When a mirror shatters, Images are scattered. It's hard picking up their piece in bits.

One so dear, like a father and friend has fallen. It is the falling of a hero, a true mirror for us all. Lo, how much you mearnt to us; your mentees. It came as an irrecoverable shock in reality, and like a humour in art, but today I try so hard to believe it that indeed you are gone. how i wish I could crack a gun for you, or track the path of this great enemy of ours; death who's jinx I believe must be broken someday. In futility, you ve left us with the utility of all we grabbed knowing you and walking with you. We promise you great one, that your legacy will increase its fertility in us all.

Adieu, oke Nna!

Adieu, great Professor!!

Adieu, the one whose broad smiles gladdens my heart!!!

Adieu, our great hero!!!

I do believe that your demise is a sure transition, A call to glory.

TRIBUTE TO A PROFESSOR OF A NO MEAN REPUTE

As the world pays glowing tributes to a professor of a no mean repute; teacher of teachers; an enigmatic and dogged apostle of justice and crusader of equity and fair play, I just have come to the conclusion that just like the parable of the elephant and the blind men, Professor Austin Chukwu’s personality cannot be captured by any single essay or article or indeed a book. A thoroughbred professor that he was, he had a contribution on any matter whatsoever, yet, did not pretend to be omniscient. Despite his versatility, he was patient with his students, no matter how shallow. Prof. was charming and had a friendly disposition that was infectious. In fact, the very day we net for the first time was the day we became friends. He exhibited a high level of humility and expressed himself with so much candour that paralyzed those with hypocritical dispositions around him. Prof. Chukwu is selfless with knowledge, aware that disseminating knowledge would rather enhance human co-existence and contribute to making society a better place. He did not view what God endowed him with as equipment for the suppression of others under him or around. He was a confident man and tried to imbue same in those who came around him. He would chide academics like Socrates of old: “Man, know thyself”. One of the things what irked him when he was around was the display of mediocrity, inferiority and ignorance from those who should be the depository of knowledge in our society. He encouraged those close to him to work hard and become achievers. He was also proud of friends and colleagues’ achievements.

I have not come to terms with the exit of Professor Austin Chukwu, clearly avoiding places that would remind me that I will never see him again. But this journey is an inevitable one for all mortals, and we must embrace the reality of it being a permanent feature of our existence. Nevertheless, the exit of professor Austin Chukwu is one that has changed the entire concept of FUNAI. Even when he reminded himself of having devoted almost his entire career to canvassing, agitating and advocating for the enthronement of social justice, equity and fair play, Prof, was still one to boldly without abusing any process, attempt to redirect a seeming misstep of an administration. He would not keep quite at bare faced injustice on any staff, and would not condone indolence on the part of any staff. Professor Chukwu was the encyclopedia of due process of the faculty of Humanities, FUNAI. He ensured that the Department of Languages, Linguistics, Literary Studies and Visual Arts of the same university was firmly rooted. Prof. Chukwu impacted so much on those who came close to him that as long as FUNAI remains, he will continue to be remembered and I believe his spirit will continue to guide the footsteps of those who would tread on FUNAI.

Forgetting you is impossible Prof., but we must bid you good-bye; Good night, prof, for you left when the ovation was at its peak; Sleep well prof. for you fought a good fight and gallantly too; Rest in peace prof, for we shall meet again to part no more.

Dr. Onuora Benedict Nweke (Pioneer Head of Department, Languages, Linguistics, Literary Studies & Visual Arts, FUNAI)

He died alive

(a poetic tribute to a fallen professor of social justice an academic activism)

The Austen Emmanuel Akpu Chukwu made-man came from princely royalty in Omakaejali ways to encounter the ivory Montreal in Western trails to tame the time and tide of oppressive trends

Fearless, yes! With infectious oratory that quaked the earth he subdued oppressors far and near to hold the endless fight of right in life that life may die for the fight to live

Lifeless, yes! With breathless body now seen as dead he died for the fight to increase in us with family and friends and archetypes as proof to Death that he died alive.

Dr. Sam Nte Egwu (Registrar Emeritus, EBSU)

AT THE COLD GRIP OF DEATH

Death!
Tell me how many lives you must snatch,
Before you realize that too many lives have gone.

How many ears must you own,
Before you can hear our cry of anguish and pain.
Must our tears fill how many tumblers,
Before you can see that
Our eyes have turned red,
And have gone weak,
And are coming out,
Before you let us be.

Death!
You're a dreaded phenomenon that Strikes without regard for personality.
You have snatched Prof. Austin Chukwu
(The great Lion of Ishieke);
The proud husband of
Dr Christiana Austin-Chukwu;
A worthy son of Ezeogo Omaka-Ejali,
At a time no one expected.

Prof. Austin Chukwu!
I will miss you;
ABSU will miss you;
EBSU will miss you and
FUNAI will miss you.
The world of academia will miss you.

You have been a worthy son to your parents;
A loving husband to your wife
And the best father to your children.

Your demise is a great quake
To the entire literary world.
It has created a void
Which no one can fill,
Not just in your family;
But in ABSU, EBSU and in FUNAI.

Oh Death!
You have done us great evil for dispossessing us of this erudite academic and philanthropist,
Especially at this prime age of his life.

Death, tell me for what reason
You have vehemently refused to:
Feed on grasses like cattle,
Or on wood like termites,
Or on fruits like bats,
Or on earth like earthworm,
Or on fresh green leaves like caterpillars.

In a bid to escape you,
Many have fled to nearly
Every corner of the globe,
All to no avail,
Because you exist and rule all over the world.

You remain a threat to scientists and technologists.

Sadder still,
You do not take bribe, which could Have been an escape route to politicians.

At your visit,
The young wail to the top of their voices,
Refusing to be consoled;
As the old gnash away their weak teeth in distress.

Oh Death!
Bone-dry is your heart.

If you're a woman,
You must be the most wicked of women.

Death!
I hate you as you torment
Both the poor and the rich.
You're mysterious and terrible,
Yet, you are the beginning of a new life.

Though, he never taught my level, but I always see the Giant walk into our predecessors' lecture hall and at once, the whole class will be thrown into uproar. I would watch from afar and see how he lectures and demonstrates with authority and expertise. As he lectures, his students would shout and chant his praises, calling him PROOOF!

A seat would be brought 4 him, but he seldom sits down. As he leaves, his students would queue before and after him, just to accompany him back to his office.Then I asked, "who/what is that man," and I was told he's a PROF.

Instantly, my head grew bigger and was filled with awe. The location of that awesome scene was at one of the lecture halls of the then English Department, Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki. That was my first time to see a Professor. And that was Late Prof. Austin Chukwu.

Now, they say he's dead. I don't know what to say, because it is just hard to say "Rest in Peace!"

THE PASSING OF A MENTOR by Obinna Oke

August 7, 2017 chose to be painfully august. It was a sad day indeed. A whirlwind swept my feet off the earth when I heard of Prof. Austin Chukwu’s passing. I scurried home from the hospital where I heard it, and in my room I kept punching my walls, asking why.

In 2010, after I had learnt that the man I often heard of and revered, Prof. Austin Chukwu was in Ebonyi State University, I set out to meet him. He was then Dean of the faculty of Arts and Humanities. I had gone with the draft of my first novel, with nothing up my sleeves other than fear. I couldn’t summon the courage to knock on the door of his office. So I peered in through the door which was left ajar. I didn’t know he had noticed me.

‘Who’s that stealing a look at the gods?’ He shouted from the inside.

I turned. But before I could run downstairs, he had come out of the office laughing broadly.

‘Come on, boy!’ He said, beaming with smiles. He was always so funny and lively.

