After I bid her farewell, I rushed back to the room and there was Deborah smiling at me with the smile of a master of disguise and an ace actor, the expert manner she made sure mama did not see her face. And her head, as a young student, you cannot tell the difference between a boy and a girl when it comes to hair cut style. And that helped to confuse, or rather convince my mother that the person lying on the bed was a boy and not a girl.
That was how my lover and I beat my mother to her game in those of my youthful exuberance.
My mother is no more.
But I miss her every moment of my life till date.
My story here is meant to be a tribute to the most loving and caring mother in the world that my mother was.
She spent all her life teaching her children the way of God and good life, and doing everything to ensure we became responsible adults and in particular, that the boys among us were not ensnared by social vices, especially addict on women.
Reason she was so strict with us about women and wine.
I thank God that none of her siblings fell victim to women and wine till date.
