A Speech by the host - Omorodion S. Uwaifo - on the occasion of
The Opening of The FOXHOLE, 11, Maryland Crescent, Maryland Ikeja
December 16, 2010 @ 4 pm
Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to The Foxhole.
As sowers of words whether as journalists, writers of whatever literary genre, illustrators, publishers or printers, some of you must have wondered why this place is called The Foxhole - a give-away name if ever there is one. The answer is simple. We live in a beleaguered country and have little time for decoding difficult aphorisms.
We are preparing for yet another volcano. Geysers are erupting everywhere in the land to warn us if we have not built our bunkers. Like those who taught us to sing, we are sworn to this rondo every four years whether the choir is right or wrong. We can't complain. From the onset, our leaders decided we were minstrels and they painted us white because black was not right. It did not matter that we were several peoples of small, weak or strong countries before the master race colonised us; we were now one country. Yes, we have never governed a country as large, but the master race has ruled us their way for some five decades and has trained us. They rule their own country and other countries as well; they occupy the cutting edge of technology and progress. Their way must be right. What time do we have sorting hybrid methods of rule from a fading library of memories? Everything wrong will turn out right; patience is all we require; we don't have to reinvent the wheel.
The master race left. Bang went the gun. Our rulers shot out of the starting blocks faster than Bolt. But O God our help, they were blind! They ran all over the place crashing into obstacles - ditches, hills, buffs, rivers, valleys, latrines and many even more treacherous impediments. Soon they found that only fellow runners mattered. They crashed into themselves; some were hurt, some maimed, a few killed; what do you expect of blind runners even if they are leaders?
At the starting blocks, they knew themselves and their folks - friends, neighbours and fathers, mothers, Oba, chiefs - all they hold dear and respect in their traditional societies were there to support them. They broke the gun and ran farther and farther away. Now, they have run so far away from the people that the country might as well be governed by aliens from a different galaxy. The question is, what happened to the way we ruled ourselves as ethnic nations before the master race came? Some of the ruling systems might require the most minor of new ideas to make them work better even in this twenty-first century.
Yet, The Foxhole is NOT a soapbox for political parties. It is a private place where writers may come together to voice their concerns or fears of a wilting society; or to discuss the hopes and promises of an emerging nation - her plays, songs, inventions and contributions to the development of the human race. Thank you for coming and for listening.
The Opening of The FOXHOLE, 11, Maryland Crescent, Maryland Ikeja
December 16, 2010 @ 4 pm
Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to The Foxhole.
As sowers of words whether as journalists, writers of whatever literary genre, illustrators, publishers or printers, some of you must have wondered why this place is called The Foxhole - a give-away name if ever there is one. The answer is simple. We live in a beleaguered country and have little time for decoding difficult aphorisms.
We are preparing for yet another volcano. Geysers are erupting everywhere in the land to warn us if we have not built our bunkers. Like those who taught us to sing, we are sworn to this rondo every four years whether the choir is right or wrong. We can't complain. From the onset, our leaders decided we were minstrels and they painted us white because black was not right. It did not matter that we were several peoples of small, weak or strong countries before the master race colonised us; we were now one country. Yes, we have never governed a country as large, but the master race has ruled us their way for some five decades and has trained us. They rule their own country and other countries as well; they occupy the cutting edge of technology and progress. Their way must be right. What time do we have sorting hybrid methods of rule from a fading library of memories? Everything wrong will turn out right; patience is all we require; we don't have to reinvent the wheel.
The master race left. Bang went the gun. Our rulers shot out of the starting blocks faster than Bolt. But O God our help, they were blind! They ran all over the place crashing into obstacles - ditches, hills, buffs, rivers, valleys, latrines and many even more treacherous impediments. Soon they found that only fellow runners mattered. They crashed into themselves; some were hurt, some maimed, a few killed; what do you expect of blind runners even if they are leaders?
At the starting blocks, they knew themselves and their folks - friends, neighbours and fathers, mothers, Oba, chiefs - all they hold dear and respect in their traditional societies were there to support them. They broke the gun and ran farther and farther away. Now, they have run so far away from the people that the country might as well be governed by aliens from a different galaxy. The question is, what happened to the way we ruled ourselves as ethnic nations before the master race came? Some of the ruling systems might require the most minor of new ideas to make them work better even in this twenty-first century.
Yet, The Foxhole is NOT a soapbox for political parties. It is a private place where writers may come together to voice their concerns or fears of a wilting society; or to discuss the hopes and promises of an emerging nation - her plays, songs, inventions and contributions to the development of the human race. Thank you for coming and for listening.
--
Toyin Falola
Department of History
The University of Texas at Austin
1 University Station
Austin, TX 78712-0220
USA
512 475 7224
512 475 7222 (fax)
http://www.toyinfalola.com/
www.utexas.edu/conferences/africa
http://groups.google.com/group/yorubaaffairs
http://groups.google.com/group/USAAfricaDialogue
Department of History
The University of Texas at Austin
1 University Station
Austin, TX 78712-0220
USA
512 475 7224
512 475 7222 (fax)
http://www.toyinfalola.com/
www.utexas.edu/conferences/africa
http://groups.google.com/group/yorubaaffairs
http://groups.google.com/group/USAAfricaDialogue
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