I showed him my manuscript. After flipping through it, he looked up at me and shook his head.

‘You wrote this?’

‘Yes, sir.’

‘That’s amazing! Though I have loads of scripts I may never have time to look at, I will find time to read this.’ He assured me.

And that was among the best commendations I have ever received. It inspired me to keep writing.

Months later, Prof called me and handed the edited copy to me. He had written me one of the most beautiful blurbs. He said that I wrote so well, that it was among the engaging books he had read in a long time. He admonished me to keep writing, and that I should get him the novel for possible recommendation anytime I published it. Thereafter, my mentor turned a friend. We spoke more often. I visited him often too even when he transferred to the Federal University of Ndufu-Alike Ikwo. Today, I feel so terrible that I could show Prof the published form of that novel as it’s yet to be published.

Prof. Austin Chukwu was a worthy mentor, so friendly and genial. A man whose love for hard work can never be quantified. His death has created a vacuum in me, a void that will subsist for a long time.

On the 18th of March this year, during my birthday and on the occasion that ANA Ebonyi celebrated Prof. Akachi Ezeigbo’s birthday (and eventually myself), Prof. Austin Chukwu was with us, looking ever vibrant. When Prof. GMT Emezue stood up with a tribal song for Prof. Akachi Ezeigbo, I remember how he took it from her, adding the vibes and bass that heightened our mood. It was indeed a banquet, and his presence made it so. After I gave my own vote of thanks, Prof turned to me and said, ‘Obinna I can’t be surprised anymore by you. Keep it up.’

Prof. Austin Chukwu was a father, a dedicated teacher, a mentor, a friend and a rare encourager. He will be missed by all.

As you Journey home Prof, may the God almighty grant you eternal rest in His bosom, amen. Posterity will forever remember you.

Adieu, the literary guru!

Adieu, my mentor!

How can I eulogize this great colossus?

A social activist

A great achiever

A philanthropist par excellence

An advocate of peace and reconciliation

A true Prince of Omaka ejali Ehugbo

A man versed in history, a custodian of Ehugbo culture and tradition.

A man of justice, equity and fairness .

No words can succinctly qualify your numerous qualities.

And Prof would say: " Woo di kwanu o le"? ( how many of my kind exist?)

A bu gu mu professor egbugbo iwa ( I am not a common professor)

A bu gu mu kweke kweke professor

I am, a Professor of English and the Humane Letters

The Prince of Omaka ejali.

Prof, we will miss you greatly

Tookwuhu Essa Ehugbo (Go well)

TRIBUTE TO AUSTIN CHUKWU

By Prof. Anezi Okoro

I received with sadness the passing of Prof. Austin Chuckwu on the 7th of August 2017 after a brief illness.

Austin was a dedicated, hardworking and jolly fellow whose love for humanity spanned beyond his immediate profession. His institution of a redeemable annual prize for the best graduating medical students of Ebonyi State University serves as an attestation. He was a man of good moral standing.

However, death is a necessary end that awaits all man. He will be missed by all.

May his soul rest in the bosom of the lord, amen!

My big cousin Austin Chukwu belongs to the heavens now and his spirit walks among those of his dear mother, father, uncles, aunts and cousins too. As I think of the absolute finality of death and realise that I can no longer speak to him, I rue the missed opportunities – the conversations I could have had with him but never did. I suppose that is the cruelty of death and life. My cousin is no more and I shall never see or speak to him again. I cannot ask him what he thought about one idea or another.

My big cousin is no longer with us except in spirit – and I feel the pain of the loss churning deep inside the base of my stomach. No amount of tears can wash away the wound of losing the dearest man in my life but I still cry and at times, it's difficult to stop.

Right now, I am almost unable to imagine his face – his smile. I am almost unable to recall clearly his deep appreciation of his own life and the joy with which he appropriated everything that it brought to him. Because when I close my eyes, that pervasive image of him – supine, lifeless and his face cast in a black shadow – invades my mind and my only relief then becomes a gut-wrenching grief. I cannot stop crying for the man who represented everything that was good and beautiful in this world. My heart cannot accept the passing of my greatest cousin, my mother's most cherished nephew– an eternal mentor – Prof Austin – a beloved brother to his sisters and brothers and a beautiful uncle who was loved and worshipped by his nieces and nephews – and most of all, his dear, dear wife.

Prof Austin my big cousin approached his own existence armed with a great deal of delight and wisdom. He had the most beautiful sense of humour. He could make the most mundane of events seem the most interesting with his gift for storytelling. No one could relate a story quite like he did. He utilised his great sense of humour to inspire people too – to instil in people that nothing that they aimed for was unattainable.

He cherished each sunrise and sunset and described nature with great thoughtfulness and a hint of mischievous glee. He delved deep inside life itself with the sole intention of retrieving its inner beauty and displaying his discovery for all to see. He created the most beautiful works of art and stringed together the most beautiful prose poetry. My big cousin formulated some incredibly thoughtful concepts in his books and various essays.

When I look back now and remember the intensity with which he worked, I suspect that he was always mindful about beating death to the punch – to accomplish so much before it struck. He did anything and everything all at the same time – and that took so much out of him.

But first and foremost, my big cousin was an artist – a poet and novelist. Prof, always strived not just to see the obvious, but also to feel, hear and think about the hidden gem of life in all its vagaries. My big cousin relied on his inner eyes and saw the world and life in so many different ways and cherished every bright day and every gloomy day equally. He was so generous and always eager to share his discovery with everyone. My Big cousin spoke to a child in the same way he would an adult – he never saw any distinction between people – poor-rich, man-woman … they were all equal in his eyes.

My big cousin mattered to many people and ever will in the future. As I write this, I am yet to properly appreciate quite how I'm feeling. I feel very numb. My grief for the man who represented everything that was beautiful in this world is almost unbearable. I know very well that, although dead in flesh and blood, he may somehow live on.

Prof imparted much too much of himself. He gave so much and inspired so many people. That Austin belongs to the world and in the years to come, as more and more people discover and rediscover the huge body of work that he produced, he will continue to inspire many more people. That way, his immortality will be ensured. To me, us – the entire family – we lost a man who had a deep, deep reserve of love. We mourn him because we will miss him terribly – because life will never be the same without him. For us, his passing represents the loss of a national treasure. My big cousin should have lived a bit longer because he had so much more to give.

While we mourn, we also take comfort in the fact that your mission on earth would have been fulfilled.

Farewell my dearest big cousin , my mother's beloved nephew – , my greatest idol. Like you once conferred with the mountains and valleys, we thank the Lord for your life and bade you farewell until we meet again.

Ndidi Elechi

A CHORALE FOR LATE PROF. AUSTIN CHUKWU

I queried the distress call of Udodimma

I queried the wobbling response of Oko-Egwu

I probed the swollen face of our darkling sky

They dazed me with the passage of a rare icon

They demand a chorale for Oka-nkuzi Austin Chukwu

What chorale can recreate this data bank of the humane letter?

Born and bred by royal parents

You were a Nightingale of multiple values

You were the pillar of our literary pilgrimage

You were a ready canopy for the oppressed

You were an elephant of ponderous make

What chorale can recreate you through?

Though my frail fountain fails for words and rhythm

Oka nkuzi Emezue and Akachi Ezeigbo’s will not

Your un-noised exit has opened a book of tears

Ah, a million pullets and I are robbed of a mother hen

Our flowery wings are plucked on the air

How can we another willing wing grow?

Who drives us through the hardware of our choice vocation?

Oh, that death’s cold hands leave you

That you unveil the conceited literary cup

For us to drink and dance like never before

Live on my V.S Naipaul

Live on my great master and mentor!

