|
Winter
1997
|
Catherine
Zastrow Onyemelukwe, Editor
|
Vol.
1, No. 3
|
Passing of a Hero
Death
of a President
Nigerian
License Plates
When I saw Jonathan in late December, I asked him to tell me about Zik. He said that in the early days of his ministry, he had buried Zik's mother, Ogbeabo. Years later he performed the funeral for Flora, Zik's wife. He also preached at Zik's 76th birthday celebration and dedicated his Onitsha house the same day. Through his years of correspondence and meetings with Zik, Jonathan felt that his emphasis on Zungeru (in the North) as his birthplace was an example of his dedication to one Nigeria, a unified country. He wanted to show that a small northern town was not so obscure as many Nigerians believed, but was an important part of the country.
I asked why there was so much adulation at Zik's death and funeral. Jonathan said that Nigerians realized that Zik had done all he could to unify the country. My husband added that Zik had resisted joining with the Yorubas in the early 60's to form a united block, because he realized that would divide the country. Instead he threw in his lot with the Northerners.
Jonathan said that Zik was without doubt the greatest of Nigeria's leaders; he completely dwarfed his contemporaries and rivals. In recognition of this, the airport in Abuja, the new capital, was named after him. Someday Jonathan may publish his correspondence with Zik - I hope so.
[Zik] was buried in front
of his house in Onitsha, at a state funeral. A monument was erected at the grave,
which I saw as we drove past on the four-lane Onitsha-Enugu expressway. Although
the monument was easily visible from the road, there were no signs; I would
have missed it had not my husband pointed it out.
(Return
to Top)
I had wondered about him for years. After all, I had attended his inauguration, sort of. At Independence, Zik, as everyone called him, was named Governor-General, the Queen's representative with very limited powers. Three years later, when the Constitution was amended to make Nigeria a Republic, the Governor-General was replaced with President. Parliament elected Zik, and inauguration was set for Independence Day, October 1, 1963. I lived a half block off the Racecourse, a colonial relic whose stands were ideal for Inaugural guests. For the occasion, I selected a vantage point at a roundabout near the entrance into the grounds, with the U.S. Embassy to my right.
The morning heat was rising
fast. Some time before noon, the State House gates opened and out came an old
Rolls Royce convertible with Zik in the back seat, wearing the uniform of a
Field Marshall because he was constitutionally the Commander in Chief. The public
shouted, "Zik, Zik." Following the Rolls came a parade of military
vehicles. The soldiers and their vehicles
were so spiffed they looked unreal, rather than menacing. Five years later,
my toy soldiers would begin the civil wars and coups that ended my new President's
political life.
(Return to Top)
NIGERIA
GETS NEW LICENSE PLATES