HOW NNEKA LOST HER DECENCY

THE BID Poetry Collection.

The concept of decency can be derived from so many definitions. We can see it as; having a suitable conformity to basic moral standards; showing integrity, fairness, or other characteristics associated with moral uprightness or one that's sufficiently clothed or dressed to be seen. In this context, decency speaks for the above definition as I take you to memory lane of how Nneka a young vibrant girl lost her decency and how she got exposed to the western life which consumed the very good moral standards (if that's even correct) in her.


During the 1970's immediately after the Biafra-Nigeria Civil Genocide War against the Igbo race, a young girl Nneka was one of the few opportune girls that left the country to further her education abroad in the UK. Before then, Nneka who was tutored in a Christian and cultural manner, what I will term as "traditional believes" of the Igbo people. Decency was one of our watchwords for upbringing of any child(ren) as a member of the society. Life then was peaceful and engaging with everyone having regard for the societal values and culture. We saw a world filled with pride, fear for the elderly and respect for each other. Greetings in the morning was a compulsory act for the elderly ones and, morning chores for the little ones was seen as their own way of becoming responsible, and this singular act place us as one of the most valued society in the world as crimes and other immoral acts are shamelessly dealt with and less in the society. When Nneka the poor girl who was about getting outside the  country during this period, during when the Igbo people are recovering from the Civil Genocide committed to them by the then Nigeria Government, in compensation, the Government took few of the indigenes which Nneka was one of them, abroad to further their studies and help revitalize the very loss that the region has encountered as a result of the senseless and bloody war. Nneka being a girl who has been exposed to the norms and cultural believes of the Igbos who are Christians in  majority— got abroad and discovered a life, to her was more advanced, free and fair to all and she lost that moral setting we have at home and, our very sense of purpose and identification to the western life.


Nneka got engaged and exposed to the activities of the white men whose traditions and culture are what she is now living with even if she can't perceive it because of the comparisons with our very own traditions which give high sense of decency to every matter in the society. She became curious and anxious to find out why we are who we are. She was taught in her class that; we Africans are primitive and haven't been exposed to the development and modern ways of doing things. This confusion about our class of persons made her to think we are backwards and that, we are suffering from setbacks from the war, as everyone is behaving the same way. She started seeing our traditions as a curse instead of a blessing, she starting mimicking our ways of life as everything we do now irritates her. Nneka having gotten exposed, she lost the very essence of life of the Igbos — all the lies she was told about Africans and all the things she saw that made her to undervalue our culture and traditions. For instance, she forgot that the white men doesn't have traditional weddings, and that their white wedding is their own traditional wedding. She was brainwashed that our wears or sense of clothing are not fashionable enough that being half naked or even naked is the trending fashion. She saw how the white men children calls their fathers and mothers by their names and have no regards for anyone, as the son can even jail the father if he tries to caution him. So much for one lady to see and now, she have to bring that behavior back to Africa, Nigeria precisely, and to the Igbo people who had suffered from the war and who the Government of the day gave twenty pounds even if they have more than that in their bank accounts, and whose properties are snatched forcefully from them, even when some of them are willing to sell them. Nneka brought home this ugly trend in the name of improvement and advancement of ways of life to the Igbo people.

She got home in the late 70s and started misbehaving with her new found way of life, just like the missionaries did, she wants to force and impose it on the people because she has gotten the money which is a drive for the Igbo people as of then, most of them are desperately searching for greener pastures as most of their properties and businesses had been destroyed during the war. She started promising the young women better ways and the men better opportunities even with her bad influence on the people although, the people were confused because of her way of life; she wears a half-naked dress, doesn't have a single atom of respect for the elders, as everyone is her mates, she is too boastful and so proud because she thinks she is free to do as she wants just like the western culture. These people immediately went to their village hall, what is known as "community hall" to stage a meeting specifically for Nneka and her misleading ways to the people. The people who had about fourteen hours discussions, that's to tell you how shameful and disrespectful the village elders sees her behavior and culture, and after several deliberations,  the people resolved at Ostracising her, what we call "Banishing" from the village. These call shows that, the Igbo race doesn't tolerate nonsense, despite the gains they can derive from her wealths of knowledge, but in exchange of tarnishing that very wealths of knowledge built and reserved by the ancestors, their "forefathers". Nneka who couldn't understand why her people disregarded and disassociated themselves from her, she was amazed that this people are still primitive truly just like what the white men see us as. But the truth is that, those white men sold us out in order to install and impose their traditions and believes on us while disregarding ours.

Nneka lost contacts with her people over what she regarded as "foolish backwards generation". That was late 70s when the people are recovering from the pains of the Biafra Civil Genocide War by the Nigeria Government of then. The white men insulted us by seeing all we do as primitive and ancient, how? China didn't go by their ways, Japan and other European countries like Belgium stood for what they believed in, they value their traditions and customs more than anything. You can't just messed up our tradition because one of our own decided to get exposed and explore the opportunities from your country. We Igbos have our customs and traditions which is one with respect, decency and dignity. We don't teach our people to behave indecent, or disrespectful. We are cultured people, we have high sense of purpose for everything around us, and everyone around us matters a lot. We have our informal way of learning which is one of the ways one learns till death which is very rich.

You stole our proverbs and many other of our believes and modernised it and call it advancement. You taught our people that nothing is wrong in disrespecting the elderly, and now we have increased crime rate in our lands. You polluted us with your fashion which irritates the very sense of fashion we have from generation. We could have advanced in our own ways, but you speed up development and advancement for us with your ridiculous and abusive trends and fashion sense. We had our own kind of tattooing on our body which is very beautiful and speaks more about us but your Christianity stole that too from us. We could had have it our way but, you took our people into slavery and forced them to behave like you; so they can abandon what makes us unique.

If Nneka haven't traveled far away or the white men haven't invaded our lands in the name of missionary works, colonization or slaving, we won't be having these mental slaving of not valuing what we have as traditions and adding so much value to the white men ways of life that's abusive to our traditions and believes, what I call "mental emancipation" — we need to be free and value that which makes us unique and identifiable.


Okoroji Chidiebere Alexander
Published by 5-6-2019
Netcraft Global Concerns Ltd