Odono Matthew. C.

Asst. Director, NOA, Ohaukwu LGA

AT THE COLD GRIP OF DEATH

Death!
Tell me how many lives you must snatch,
Before you realize that too many lives have gone.

How many ears must you own,
Before you can hear our cry of anguish and pain.
Must our tears fill how many tumblers,
Before you can see that
Our eyes have turned red,
And have gone weak,
And are coming out,
Before you let us be.

Death!
You're a dreaded phenomenon that Strikes without regard for personality.
You have snatched Prof. Austin Chukwu
(The great Lion of Ishieke);
The proud husband of
Dr Christiana Austin-Chukwu;
A worthy son of Ezeogo Omaka-Ejali,
At a time no one expected.

Prof. Austin Chukwu!
I will miss you;
ABSU will miss you;
EBSU will miss you and
FUNAI will miss you.
The world of academia will miss you.

You have been a worthy son to your parents;
A loving husband to your wife
And the best father to your children.

Your demise is a great quake
To the entire literary world.
It has created a void
Which no one can fill,
Not just in your family;
But in ABSU, EBSU and in FUNAI.

Oh Death!
You have done us great evil for dispossessing us of this erudite academic and philanthropist,
Especially at this prime age of his life.

Death, tell me for what reason
You have vehemently refused to:
Feed on grasses like cattle,
Or on wood like termites,
Or on fruits like bats,
Or on earth like earthworm,
Or on fresh green leaves like caterpillars.

In a bid to escape you,
Many have fled to nearly
Every corner of the globe,
All to no avail,
Because you exist and rule all over the world.

You remain a threat to scientists and technologists.

Sadder still,
You do not take bribe, which could Have been an escape route to politicians.

At your visit,
The young wail to the top of their voices,
Refusing to be consoled;
As the old gnash away their weak teeth in distress.

Oh Death!
Bone-dry is your heart.

If you're a woman,
You must be the most wicked of women.

Death!
I hate you as you torment
Both the poor and the rich.
You're mysterious and terrible,
Yet, you are the beginning of a new life.

Mail:[email protected]
08108737970
.

Could it be true the Iroko has fallen? Could it be true that Ehugbo, English Departmrnt, Asuu (Ebsu, Absu, Funai) etc, Ebonyi, Nigeria, Africa, and indeed, the world, has lost another gem? Could it be true that the literary world has suffered yet another setback? Could it be true we cannot see this great poet, literary giant, erudite and loquacious professor, political analyst, a man who had no dull moment, the classless and fearless professor, again? Could it be true that “Anyi Dikwanu Olee”, is no more?

Oh! What an August 07th colossal loss. Oh! what a waste to education seekers.

Tell it not in EBSU Publish it not in the Faculties at Funai and Absu Lest the promoters of classism, racism and mediocrity, rejoice Lest the haters of resilience in simplicity and truthfulness, jump for joy Lest the lovers of simplicity and decorum inspite of their academic heights, bow heads in mourning.

Ye August 7th, 2017, where is your gain? Ye death, where is your pride? For snatching our benefactor, without notice, why?

His name is Austin and he passed on in August Could that be coincidental or what Shakespeare would call “What is in a name”?

Prof, your students are waiting and wailing. If in the land of the dead, people still hear and talk, then hear what some are saying about you.

Though he never taught my level, I would always see the giant walk into... lecture

halls and at once, the whole class would turn into an uproar. I would watch from afar and

see how he lectured and demonstrated with authority and expertise. As he lectured, his

students would shout and chant his praises, calling him “PR-O-F”. A seat would be

brought to him but he seldom sat down. As he left, they would queue before and after

him just to accompany him back to his office. Then I would ask, “who/what is that man?”

and I would be told “he is a Prof! My head would grow and be filled with awe. Now, they

say he is dead. I don’t know what to say, because it is just hard to say RIP- (Marcel).

To say that I am short of words is an understatement. Professor Chukwu! Death, you are

such a bitchy bitch! You will always go out of your way to prove to my likes that good

things seldom lasts; I’m not shaken, Prof has produced hordes of Amazons, legions of

literati; world class grammarians etc. Death, you are a loser! It is true Prof is gone; his

deeds, exploits, etc; will keep speaking volumes and keep conjuring awe the world over!

Rest in peace, Prof. Till we meet to part no more. Adieu! (Feechy)

The beauty of grammar is gone.

The pride of Literature has departed.

The Eagle of English Departmentt has flown away.

“Oh my God!” Faculty of Arts has lost a quintessential literary icon. By every standard,

Prof was a great teacher to the core. A literal philanthropist, an Amazon of knowledge.

Epitome of wisdom. Already, I am missing your wealth of experience. He was great and

his acts were beautiful and aesthetics of literary studies. Death! You have no shame!

Grammarians, grieve but we will never cathole in your pothole. Rest in peace, Prof.

(Doziechrist)

‘The great Iroko tree has fallen, “anyi dikwa nu ole ee…”

Sleep on, Prof! –----- (Judith)

English has lost an icon indeed.

Rest in peace, Oh,! My Prof. Amen ------- (Obby Macarm)

Could this be true? What a titanic and monumental loss. An exceptionally exclusive

erudite professor. A superlative academic. It hurts. This news is so breathtaking as it

absolutely tantamounts to a sorrowful mood swing. This is too much of grievous

bereavement. I am so touched. If men were God, such a pyramid and deity of intelligence

like you shouldn’t die. I will indescribably miss you and your literary mentorship. The Dept

of English has lost an ICON. No amount of words can describe how I feel right now. Adieu

(Ebuka Francis)

What happened to him? Oh my Prof! ------- (Meg)

Heard the news about Prof Austin Chukwu.

We have lost a rare gem. Thank God for the life he lived. May God comfort his family.

(Chidi Amakwe).

These and more are what some said about our resilient Professor A.A.C.

Indeed, death has lost. Indeed, Onwu amagh egbu.

I was so deeply touched by the rather sudden transition of a friend and a professional colleague, Prof. Autin E. Chukwu. By his demise, the stock of intelligent, decent and knowledgeable members of the academic community has been further depleted. We mourn this tragic loss, and share the grief with the family.

I got close to Prof. in 2004, when he headed a government-sponsored Staff Recruitment Panel in a College of Education, where I was the Chief Executive. I saw him as a very thorough and dispassionate character, I remember calling him A-Z Professor, becuase of his erudition, intelligence and level of organization. But all is now history!

To the entire family, I urge you to shake away sorrow, and accept the nothingness of life, and inevitability of death! It is now left for us to rally round Prof's ideals and advance these legacies. I have the belief that from now henceforth, as we do this, there will be open doors and higher heights for the family.

We pray that Prof's gentle soul will find eternal rest in the Lord's bossom. AMen!

Adieu Great Scholar!

The news of the demise of our revered and distinguished Professor Austin Chukwu came to the College with rude shock. The College became like a grave yard since then as both staff and students were yet to come to terms with the reality of the news.

Late Professor Austin Chukwu was well known to the College because he usually occupied an esteemed reserved seat on the high table during our annual College Oath-taking ceremony to bestow the prestigious Ezeogo Omaka Ajali Akpa Chuckwu Price on our best graduating medical doctor. In his peculair posture of confidence, he bellowed in eloquence in his usual command of Queen's English as he called on the best doctor for advice and award of Prize. The College will greatly miss you. The University will even miss you more as your products are now University Lecturers.

