My biggest ambition for the year had been to take my book, Victor Banjo, to Eastern Nigeria. I thought that if I have written a book against the cessation call by the Indigenous People of Biafra from Nigeria, there was no better place to tell the story than in Igbo land itself. So I reached out to friends in Enugu and the trip was planned. November 2, a Friday, I was on my way to Eastern Nigeria to discuss my book with the people of Enugu. This would be my first trip to Eastern Nigeria.
Prior to going to Enugu, my mind had been filled with all kinds of misconceptions about Igbo land. I had people around me who were certain that I was going to meet a certain death in the East. “How dare you go to the East and criticize Ojukwu?” I was warned. It was not that I was not afraid; I think the sheer thought of adventure overshadowed all my fears. I was however afraid of being kidnapped; so I never broadcasted my location on social media throughout my stay in Enugu, except when I was at public meetings. I would learn during my stay that kidnapping is history in Enugu.
Mentally, I was prepared for the close to ten hour trip from Ibadan to Enugu but by the time we were leaving Awka, I was beginning to get desperate. We entered the city of Enugu at about 6:30pm and the first thing that took my breadth away was looking at the vast spread of the city from the heights of the Milliken Hills. It was a beautiful sight to behold. The State Government of Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi had only recently refurbished the road that snaked through the hills at the entrance to the city and had provided lightings and barriers against cars falling off the edges. The sight of the city from that height put a hunger in me to see more of Enugu from that moment.
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