A KEYNOTE ADDRESS DELIVERED BY HER EXCELLENCY, AMBASSADOR DR. UBA IWUNWA (HRM UGOBEZE), FOUNDER & CHAIRPERSON, IKENGA ABIAMA HUMANITARIAN ASSEMBLY ABIRIBA (IAHAA) DURING THE UNVEILING OF HER BOOK, ‘THE RISING OF IKENGA (LOVE BEYOND DEATH) AT THE IMO STATE UNIVERSITY, OWERRI, IMO STATE ON JUNE 2ND 2023.
Protocols!
Good morning distinguished students and participants. First, I must apologize for my inability to be present for the unveiling of this book, ‘The Rising of Ikenga’ (Love Beyond Death). Believe me, I would have loved to be present at this important event today but for circumstances beyond my control. Nevertheless, I have no doubt that this event will open a new vista of hope for future intellectual engagement and mutually beneficial relationships for all of us.
My dear students, let me equally express my immense joy and satisfaction for being able to deliver this book: ‘The Rising of Ikenga’ (Love Beyond Death) at this point in time. This book may be an imperfect fictional work of art but it carries with it a strong message that resonates with youths who are at a critical juncture at this point in time.
This book is an epic past-life love story connecting to a real-time soulmate connection. As we all know, love is the most powerful healing tool God gave to mankind. Love lives on even in death; love never dies. The main character in this journeyed through bitter life challenges to reach the realization to embrace an act of forgiveness as the fundamental key to true love.
As a writer, this storyline has empowered me to embrace the originality and authenticity of the epic love practiced by our ancestors, live it and pass it on to the next generation in a work of art (book). This deep-seated knowledge that you can never fight darkness with darkness and that the only weapon to destroy evil is love has been largely helpful to me. I became a global ambassador because of my pride in and strong desire towards showcasing the epic values of my African heritage.
My steps were divinely guided by the oracle of creation to sing the songs of Africa, feature or produce movies that immortalize the rich African cultural heritage as well as Preach Africa, Dance the rhythms of Africa, and Write tales of Africa. I have a strong belief that with my contribution towards the invocation of the oracle of Mother Africa, I can print my name in the sand of time for generations unborn.
Why did I choose students as the audience for the unveiling of this book? You may be wondering. Well, the answer is simple: I feel there is a deep connection between myself and most of you. I was once a young lady, pursuing my education in a Nigerian school in a Nigerian society. Somehow, I have passed through the road you are traveling and I consider myself lucky to have successfully scaled through the obstacle courses on my way to be where I am today. By the grace of God, I have moved from that young girl from Ogbo Hill Aba to a Canadian-based global peace ambassador and a multiple award-winning author and artiste.
The lead character in this novel, Ikenga Enu, was not as lucky as any of you seated in this hall. The politics of polygamous marriage had robbed him of the opportunity to complete his primary and secondary education and possibly university. We all know that sound education is the key to unlocking our intellectual and creative potential; and that once we fail to acquire it, we become vulnerable and our chances of spending our lives trying to escape the clutches of poverty remain high.
In this book, you will be thrilled to learn that Ikenga went through many things as a child, including being exposed to sexual life at early adolescent age and contracting Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI). He was lucky to survive that disease and the psychological scar that came with it. You will also find out as you read through this book that most challenges and obstacles encountered by Ikenga strengthened his resolve to succeed and in the end, he triumphed.
The fact remains that the road to success is not usually a smooth ride. On a daily basis, we are confronted by different situations that test our resolve to either stay on our path or change our direction. As a teenager, you are obviously at the beginning of your adult life. Most people at this stage in life are driven by exuberance and so prone to mistakes. But, how you channel your youthful energies, challenge yourself to get the best out of whatever you are doing, and how to correct the mistakes you make along the way will determine whether you will eventually make it to the top.
Today, the Nigerian education system is besotted with myriads of problems, and most students have lost focus and commitment to acquiring sound knowledge and using them for the greater good of society. We are now fixated on just graduating and getting the certificate, without recourse to being adjudged worthy in both character and learning as graduates of institutions of higher learning.
Permit me to seize this opportunity to express my great worry over the rising social lifestyle of ‘hook-up’ on our campuses in Nigeria. The fact remains that most parents and guardians toil daily and deprive themselves of basic things to ensure that their children acquire higher degrees and better their lives. It is a great disservice to anyone whose parents suffer such deprivations to train in the university to abandon her education to engage in hook-up which I understand is the newest slang for prostitution.
No matter what reasons one may have for indulging in such a social lifestyle, the truth remains that the risks and potential adverse consequences on one’s future far outweigh the temporal gains. The same thing can be said of the young guys who now engage in internet fraud and rituals in their desperate bid to make quick money and indulge in a luxurious lifestyle. Cultism, examination malpractices, sorting, and ‘sex-for-marks’ remain some of the cankerworms that are deep-lying in the system.
The Nigerian campuses have become theatres of absurdities and sordid lifestyles rather than ivory towers of intellectual purification. That is the reality of our time. Our students no longer burn the midnight candles. They spend most of their time on social media rather than on their studies. And with the crisis of poor teaching and learning currently rocking our nation, the future of our current generation of students looks grim.
This is partly the reason I decided to bring the unveiling of this book to your school. It’s the only opportunity I have to call your attention to the dangers lurking around us. The youths are the future of this country. But how can we make their future bright in the face of the current realities staring all of us in the face? The unemployment rate is soaring and there is no job. And many do not have the skills and funds to start their own businesses upon graduation. The implication is that an increasing army of graduates who would find no opportunities within the areas of specialization are being shunned out of universities, polytechnics, mono-technic, and colleges of education on an annual basis.
At this juncture, I wish to implore you to do what the lead character in the book did. Remain committed to your dreams, work extra hard on your studies, improve your creative abilities, and leave the rest to God. Opportunities are limited but for those who have the skillsets needed for the emerging digital economy, I can bet that they won’t be short of opportunities.
Today, I’m a nine-time Honorary Doctorate Award recipient in Diplomacy, Philosophy, Peace, and Human Rights, accredited through global humanitarian leadership, as well as the World Peace Diplomatic Ambassador of Canada. But did not achieve that success on a platter of gold. In many cases, I almost worked myself to death in order to achieve my target.
In fact, pushing myself harder and working extra hard had become my personal work ethic and to date, I do the kind of things that people at my age and level cannot do. I do them because of my burning desire to sustain my humanitarian work and contribution to global cultural heritage exchange through music, movies, educational lectures, and performing arts.
On this note, I wish to inform you that I have given a directive that the book be shared to participants so that they go home, read, and take home the underlying messages contained in this book. My prayer is that many years down the line, many of you, inspired by me, would have achieved greater success and even wrote better books than me. Remain blessed!
Dr. Uba is a Nigerian-Canadian Artist, Actress, and #1 International Bestseller (Guinness World Record) author. She takes pride in her cultural background and devotes her life and creativity towards the promotion of African cultural diversity and heritage as well as her work of charity through her foundation, Ikenga Abia Humanitarian Assembly Abirima.