The College will indeed mourn your death. But we are greatly consoled by the good and worthy life you lived, the impeccable legacies you left behind, the lives you touched, the knowledge you imparted and your monumental contribution to the knowledge database. You were a teacher of teachers, a distinguished Professor per excellence, great disciplinarian and a devoted christian.

Like St Paul said, you have run a good race, fought a good fight, kept the faith. We pray that God, in His infinite Mercy, grant you that Crown He promised to the Saints. May the Saints and Angels receive you in Paradise.

On behalf of the Management and Staff of the National Obstetric Fistula Centre Abakaliki, I wish to express our profound condolences to you and your entire family over the demise of Prof. Austin Chukwu. The news of his death came to us as a surprise, but the will of the Almighty cannot be questioned.

No doubt his departure will create a lot of vacuum in the family, Ebonyi State and beyond. Also, his colleagues in the field of education will always remember his passion in ensuring qualitative education in our great country Nigeria.

Please do accept our heartfelt condolences at his time of grief. We pray to God to grant the entire Chukwu's family the fortitude to bear this irreplaceable loss as we commend his gentle soul to the bossom of the Almighty Father.

It is with shock that I received the news conveying the death of your loving father whose sad event took place on 7th August, 2017.

On behalf of my family and the staff under the office of the (CMAC) FETHA, I wish to express our heartfelt condolences to you and your family.

The news of your father's death was shocking, but what can we do rather than to pray to Almighty God, to give you and members of your family the grace and fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.

Your consolation will be that he was an achiever, a caring father, a seasoned public servant, who has reached his peak in a very short period before bowing to the cold hands of death.

Our hope is that we will meet to part no more on the resurrection day.

Adieu Prof.

It is with rude shock and profound grief that I on behalf of the families of Pa Patrick Oko Elem and Dr. Augustine Oko writw to commiserate with the entire family of Ezeogo Michael Akpu Chukwu, Omakaejali Ehugbo on the passing away on to eternity of your beloved Husband, Father and Brother Prof. Austin Chukwu which sad event occured on the 7th of August, 2017.

Prof. Austin Chukwu was not just A Prince, An Illustriius Son, A Guru in Academics but indeed A Professor in a Very Special Class with An Uncommon Confident Boldness.

As a forthright personality, Prof. exhibited transparent honesty, enviable nobility, zero tolerance to injustice in all its forms and stood firm on his convictions.

He was outstandingly humorous, very lifely and a man of captivating oratoral prowess.

Prof was a reservoir of historical facts and events. He was also a good mixer, a man who paid attention to details.

Death came unnoticed and suddenly snatched him away at a time he was mostly needed. Of course death is a divine appointment and Does Not Take No for An Answer. The wise lives in a state of preparedness for this inevitable appointment and Christ is the Answer.

As a good Christian father and lovely husband, Prof was loving, caring, highly protective and very understanding.

It is our prayer that the Lord, God of comfort will see the entire family through this period of grief and grant you the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.

Please be consoled by the legacies of virtue Prof left behind.

May his soul rest in the Bosson of The Lord.

Dr. Augustine Oko, Rtd Perm Sec, On behalf of Pa Patrick Oko Elem an Dr. Augustine Oko

It was in the first harmattan of 2006. I had gone to the Ebonyi State University to see Prof. Adiele E. Afigbo if he can oblige me with an article he wrote in 1970 since I could not find it in any library. As I waited in the lobby, two men walked slowly across where I was, discussing. I was able to pick some of their conversations.

'What qualifications do you have?' the older of the two had asked, apparently the younger one was searching for job placement.
'I have second class upper,' he said proudly.
'While I'll help,' he'd advised him, 'you should get at least a masters degree to have some measure of security.'
I'll come back to this story.

By 2007 I had published my book and given out several copies ahead of the public presentation. I had also approached a professor who graciously agreed to review the book. I was advised to involve the government and while I waited to get the governor's approval and date, the professor was given an official assignment that would take him out of the state. By now I had gotten the governor's approval. Left without a reviewer, I started searching for any person to review the book because time was running out based on the approved date. A friend came to my aid and took me to Prof. Austin Chukwu. I was skeptical if he'd oblige me considering lack of time. My fear was genuine because I had not met him before, I do not know him and he does not know me. We eventually went and saw him. In his living room, I recollected once seeing the face but could not instantly place it. He had just come back from Abuja from the Call to Bar ceremony of his daughter and was very tired. My friend introduced the topic and gave him the book. He looked at it, front and back and made some kind comments and complained of time and nonetheless accepted to review it, seeing the offer as a challenge. By now my eyes had clouded, yes because I was justsearching for any personbut here I am now with a Professor. I went back home and read a profile of his and my clouded eyes began to drop. I was later to place the face as one of the two I saw in the lobby of

Ebonyi State University and reasoned that helping people was his second nature.
On the day of the presentation, Austin Chukwu, who died on 7thAugust 2017, did a good job that befits his position as a world class scholar. He praised me where he should and lashed out at me where he ought to, but added that some of the errors could be excused considering the volume and advised I correct them in the subsequent editions. Then came the issue of Omakaejali. He totally disagreed with my position but concluded the topic is still open for further research. From his review I discovered he read everything and must have had a sleepless night!

In the rains of 2009, I miraculously escaped a trap unhurt but with minor bruises. When he saw me with the scares still fresh, he advised that I go back to school. It was then I remembered the advise he gave to the young man in the university lobby. I heeded his advise and went to that school. But what Professor didn't know was that I dropped out and asked the school authorities to give me the certificate of the ones I've read. Since 2009 we have been very close, calling each other regularly.

Every artist is fed by the people who came before them. I've learned from Prof. and he was part of my makeup. He was a very kind man and always the one projecting light on the shadows. He was a blessing. I miss him dearly and am sure others do.

The Family of HORI S.O EGWU of TEXACO wishes to extend their profound heartfelt condolence

To the family of OMAKA EJALI MICHAEL AKPU CHUKWU at this hour of grief.

No words could ease what we truly feel!

But those we hold closest to our heart never truly leave us; they live on the kindness and love they share in our lives.

Death is only a bridge towards eternal life with God.

Certainly, heaven is rejoicing for the soul of Prof. Austin Chukwu has finally reached his home.

Where there is deep grief, there was great love.

REST IN PEACE, PROF.AUSTIN CHUKWU

Dear Professor Austin Chukwu, the sad news of your sudden demise shocked us greatly. We have lost a reliable friend who would stand by you in troubled times. FUNAI has lost one of her most outspoken elders. The Faculty of Humanities has, indeed, lost a literary icon, a rare gem and repository of knowledge they freely tapped from.

Prof., your simplicity was a virtue that endeared you to many, and God will certainly reward you for many lives you encouraged!

Adieu! Professor Austin Chukwu! Rest in perfect peace with Our Lord Jesus Christ! Amen!

The news of your death was the hardest thing for me to believe because it came with a great shock. I still wish I could wake up one morning and hear that it’s not true. Your death was so devastating that I kept asking myself this rhetorical question – “Why Prof Austin Chukwu?

You were a lover of all people. You never discriminated against anybody, notwithstanding your status in life. That was why you accepted all that came to you for mentorship with an open arm. Till your last days on earth, you kept encouraging those of us young in academics to pursue academic excellence.

You were a father to many of us in EBSU. We named you the Professor of the masses because you were the mouth piece of the masses. You identified with all that celebrated by gracing the occasion with your physical presence, what many in your status who are class conscious cannot do. Even when you barely knew us you accepted to be the chairman of our wedding and so you became a father to me and my husband.

You were a man of peace. It was your belief that no quarrel or misunderstanding is beyond settlement. That was why you quickly mediated between people quarrelling and helped them settle their differences.

