I am inexplicably happy that a delegation of Haitians are reportedly in Enugu at the moment to trace their Igbo roots.
I have read somewhere that many Haitians have Igbo roots and that nowhere is Igbo culture deeply embedded in all of South America as in Haiti. I also read about the Igbo presence in Jamaica. In fact, a certain Jamaican lady in Awka once told me that the first time she saw me, she stiffled a scream. I am a spitting image of her father back in Jamaica. She said it took her a while to believe that I was not her father.
I think I am fascinated by the decision of the Haitians to look into the dark tunnel of painful history. I think we should reciprocate this gesture by establishing robust cultural ties with Haiti and Jamaica. Some years ago, Chinua Achebe delivered a lecture to mark the 200 years anniversary of the end of the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade in Jamaica. It was historic. It was a great beginning that was never sustained.
This is not one of those ideas where everyone waits hands akimbo for the government. Igbo cultural groups like Ohaneze, Aka Ikenga and Mkpoko Igbo can lead this initiative.
Umu nnem, nno nu o!
May the spirits of our ancestors give you the light you seek.
Credit: James Eze
