One year after his death, late sociopolitical activist and ex-spokesman for Afenifere, Yinka Odumakin’s wife and partner on the field of struggle, Dr Joe Okei-Odumakin, speaks to Punch on what life has been for the family, while also X-raying the polity.
Dr Joe Okei-Odumakin who opened up about her late husband’s relationship with their children revealed that it was not only his wish for one of his children to step into his shoes as an activist but it was his programme. And according to her, “the programme is running nicely” as he fully intended for their son, Yinka, “to be filled with that fire”.
Excerpts
It’s one year since your husband passed on. What words capture this one year without him?
There are no words apt enough to capture the awesome manifestation of the Divine in our lives. His painful exit turned out to be grand entry. Our grievous loss turned out to be bountiful yield. Our tears, you could see, have been wiped away. We can’t stop missing him but we are filled with gratitude that God ordered it like this. What if our hands remained empty? We would still have been grateful through our tears and emptiness. We are grateful…those are the words.
In what ways do you miss him most?
How have your children coped? What exactly did you tell them to encourage them?
There’s no playbook for this kind of tragedy. We bonded more to go through the trial that destiny put in our path. We touch more than speak words. We cry together and remember together. Now, we are more than before. Our strength has increased, because he (my husband) refused to leave us, because God approved his request. We bond, whether far or near each other.
The twins that you had after his passing must be a consolation to you. What exactly do they mean to you amid this new experience of not having your husband beside you?
They mean he is here. The finality of death has been affected. Its sharpness blunted. He lives. He just transformed and this kind of translation is the ultimate consolation – the balm of Gilead. Now I know better the meaning of that song: “Death, where is thy sting? Grave, where is thy victory?” They (the twins) are the triumph over the certainty of death.
Your husband was someone whose path crossed many people’s and his struggle affected many in different ways. Did that translate to help for you in his absence?
Life does not work out as predictably as that. However, I have chosen to be thankful for the few who stand by us rather than dwell on the many who already moved on. The people he positively touched in life are not under compulsion to do anything in his wake. That’s how life works. We are grateful he touched many lives. We are thankful few still ask how we are faring.
What is being done to mark his memories one year after his transition?
We marked his one-year anniversary on Friday, the 15th of April. Of the (days in the) entire calendar, Good Friday was his sacred day. A day he also passed onto glory. So, we remembered him and presented a book on the day – a book which captures some remarkable moments in his life; one which depicts the depth of his character. Yinka was beyond the ordinary.
He was as much your partner on the field of struggle, seeking a better society, as he was your partner on the home front. Since his passing, have you had to review your activism or engagement in the struggle going forward?
I don’t know if it could be defined as a review. What I see is an added responsibility. I want to keep his most cherished activism alive. He was an unrelenting advocate of restructuring. I will keep that flame burning. Not only because he dedicated his life to it, but because I completely buy into it. Restructuring will save Nigeria. He was into philanthropy. He was a businessman. It will be my duty to preserve and promote his legacy. I hope the OOF will play a huge role in this regard.
What do you think his reaction would have been to the unfolding drama in the nation’s political scene ahead of 2023?
We cannot second-guess like that. I play that game with myself. What would have been his tilt at this moment? I wouldn’t know. However, he was a team player. He would have been with Afenifere without missing a step. He would have taken a team position. He never played the lone wolf.
When you look at the lineup of the presidential aspirants in the country, do you see an inspiring future to look forward to?
It is not the lineup of presidential aspirants which should inspire or discourage us. It should be a solid leadership processing system. We have a leadership processing system which reserves vital offices for uninspiring candidates across the three tiers of government. These are veteran warriors of electoral battles fought with cash, guns, thugs, military, police, judiciary, INEC (Independent National Electoral Commission), all Nigerians, including the observers and lecturers, who often flunk their arithmetic on INEC moments. No, it is not about uninspiring presidential aspirants. It is about the aspirants to the legislatures. About governors who simply appoint local government chairmen while pretending to be holding election. We must restructure to give Nigeria a fighting chance.
With mounting inflation, skyrocketing prices of commodities, insecurity and the like, majority of Nigerians believe things have worsened for them in the last seven years and they will probably chose differently if they could reverse time. But given what you know of Nigerians, do you think this experience will shape their choices come 2023?
The current political equation is the most complicated since 1999. It was easy to choose between OBJ (Olusegun Obasanjo) and (Olu) Falae. All the way down. At this moment, there are too many considerations. There is ethno-religious perspective. There is the Biafra question. Each of the likely political parties has a mammoth. The presidential force is there. People who understand are also thinking less about the select few and more about the few who select Nigerian presidents in and beyond Nigeria. If you know what election is in Nigeria, you won’t worry much about how people vote. You would worry about the magic of two political parties being actually the same, only separated by the timeline and flow away and into one another.
A minister was PDP (Peoples Democratic Party’s) Speaker for eight years; then PDP governor for eight years, making 16. He has been an APC (All Progressives Congress) minister for seven years. Tell me the party he truly belongs to. It should be about individuals, not political parties. Even at that, we still end up shortchanged. The 1999 constitution would fail the best of men. It upholds a structure designed to achieve failure, so that the riggers would keep benefiting. Our failure is their success.
Perhaps you agree that it doesn’t appear that the powers holding down the country are giving way despite long years of struggles. Do you think the struggle is really worth it?
Absolutely, it’s worth it. Imagine for a moment the sacrifices, sometimes the supreme sacrifices of dedicated fighters dead and alive? Where would we have been if there was no struggle against military dictatorship? A struggle for the restoration of June 12? Ali Must Go? SAP riots? Gani, Beko, Fela, Chima, Falana, MKO, Kudirat, Wole Soyinka, Ola Oni, NADECO, too many soldiers who fell and rose…many who have grown cold. It must be disrespectful to think it is worthless. The struggle has achieved a lot and it is what will save Nigeria from this ominous future. But I fear it would be a different kind of struggle.
What kind of struggle exactly?
It was usually law enforcement agents representing oppressive regimes against protesters. In this ominous future, it might be indigenes against invaders. Law enforcement agents might dissolve into the hostilities. It is already playing out in the Middle Belt.
Still talking about your husband’s struggle, will it be his wish for any of your children to step into his shoes?
It was not only his wish. It was his programme. The programme is running nicely according to his prophecy and I will play my role to bring the programme to fruition. He fully intended for our son, Yinka, to be filled with that fire. I will be the guide.
Given your husband’s deep passion for Nigeria, was there the likelihood that he would have at some point put himself forward for election into public office?
Again, second-guessing is futile. We will never know if he would have done that but I suspect it might have been if Afenifere had floated a party. I understand that is in the offing now. I don’t see Yinka in any of the two major parties.
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