Prof, you were a colossus, people describing you will take it from the angle they saw of you, just like the proverbial elephant described by blind men who gave their description of the elephant from the angle each of them touched.

The truth is that your life is worthy of emulation. Although you are gone, you shall ever remain green in our memories because the legacies you left behind will continually speak about you.

Adieu

The Professor of the masses;

Good bye

The Prince of our land;

Good night

Our Big Daddy

May you rest in the bosom of the Lord, till the resurrection morning when we will meet to part no more.

For 66 years, you positively bequeathed durable legacies on all who came in contact with you. For 66 years, family, friends and associates witnessed the embodiment of honesty, compassion, integrity, uprightness, humility and trustworthiness which you exuded.

In the coming 66 years and 66 ears after thereafter, you will always be our jewel of inestimable value.

The sudden death of a good man should not push us to question God for He knows what we do not know and His ways not certainly our ways. It could have been worse and this is the reason we give thanks always.

As the light of this earthly life extingushes on you, I join thousand of well wishers and all those affected by your demise in bidding you farewell. We take comfort from the knowledge that whereas you led a Godly life while you were here, you are now in Heaven.

Sleep well, you have gone the way of all mortals and those who prepare their ways well, will join you in heaven.

May Almighty God who I am sure will grant us all fortitude to bear this painful loss, grant you eternal and peaceful rest.

God, this is one death too painful!

Did the poets not write it?

That death is a leveler

Is it not of ancient wisdom?

That man is but dust

Is it not in the scriptures?

That the world is a stage

Is it not the lot of man?

That from dust he comes and returns

Is it the truth indeed?

That Autn Chukwu is dead

So what happens now?

To the bounteous knowledge in your brains

Did you not read books we dare not count?

Did you not drink deep of the parian spring?

Will you travel with the eggs in your head?

Will you leave us orphans of your wisdom?

I beheld the luminary clock in the sky

It said the time is neither right nor wrong

But it simply your lot now

To answer the summons of your maker

To you the great Professor

To you the academic generalissimo

To you the apostle of integrity

To you the pillar of inspiration

To you the alchemy of learning

To you the pedagogist per excellence

To you the activist for justice

To you the vessel of honour

To you the voice of reason

To you the man of distinction

To you the proud progeny of Omakejali

To you my friend and examplar

I bid you farewell

s you set sail to yonderland

For yours is not a departure

But only a voyage

We shall meet someday

At the convocation of the saints

Until then and until then

Your memeory will live in my heart

Forever and a day

So help me God

Words alone are not enough to express my sincere sympathy on the rather unexpected event that occurred on the 7th of August , 2017.

One cannot even begin to imagine the implications of this turn of events: Spiritually , Physically, Matrimonially, Morally, Intellectually, and numerous other ramifications. Much as one may wish, we cannot turn back the hands of time, and maybe do things differently. Alas, we must accept the reality and live in the present as much as humanly possible .

This is NOT a time for regrets. Rater , give GOD His place in our lives and truly commit our sojourn on this planet earth to Him who is Omniscient and Omnipotent.

Ogbom, MAY YOUR SOUL REST IN THE BOSOM OF THE LORD IN JESUS NAME AMEN .

I wish to sincerely convey my deepest condolences to the entire Chukwu family of Amamgbala Afikpo in Afikpo North Local Government Area of Ebonyi State over the death of Prof. Austin Chukwu who died at the age of 66 years.

The news of the death of Prof. Austin Chukwu was heartbreaking especially when there was no prior information of ill health connected to him.

His life and time were filed with great moments and was a man with bountiful contents of steady character, an astute academician, he was also an erudite professor who emptied himself into the new generation through his teachings.

Prof. Austin Chukwu was until his death, a close friend of mine, a colossus who has been a wonderful mentor to our children but his death has indeed dealt a great blow to academic excellence which he was known for.

As he took a bow from the stage of physical existence now that he is needed most, we can only mourn as mortals but we shall celebrate his life and time and treasure his moments with us.

Therefore, it is my earnest prayer that we bear the trauma caused by his demise with exceptional courage, bearing in mind that Prof lived a fufilled life and has gone to be with the Lord in whom all things are made new and beautiful.

It is my earnest prayer that God may grant his soul eternal rest and cause the light of eternity to hine ceaselessly upon his soul and give you the fortitude to bear the loss.

Omce again, accept my deepest condolences.

Engr. Dr. David Nweze Umahi, FNSE, FNATE

Governor, Ebonyi State

Though life is never immuned of tragedy your death came as a shock to me. Since it had appeared you had not been ill whatsoever, it was quite unexpected.

Prof. Chukwu was a man of peace, and one of his most endearing traits was his capacity to understand people as they really were; with all the contradictions between their behaviour and their character; and not just as he would wish them to be.

The Prof was a dogged fighter for the rights of others, he abhorred imjustice, he had always maintained that there was no hard or fast rules in life; and that the best we could try for was never to do anything that did not make us feel good about ourselves, or hurt those who trusted us.

He was a down to earth man, who never turned away anyone who wanted to see him with their various problems. No one was really too insignificant for the Prof to overlook. He welcomed all and sundry, and listened to their needs.

When with friends you would hear his infectious laughter ring out like the spontaneous laughter of youth; so carefree and genuine. He will be missed.

May I use this medium to condole his entire family on this irreparable loss. I wish them to remember that Earth has no sorrow that God cannot heal.

May his soul rest in perfect peace in the Lord.

I and my family were distraught to hear of Professor Austine Chukwu's passing. He looked so robust and strong when I saw him last at an ANA convention some years back. I know it is unwise to think of any mortal as immune to death; but I know it is also tempting to consider the relatively young at least temporarily shielded from death's withering gaze. Every occasion of death apaarently serves to foreground our delusions and to challenge us to accept the sober realities of human life.

Knowledgeable, approachable, passionate about his convinctions, Professor Chukwu was also among the most admirable lecturers among my generation of students at the newly established Imo State University then at Ekiti. His mastery of the performative component of the literature of the African Diaspora typically made his classes virtually enchanting and so always well-attended. With the recent passing of Professor Ben Obumselu and now of Professor Chukwu, the ranks of those illustrious Etiti pioneers are so badly depleted!

At Professor Chukwu's death, the world has lost a great teacher and a great man. But great scholars do not die; they live immortally in their work and their voices are heard whenever their proteges part their lips. So shall it be with Professor Chukwu. Be therefore consoled; and may God grant you and your children a short passage from mourning to morning.

Do accept my heart-felt condolences.

It is with deep sorrow that I pay this tribute to an academic giant, Prof. Austin E. Chukwu. His demise is still a shock to me, indeed an arrow that daily pieces the heart. As each day passes, his conspicuous absence in the academic family that he loved much drives home the message.

I borrow late K.O. Mbadiwe’s coinage “Timber and Caliber” to better point out the quality in Prof. Austin Chukwu. He was really a man of “timber and caliber.” Mbadiwe’s is in politics, while his is in learning and teaching toward knowledge which is power. From ABSU up to EBSU and further to FUNAI, Austin Chukwu is a name that rings louder than the old West Minister Church bell, echoing the priority, joy and beauty of knowledge. Prof. Chukwu’s manifest love and passion for the University as a citadel of knowledge was a great source of inspiration to many. My impression of him, working very closely with him as a lecturer and as a Faculty Dean was rather very exciting. Prof. Chukwu’s presence In the University between 9 am (at times earlier) and 3.30 to 4 pm ( at times beyond), Monday to Friday in the week that I keenly observed, almost made me ashamed of myself as a priest. His deep concern in the academic growth of the junior lecturers stands as an indelible legacy in all the universities, he taught. Prof. Chukwu had a very admirable sense of objectivity and open-mindedness in all matters concerning human persons. This made him always very outspoken and unselfishly making up his own mind on issues.

