“…so Dike when
are we expecting the white wedding, you know it’s been a month since the
traditional marriage, you have left everyone in wondering contemplation” Frank
asked as he reached for the bottle of red win to refill his glass cup.
Dike stopped his
drink half way, lowered the glass cup from his mouth and asked Frank, feigning
ignorance “Which wedding are you talking about”
“Yours now, abi
you will just do only traditional marriage and go and start making babies?”
Now Dike let out
a smirk, then he dropped the glass cup half filled with wine on the beautifully
calved wooden side stool standing by the side of his exquisite leather chair,
he then adjusted, now completely facing Frank
“Let me tell you
something my friend, I’m not white, so why will I need to do a white wedding?
you don’t see white people going about doing black wedding before they consider
themselves man and wife. You know this mental slavery have gone deeper than you
and I can understand”
“You have
started with this your slavery talk again” Frank rebuffed almost immediately “it
is this same careless freedom speech that cost you the contract with FZ
holdings even after your perfect proposal, I’m advising you as a concerned
friend, even if it’s a low key wedding just do it and be properly recognized”
“properly
recognized? Your words amaze me, I paid the complete dowry on Tade’s head, she
is in my house with the permission and goodwill of her father and his kinsmen
that is how it is done in our culture as Africans, which other recognition is
greater than this? and for the FZ
holdings issue, I was not careless, it is the heavy clog of cultural
inferiority that have clouded their reasoning, if you say otherwise, then tell
me why the HR will ask for my English name when my nationality clearly stated
that I’m a Nigerian, I simply told the guy that I was from Nigeria and not
England so I don’t have an English name and that was it, tell me how that is
being careless…”
“Ok, I agree
that you were not careless, but you can’t change the world you have to just let
these things go you are almost alone on this…”
“Yes, I agree”
Dike cut in “I can’t change the world “but let it not be said that the world
changed me.
“You see Frank,
it is very important that we talk about these things, we have to keep these
things in mind because from the beginning the battle have always been the
battle of the mind and right now our minds appear to have been conquered, why
else will one mishap from the west dominate our media space but the news of Nigerians
dying every day from preventable tragic situations never make it pass the
newspaper paper headline at best. Right now South Sudan is sliding into abyss,
Somalia is in chaos and Libya is falling apart but Nigerians will rather tweet
about Brexit and hashtag pray for France.
“Why will we
call our own traditional African religion evil, refer to its followers as
heathens and as if that is not enough insult, we go ahead to kill our fellow
Africans in defense of a foreign religion.
“Recently I
heard someone saying the ‘appropriate’ name for Garri is ‘Grain O’ fibres’ and
the reason for the new name was; so that it will sound presentable, Presentable?
to who? Why will we look for ‘English names’ for our own delicacies, cultivated
and prepared here in Africa.
“I understand
the concept of globalization, and I also know that everybody has something to
bring to the table, but we Africans are always in a hurry to jettison our
indigenous ways and practices for anything foreign, for so long we have
mistaken Westernization for development…”
“Oya Dike sorry”
Frank interrupted “Enough of the lecture, don’t do white wedding again,
traditional marriage is okay, just let me have my drink in peace abeg”
Dike heaved a
huge sigh, he appeared disappointed, he spoke again but this time in a lower
tone “….it started from speaking the white man’s language and bearing his names,
it has passed the stage of adopting his deity, now we are at the stage of
trying to change our skin color to look like he’s and you still think this is about
marriage, no, it is about a race and a people whose culture and identity is
about to be wiped off…”
