Celebrating “Bro Ehigie” at 70, by Tunde Ollusunle

He is 70 70 years old on Sunday 1 June 2025. A thanksgiving and celebration service of the reference point were scheduled for the same day in Benin City, the capital of the Edo state, his hometown. The city is a peculiar Cosmopoli imbued with very rich history, a confontible myth and even curious mysticism. It is right to reflect on the life and career of a non -biological brother, Ehigie Edobor Uzamere, whom I have known for almost five decades now. In fact, for those of us who arrive several decades in the calendar of time with him, his latest names and the honors are new for us. The mobility of my parents’ work precipitated the transfer of our family from Kaduna, capital of the primordial “Central State of the North”, to Benin City, Capitol of the old “Midwest State”, in 1972. My father led the kaduna branch of “Livestock Feeds Ltd”, which was then a primordial branch “Pfizer Ltd.” My mother was an nurse and midwife in the employee of the “Health Management Council of the Central State of the North”. Our first address was in “Second East Circular Road”, Benin City.

As our family grew, at the time we were looking for a larger residential structure in the “New Benin District”. In the middle of 1975, we moved to “Erasoyen Street”, adjacent to “Oziegbe Street” in a property owned by the Uzamere family. The world was a much better place. Uzameres did not receive us as locataries of their property but as clan extensions. For Iye, Mrs. Izegbuwa Lucy Uzamere, Matriarch of their dynasty, and my brothers were also his children. The eldest son of Iye, Osaheni Uzamere, expert administrator and subsequently lawyer, was the head of the family. He took me specifically because he was a pupil of the venerated immaculate conception college (ICC), Benin City, where I also had my secondary school training. The Uzamere family was mainly populated by the boys. Albert, the youngest of Iye’s children, was my direct contemporary. We proceeded in Apace in our various secondary schools. Immediately above Albert was George, who was next to Ehigie.

He has been setting out there in the United States of America for some time, (USA), there was Ehigie’s older brother, John, (now of Benedetta Memoria). Humphrey and Wellington, half brothers of Ehigie were regularly around. Ehigie was something similar to the unofficial “boy chief” within that space. We all deferred him who culminated in our baptizing it Fr Ehigie. Despite our sociocultural diversity, Ehigie Uzamere showed the leadership among us the boys of the house. He was interested in our academic performance and regularly sought updates on our tests and exams. Usually he called our response sheets and pages. He identified my competence in English and literature in English and would have warned us on sharing knowledge. His brother Ehigie soon joined John Uzamere in the United States and swore to convince my parents to allow me to join him once he had settled. To tell the truth, it obtained the admission to the State University of New York, (Suny), not long after, based on my academic transcriptions. Later I published a division One performance with distinctions in the examination of the certificate of the West Africa school, (Wasce) O’Level that I wrote at the age of 15. My parents feared they were too young to live outside their sight, all alone at that age, if I were allowed to go abroad.

Ehigie Uzamere visited home quite often. From his luggage every time he came, we have collected the albums of new and current foreign musical releases. My first physical and auditory encounters with the works of many foreign artists those beautiful old times came from the collections of Bro Ehigie. These include versions of Ray Parker Jnr; Diana Ross; To Hudson and one way; Sugarhill gangs; Bill Summers and Summers Heat; Johnson brothers, “Stomp;” Prince, “I want to be your lover”, Michael Jackson’s “off the wall” and so on. Usually when he vacated in Benin City, he was hosted for some concerts by his friends. We are the youngest troupe we would dress in the best and tagged with him. My parents were ultra-stricted with the rules, in particular those years in which one was still an early early teenager. The name of Bro Ehigie, however, could make use of a little latitude.

In 1980, my family moved to Ilorin in the state of Kwara. After several years in the “diaspora” in the Nigerian context, my parents thought that we should gravitate the house. Telephony was not as sophisticated as it is today, but somehow I kept in touch with Benin City. On the other side of the road to Uzamere, there were the ehigators, a family very close to ours. Osabuohien ehigiator, (that his soul rest in peace) was my excellent friend and schoolmate. Through him and members of his family, I was able to stay in touch with our common friends in Benin City. After qualified as an architect in the United States, Ehigie Uzamere went against wheat. While many Nigerians who have had the opportunity for a foreign living room they opted to stay in the countries where they studied, Uzamere has returned home. He believed he could contribute to the development of his country of origin, despite the privilege of double citizenship.