Prof. Chukwu was also unique in his vocation as a husband and a father. On many instances in my closeness to the family, I cherished his manifestations of a commendable marital oneness with his wife Christiana Chukwu Ph.D. I also noticed an uncountable cases, his attractive fatherliness in tender love and caring going beyond his immediate domestic family to extend to the students and junior staff of the university.

Prof., I thank God for endowing you in life with many enviable qualities blended with Christian and moral virtues. You utilized them so well to live a deep, committed and touching Christian life. I know quite well that your death is an avenue to God’s promise of his merciful endowment of an eternal bliss in his heaven. But I miss you; the world of academia will miss you. Adieu Prof.!! , Adieu great mentor of scholars !!, Adieu noble Prince !!. May our great God who created you to be so wonderfully, a value to humanity rest you eternally in his kingdom.

We learnt of the passing of our dear matrilineal brother, Professor Austin E. Chukwu on the 7th August 2017, a date that will stand out in infamy in our hearts with rude shock and profound sadness.

Prof. Austin Chukwu stood out as a peerless and scholarly academic, a loving Father, an adorable brother and a wonderful husband. Only recently, at an event in Edda, he reminded me of our struggles together in the same unit during the dark days of the Biafran debacle. Death, ever so cruel, would snatch him from us when we were poised to become even closer in the light of this discovery.

However, we cannot question God. We all must take solace in Prof's prodigious achievements during his short life, in his loving nature and his tremendous impact on the lives of those who were privileged to come close to him.

We pray that the good Lord will console us all and grant the grace to bear this awesome targedy with fortitude.

May He give our departed brother, Professor Austin Chukwu, a crown of glory in Paradise. Cherr up!

Our Dear Prof,

We have battled with this reality for weeks now and still find it very hard to believe that you are gone. You had been our academic father, mentor, and boss. Your untimely demise was too sudden and shocking to us. Your demise was an eclipse at noon; it is still incredible and bewildering. Your demise is a thunderous fall of a giant pillar of citadel of learning in Nigeria. Your demise is a great quake in the entire literary world.

A great custodian of knowledge and standard, a great reservoir of Afrocentric values and stance;

A defender of the weak and the oppressed;

Oke nna, Your exit has left a gulf, a vacuum which none can fill, a shoe too large for any to step into; you were just phenomenal;

The Prince, you got the best out of us; you believed in us and gave us a voice in seemingly vocieless situations. Thank you for reaching out to us and giving us the opportunity to learn and be mentored by you.

We miss your reassuring, assertive speeches

We miss your lively lectures, conversations and debates

We miss your candour and encouragement

Your friends and followers are weeping

Your fans wish to have you back but God knows the best

Adieu, The people's Professor

Adieu, the Prince from the lion of the Omakejali

Adieu, The Oke nna

Indeed, we have lost but we're glad... heaven has gained.

My Nna,

August 7, 2017 was the saddest day of my life.

Your exit took us unawares.

We love you and I am sure you know it.

We promise to be good and practice all you believed and stood for.

We won’t stop thanking God for the opportunity He gave us to have a Dad like you.

May your beautiful soul rest in the bosom of the Lord, Amen.

Great Man! Oke Nna! Humble Lion! Indefatigable Prof!

Lerue enya, Nna.

Loads of love,

The Barrister (Chi)

On behalf of the entire students and staff of the above department, I write to condole with your family on the passing on to glory of your beloved father, Professor Austin Chukwu. The news came to us as a thunderbolt out of the blues. At first, it was too shocking to be believed but as time passed, we realized it was indeed true that our vivacious, eloquent and dedicated teacher and colleague had gone to be with the Lord. Alas! How are the mighty fallen! Tell it not in Gath!

The way of all mortal men is an inevitable passage that we must all take someday sooner or later. However, that our own Professor Austin Chukwu had to go at a time such as this is heart rending. The department has been thrown into deep mourning and sorrow. Many of our postgraduate students have been abandoned midstream without any idea of which way to turn to. The lose is really unbearable. Nevertheless, we know that he loved his students and the department so much that let alone, he would not have opted to abandon us. It was way beyond his control.

We therefore console ourselves and your family mainly by the fact that Professor Austin Chukwu left an enviable legacy in his numerous achievements both in academics, administration, capacity building among his students and in giving birth to such worthy children as you. His life was indeed a very rewarding one. Professor Austin Chukwu left this world better than he met it. We are sure you are very proud to have been fathered by a man of Professor Austin Chukwu’s caliber.

Please take heart. Accept our sincere sympathy and may his soul rest in the bosom of our Lord, Jesus Christ, Amen.

Johnpaul, your text message of 24th August 29, 2017 announcing the sudden death of your father (my close friend) came to us with a huge shock; the shock isn’t that Austine is beyond death but for him to die at his prime, full of life, and when one can consider his “midway” in our sojourn on earth is the shock. Professor Chukwu was never a candidate for high blood pressure, he has always been a relaxed, articulate and emotionally stable personality. He was an epitome of a good and God fearing man. I cried aloud when I got the sad news, but I remembered that I should be consoling you not to cry like I did. You should take solace to the fact that your father lived a fulfilled and accomplished life. It is in this situation that we re-affirm that “it is not how long one lived but how well”. Your father should be celebrated and not mourned. Professor Austin Chukwu got to the peak of his career at a very tender age and as such dined and wined with the best and the “big Heads” there-are in his field.

Austine’s passing on has created a very big void in the area of Afro. and Carribean Literature. There are quite a few of them on this part of our world, in fact in the entire Africa I doubt if they are close to two of them surviving. Your fathers world-view was simply Proliteranian even though is he was not an avowed Marxist. He had always cared about the less privileged and the down trodden. Be consoled that your father has left a legacy too bright to be deemed by posterity.

Above all, your esteemed self and your siblings are part of the legacies. You should courageously take over from where he stopped, God is with you. May his gentle soul rest in peace.

Professor & Barr Lady Okonkwo, KSJI, JP

Fmr VC. IMSU

I write on behalf of myself and my entire family to commiserate with you on the death of your beloved father and patriarch Professor Austin Chukwu. In fact, the news of his demise came to us as a very rude shock as nobody had expected his transition now. It sounded incredible but of course, it was already a cold fact. I actually imagine the extent of your devastation.

However, be consoled by the fact your father lived and died as a true and worthy son of Omaka-Ejali. He was a true patriot and comrade who stood for truth and equity at all times. He was an academic guru par excellence. He served his society, in fact, this country in various capacities where he was able to touch and impact on the lives of several generations. These are worthy legacies you have to be proud of and strive to keep.

Your family will miss him. His community (Ehugbo) will miss him. The academic world will miss him. Ebonyi State and indeed, Nigeria will miss him. We will all miss him. But be assured that he has gone to be with his creator. He has gone to answerthat inevitable call which awaits all mortals.

Austin is gone!

True brotherhood is gone!!

The lion of Ishieke is gone!!!

May the Good lord grant him eternal rest in his bossom. May He also grant you and the entire Omaka-Ejali dynasty the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss.

Dear Baba,

How are you today? I hope you’re sleeping well? You know, I’ll not wait for you to respond today neither will I ask if you slept well as usual; after all, you’ve never slept this long before. So, I ask, again: Baba, I hope you’re sleeping well? In the past one year, you know, this has been our usual refrain before our many conversations (academic, social, political, familial, etc.) in your office, in my office, at the corridor, anywhere. But now, you have decided to quit the stage just at the rising action of the performance. What then should I tell those behind the stage?

