Dr Uche NworahThe trending video of superstar Davido and his traditional marriage (Igba Nkwu), to his wife, Chef Chioma, in Lagos, a location outside Igboland, reminds of how the fear of insecurity, banditry and kidnapping has negatively impacted the South-East economy.
I lived in Anambra State between 2014 to 2022 and witnessed first hand how events such as weddings, burials, title taking etc, boosted the local Anambra State economy. Such events had a trickle-down effect on the rural folks who provided sundry services as caterers, ushers, musicians, hotels, food vendors, drinks and canopy suppliers DJs etc. Street urchins, beggars and praise singers (ndi oti mkpu) also get in on the act.
Events still happen in the South-East but not anymore in great numbers as was the case previously. Many due to fear of being kidnapped choose to stay away from events in the South-East preferring to send financial support to the event organisers. Many also host such events in cities such as Lagos, Abuja etc. Poor attendance of events in the South-East is also not helped by the high cost of flights to the South-East which currently costs N150,000 one-way.
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Organising events in the South-East come with peculiar challenges. Your two eyes have to be wide open. We recently buried our matriarch in Anambra and spent huge resources on honorarium for members of security services including army, police, local vigilante and civil defence.
Some people when they brave it and fly into town to attend events are afraid to venture out at night, preferring day-time movements. On the day of our matriarch’s service of songs at Enugwu-Ukwu, we had so many guests holed up in their hotel rooms afraid of coming out to attend because they were afraid of what might happen. Two persons from among them had fallen victim to kidnappers in April 2024 while attending a friend’s father’s service of songs at Ukpo. They have not recovered from that terrible experience.
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Thinking out aloud, had Chef Chioma’s traditional wedding taken place in her hometown in the South-East, and Davido was to bring in his celebrity friends, family and well wishers along, the impact on the local economy will be enormous.
It’s never too late for South-Easterners to retrace their steps. ‘Na we dey do our self’.
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