He underwent the national service body of one year compulsory year, (NYSC) with the Blessed Development and Property Authority, (BPDA), which has maintained its services to the completion of the year. Not long after, he opted for self -employment and established a chain of private companies with interests in architecture and construction; supply; Medical and pharmaceutical hardware; Water processing and transmission. He ventured into politics and was elected senator representing Edo South in 2007 and re -elected for a second term in 2011. He made history as the first parliamentarian to be elected on the platforms of two different political parties, the Democratic Party of the peoples (PDP) and the PDP) and the congress of Action of Nigeria, (ACN), in the Edo State. During his period in the Federal Parliament, he contributed to repositioning his senatorial district at the center of national politics. Nothing more the bidographic, the intentional marginalization of Edo South in the national scheme.

Working with friendly political leaders from his pelvis, he galvanized the support for the appointment of one of his voters as deputy chancellor of the University of Benin. It was the first time in the life of the institution. He also anchored the recognition of one of his as CEO of the Nigerian Institute for Oil Palm Research, (Nifor), which is domiciled in his Senatorial District. In all these, Uzamere remains renowned for his policy of civilization. Not for him the illegality, the offenders and the violence that characterize our policy in some parts. You needed to experiment with its connection with the base, in the way one of those days that took me from Benin City airport was also used. It is known by a large percentage of commuters in the place and moves without a solution of continuity to *Bini* Language while committed to them. Do not be surprised when ehigie Uzamere and I conversed in particular in English Pidgin. We have peculiar expressions understood only by initiates.

The greatest source of joy, happiness and realization of Uzamere is his beautiful family. He was married to his very familiar wife, Iriagbonse Irowa, for 43 years. The union was blessed by God with many children and grandchildren. He has a name for pets for each of his children even if he eternally punctuates his grandchildren. He never lacks the opportunity to bring together his family under the same roof, in his houses, in Benin City, Abuja or Atlanta, especially during the holidays. He would spontaneously install the photo shoots for his grandchildren. Contentment and gratitude are generally written on its face. You have the feeling that happily builds an expansive building, delimited by the perimeters themselves so that they can wake up every morning and visit each family unit to see how everyone is going.

The loyalty of Uzamere to friendship is phenomenal. Under the rain or the sun, it remains with you. Despite the suspicions of the serial subversions of the popular will by the main electoral obstetrics of the nation in the 2019 and 2023 presidential elections, he blocked himself with his favorite candidate, the former vice -president Atiku Abubakar, through thick and subtle thick. When it is not on the entourage of Atiku, Uzamere would be on the delegation to receive Atiku at the airport, regardless of the hour of the day. It is not given to prevarication, it is never on the enclosure for issues. Takes a position and remains with it. He will remind you that at his age and stature as an elderly statesman, it is too late to interpret the chameleon.

I tasted a homemade rice meal for dinner with him during one of my visits. He was, wrapped in green leaves, reformulating the uncommon terrosity of Uzamere, despite his consolidated cosmopolitanism. While I exhausted the stew for my meal, simply took my portion of rice and moved the contents in the stew. Pidgin observed in English: *When it is not a soup again, just transfer the food into the bowl of soup,* He conferences to me with an accompanying smile. Uzamere is in the constant self-controlled activity. Once he told me, not long ago, that he had recorded himself for a master’s degree in business economy. I asked why he had returned to school. He recalled that the former Obasanjo OluSEGUN President with whom I worked, he returned to the classroom after being the leader of the nation for two terms, in his 70s.

This is celebrating with a long -standing brother, Ehigie Edobor Uzamere, while joining the privileged ranks of the sectgenarian and wish him many other years in good health.

● Tunde Ollusun, PhD, Fellow of the Association of Nigerian Authors, (Fana), is a creative writing contract professor at the University of Abuja.