You recall it was in June 2005 when we first met at a conference in Kogi State. You had forgotten but I didn’t. Who would forget an hour of interaction with you much more a whole day. I said you forgot but I never did! And I never knew our paths would cross again. But destiny made it possible when on September 5, 2016 I joined FUNAI. Then on that 7th day of September, at the Faculty of Humanities Board, I needed only a moment of reminder for you to recollect the event of over a decade earlier. Since then, Baba, you have (had?) been a friend, confidant and adviser. You were an astute story teller; and a genetic truth teller, too! Several times I would come to you to confirm certain things I might not be sure of. You were truthful to a fault. You never said or did anything for your own advantage. You sought the comfort and happiness of others always. You allayed my many fears on coming to FUNAI. But now you sleep and all I can hear is a deafening silence!

True, on paper, I’m unable to put down how I felt that pusillanimous day of August 7 and how I still feel. But as this is a ritual I must perform now, I ask, again: Baba, I hope you’re sleeping well? Whenever you wake up from you sleep of loud silence, know it that you have left an enduring hole in our hearts. Sleep on, Baba!

Your protégé,

Ameh Dennis Akoh

(Prof! as you always call[ed] me)

REQUIEM FOR LATE PROF. AUSTIN CHUKWU

I need no other argument:

A rare gem in this era

The only literati erudite

The progenitor of literary school

In ivory towers of the salt state

A scion of Ehugbo clan

A bastion of scholarly temple

An apostle of Socrates

Our own golden goose

Deserves the crown

All mortals yearn for

Professor Austin Chukwu

Anyi dikwanu ole?

Farewell Oka nkuzi mahadum

- Fidelis .A. Nwokwu

Department of Linguistics and Literary Studies,

EBSU Abakaliki.

The untimely death of Professor Austin Chukwu is a great loss to the academia and humanity. He was a great teacher, administrator, father and counsellor. He supported the virtues of justice, fairness and collectiveness. This he demonstrated in the various leadership positions he held. As the Dean, faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Federal University Ndufu-Alike Ebonyi state, Professor Chukwu ran open door policy interacting and engaging with staff of the faculty and beyond irrespective of position and rank. My experienced with him showed that he was not ethnocentric nor a religious bigot because he treated people based on the content of their character. As we bade him farewell, may God grant the family and children the grace to bear this irreparable loss.

Adieu Prof.

The news of Prof. Austin Chukwu's demise came to me with a rude shock. I quickly remeber your faderly care and advise always given....... Yet, i believed the news of your demise wasn't true, but got it wrong.

Prof was a gift to humanities, a courageous man, dedicated and hardworking man. You will be greatly missed . Hm! i find it difficult to bring myself to the reality that we shall see nomore.

May the gentle soul of Prof. Austin Chuwke rest in peace with God till we meet to part no more, Amen!

Adieu great man!

Jayeola, F. David - Music Unit (FUNAI)

Prof, your sudden passage to the great beyond came as a rude shock to all of us. You were such a charismatic person that every academic was proud to submit to your tutelage.

Your forthrighness and fearlessness is a virtue and legacy you have bequathed to many. Your demise has orphaned a lot of young academic who always crave for your fatherly advise and mentorship.

It is hard for us to say, but on behalf of the Faculty of Humanities Welfare Committee , Federal University Ndufu-Alike, Ikwo,, we bid you good bye.

Adieu Prof.

Signed:

Dr. Ifeom Nweze (Chairperson - Faculty of Humanioties Welfare Committee)

Akintunde, Olusola (Secretary- Faculty of Humanities Welfare Committee)

Who are the Disciples?

Men full of Questions; Men who never know how to eat their own fruits, Men who do not know how to discern from the voice of the wind; Men of smoked screens and woolly eyes and complex existentiality; Men like fish, that live in the ocean of waters and yet seek an ocean: Men who never really question to know who the enemy is but known to question the enemy. Who are we? Are we the Disciples that do not know our enemy and yet question the enemy?

Who is our Enemy?

According to the words of George R.R. Martin; the author of A Song of Ice and Fire, “There is only one enemy – Death, the first and the Last enemy”. Yes, an enemy to the good; enemy to the bad; enemy to failures; enemy to success. Who’s Death? Unclassified; Unwanted and presumed to be dark and darker than dark? Oh! Sorrow has a rhythm - the rhythm of our enemy called Death. Can we conquer the enemy? The fight of faith and fear that enchants our being is a consequence of our enemy. We should know our enemy as the consciousness awakens something within the heart that is beyond knowledge.

What does the bird Say?

God is the Unknowable; unfathomable. Every statement about him sounds like a distorted truth. But the Master must always speak and his words are not meant to be comprehended. We simply need to listen as we listen to the wind in the trees of the forest and the indiscernible rhythm of the song of the bird. Where is this Unknowable? The golden rays of the sun that pierce through the fenestrae of our hovels; the dancing wing of the graceful Eaglet; the unseen air of our breath; the physics behind our shadows; every little quack of the duck; every struggling crow of the dotted fowl; every twittering; all that the birds can say; all that they can sing- the story of the Unknowable- All in the dance for the Dancer.

What makes the Dance?

Does the Dancer make the Dance? The moment the Dancer becomes non-existent, the dance disappears; who separates the dance from the dancer? Only querying disciples. Who dares to draw the line between existence and the extra-terrestrial force of existence? The force is the Dancer and the Existence is the dance. Now, who are you? The Dancer or the Dance? Create and be the Dancer and let your creation be the dance. Science or no Science; you or no you, everything- animate and inanimate; planetial and non-planetial, forms microns of the dance performance. What is this performance? Question with enthusiasm. It leads the young to slip into the riddles of inner peace.

What is in a Slap?

Have you ever asked if the sound made in a slap is produced by the raging palm or the fleshy cheek? The aggression in a slap makes a sound. But can you separate that sound from the Clattering versions of skins? What’s in a slap – the sound or the pain? Is it the sound that births the pain and the pain births the tears? Yes? Only the moment births the pain; the aggression is the sound – the product of the raging palm or the fleshy cheek but the pain is the product of the moment and moments are like splits of time; like thousands of years. What can you see?

What’s in a Moment?

Moments are hard; Moments are tough; Moments are soft – just that wave of time that leaves a story - brief or lengthy. Who makes the moment? The moment is a tinge of the dance and so are we. We both play in the dance. But by the gracious favour of the Dancer, we observe the substance in the moments and we either contemplate with awe or get ecstasized with subconscious Schism. Yes, Contemplation is better than ecstasy.

What is Wisdom?

“The only thing I know is that I know nothing”- Socratic Philosophy; a perfect reflection of the platonic or rather, empty role of ‘I’ or ‘We’ in the whole picture of the Dance; a realistic expression of hollowness in the scheme of creation; a noble expression of humility in knowledge – Socratic Irony; a grand essence of the true meaning of knowledge, which identifies a beginning in the golden search for wisdom. Absolute believe in the nothingness of human substance leads to contemplation. By contemplation, reality is critiqued and life, a component of the Dance created by the Dancer, lies on the plateau of decipherment. So where is the wisdom? In the hands of nothingness that bears the grace of the Ultimate Dancer. No nothing, No wisdom. Enthusiasm and empty questions- Why is the sky blue? Why is the Ocean Blue? What Wisdom?

How is Holiness?

