– Michael Obeya
Michael Obeya is the first son of retired Brigadier General Ignatius Obeya, reputed as the first ever commissioned military officer of the Idoma ethnic stock who served the 3rd Marine Commando of the Nigerian Army. Michael, who recently moved back to Nige
What was growing up like with your father? Obeya: In my early years, he was mostly involved with the military situation in the Civil War. After that, there was a period of calm when we lived together again at the cantonment. The lifestyle in the barracks was regimented in every aspect even relationships with the soldiers. It was like a big family, but we were all kind of secluded. Going out wasn’t a problem but getting back into the barracks was. So we ended up having everything inside the barracks. We only went out if it was really an emergency or we were going to school.
DT: What kind of a father was he? He was a very loving father. You could even tell from this old picture we had when I was about two years old; I was crying and he held my hands to find out what I wanted. My dad is a disciplinarian. We had time to go to bed, time to watch television and time for every other activity.
DT: When did you realize that you father was prominent in this country?
That was when I went to school in the east; whenever I went to places, the Igbos will tell me that he was very kind to them during and after the war. I go to strange places and I’m accorded the same reception. Interestingly, they still refer to him as Col. Obeya to this day, though he became a General. I guess that was when I first realized his prominence. DT: How far would you say his goodwill has worked for you?
It’s double edged. It has kind of raised the bar for me; people tend to expect more from me than they would an average person. You have to also look at the fact that as a young person, you never really considered certain things, but it has made me to this day less materialistic. There are opportunities out there simply because of his name but I would rather use it to do something positive than to try to grab or collect.
DT: What virtue have you inherited from him?
Discipline and selfcontrol. I have learnt not to share my problems with those I’m responsible for but rather to find solutions. In reflection, as a young person, I really did not understand but now as a man I look back at things that father did or did not do to see that they were not all perfect. One of the positive things was that I never knew that there were times my father had financial difficulty but now I tried to figure out how he pulled through at such times. That tells me that financial difficulty is just temporal and not a permanent situation.
DT: Which profession would your dad have taken to if he were not in the military?
That would have been something to do with Geography. I know this because as a child growing up, whenever he travels, he would tell us all about what the various clouds were. He would tell us about typography and he knew all the Mediterranean zones and all that. He was really into geography.
DT: What could easily get him angry? Lies. DT: What makes him happy? Whenever he talks about his childhood. When he talks about his dad, in fact, he worships his dad. DT: Does he regret anything? No. funny enough, you wouldn’t think dad is a philosopher, but he is a bit philosophical. So, I have never heard him express any regrets.
I go to strange places and I’m accorded the same reception. Interestingly, they still refer to him as Col. Obeya to this day, though he became a General