There’s so much in time – Years made of months, months of days and days of hours and hours made of minutes, minutes made of seconds and anybody who is aware and conscious of a split of second, has laid the foundation for holiness; and developed that uncommon power of self-realization in perfect communion with the Dancer. Is the Holiness of the dance a mirage? Only the Dancer makes Holiness in the beautiful filthiness of the Dance. And like the nothingness of knowledge in the Dance, holiness is deeper than the soul of the sun. Only humility can imagine. What do you say?

Is Humility humble?

In the flamboyance of the Dance, only the light of the rainbow glows; life gleefully beckons on emptiness of riches, power and vanity with an eventual call to transit with the enemy- Death. But in the glistening nature of the Dance, lies an admirable substance in the dust of the dance. It is the greatest and it comes from the least- the dust of the dance that receives the tedium of the Dancer. It is humility. The true entrance to the ecstatic rhythms of the Dance- rhythm of Love, rhythm of wisdom, rhythm of divinity, rhythm of fruitfulness and rhythm of peace. The King of the virtues with an absolute pride in the success of the Dance. Tell me, is humility actually humble? The King must evince the pride of a King because Kings never really die and only humility in the Dance, lives forever- Yes we transit through the dust, through the ashes. The Humble never really dies because humility is birthed in the Dust of the Dance.

Why do Good People die?

Struggling with our Enemy – Death and Dining with our Enemy can never be a perquisite of the good. The good is in the Dance, the Bad is in the Dance and everything in-between, from the withered neem to the blushing Hibiscus and the fragrance of a freshly fallen golden rose, belongs in the Dance. Oh! A Golden rose fallen to be trampled; a withered neem, shed to be ground and or blown by the winds of unfriendly times- the first and the last enemy- death. In the end, Death always wins. And when it wins the Good, we ask- why do good people not last? Only the Good can bear true witness to the Dance for the Dance and the Dancer. Only the Good never truly wrestles with the enemy- Death, because though it appears as our sole enemy, it is a creation of the Dancer. Only to the Good has such been revealed.

Are we all in the Dance?

Our Enemy will always win but when it wins, how it wins reminds us of the sound in the aggression and the pain in the moment. Do we go with the sound of the aggression or the pain in the moment? One is deeper but the Dance is more solemn. Yes, we are all in the dance. Every little move by the Dancer indicates our existence in the rhythm of the Dance. Again you may ask, does a Dance have a rhythm? Oh! We forgot to say that Rhythm is a component in the Dance. And every soul has a rhythm.

What is our Rhythm?

Close your eyes and momentarily be the Dancer in a Dance of your Life. What are those steps that inspire the components of your dance? How do you listen to the song of the Bird? Have you listened to the Kingly Pride of Humility as the ultimate Rhythm? Do you have a rhythm? Do you contemplate or are you ecstatic? Do you respect the incomprehensible power of the dust of the Dance- who we are? Only the Good are quickly called to bear true witness to the Dance.

Do we really die?

We never really die. As mere dancers in our momentary world of imagination, we only quit the dance floor to dance in another world of imagination. Therefore Death never really wins- It only appears to win but you can let Death win by “Not living and being aware of the Moment”. Even in our Dance of Flamboyance; in our show of vain glory, we remember that every moment counts, that every split of the second must be recorded and accounted for in your very being- That is self-consciousness. Can I ask more questions?

“If we are ever remembered when we transit this dancefloor, if our names are ever mentioned for good, if the dust and ash of our mother earth still lies within the latitudes under the clouds, if Men can develop a different rhythm in our name, then we never really died. We are just passively active on the Dancefloor.”

Dedicated to Prof Austin Chukwu, who lives on! Yes he lives on because his rhythm resonates in our hearts!!

Ogugua Egwu PhD

Department of Anatomy,

Federal University, Ndufu-Alike Ikwo, Nigeria.

It was a windy and hazy Monday morning at about 9.30am sometime in October, 2013. Everywhere was serene on campus as students were seriously busy in their lecture halls. I was walking quietly to the drawing studio on the calm corridors of the B-Block, when I heard a confident, low and high pitched voice, filtering out from one of the lecture rooms. The voice was very familiar, but I couldn’t figure out the owner. My mind rummaged for a while as I tried to, before my instincts compelled me to go and find out who was talking.

My footsteps were noiseless as I moved along and peeped through every open door of the lecture rooms. They were all filled with students taking their lectures. On getting to the third door, I whispered my eureka with a big sigh of relief. It was Professor Austin Chukwu, delivering a lecture!

The moment he sighted me, and in his usual sense of humility, he paused and excused himself from the students and met me at the door where I stood and greeted him. “Gwee-o!” He exclaimed. “Ukie, I meri egaa?

I nokozunwe n’ibie”? He asked. “O bu nk’odi, Prof”. I replied.

“A chokwa uka-o”! He advised in Ehugbo dialect as he shook hands with me and went back to his class with a smile of satisfaction. Fulfilled as I felt, I moved back to the studio with an assuring sense of belonging.

That was how I met Prof. Chukwu at the Federal University Ndufu Alike Ikwo, but not for the first time in life. As a matter of fact, he was an in-law, a friend and a big mentor to me.

He had and maintained very cordial relationships with anybody that was close to him, irrespective of age and social differences. He interacted with the low and high in the society and still had his personality and integrity intact. He believed in equity and justice. He could beckon a salute at any younger passer-by, even when the person did not notice his presence. He was firm and frank almost to a fault and always stood on the right things to be done. He was very vocal on issues that bordered around the welfare of mankind. He hated discrimination and spoke for those who have no voice. He would always say, “A bu m nhoko, a naghi ata m n’ezomi”.

Meaning, “I am a crab, you can’t eat me secretly”.

Professor Chukwu had a friendly attitude that was quite engaging. One always made sure that there was nothing else very urgent to do, each time one was to visit him, either at home or in his office. He had time for everybody that called on him. He was always full of advice. He was a benefactor.

He had a mentorship attitude that touched people’s lives directly or indirectly. As an academic iroko, Prof. Chukwu was a lion in not only in the University of Nigeria Nsukka sense of it, but also in other ramifications of humanity. He intellectually roared like a lion. One could not stay a moment with him without tapping from his ever flowing wealth of knowledge. He was like a fertile palm tree, every tapper that climbed it was sure of coming down with a keg of juicy fresh palm wine. He yearned to pour the contents of his skull to the benefit of mankind and to the glory of God. He was a great Professor of English and the humane letters. He was not a “Kweeh-kweeh” Professor, as he would fondly put it. Like Obierika said in Achebe’s Things Fall Apart, “That man was one of the greatest men in Umuofia”. Professor Austin Chukwu was indeed one of the greatest men in Ehugbo land.

Writing volumes on him would not make any difference because he was already voluminous by nature. Rather, it is saddening enough to note that one would be writing a tribute to this academic colossus at this time, when his contributions to humanity are needed most. It is more saddening to note that this intellectual giant was lowered by the audacity, bravery, impudence, insolence and defiance of death. This is one death that aptly corroborates Achebe’s description of Okonkwo’s death in Things Fall Apart: “the roaring flame begets cold impotent ash”.

What more can one say?

In a different circumstance, William Shakespeare was compelled to say that to praise what is lost, makes remembrance dear. Professor Austin Chukwu, we will miss you dearly. Humanity has it that it is a doom, that all animate things must one day become inanimate in order to allow the cycle of life and death continue in its mysterious journey.

We cannot question God. May your soul rest in peace, amen.

Goodbye, the Prince!

I met Prof Austin Chukwu when I joined the services of Abia State University, UTURU. Other colleagues of mine eulogized him having undergone his tutelage as his undergraduate students, but I saw him in a different light. He was that thorough-bred teacher, strict yet fair in all his dealings with people. We became friends and not just colleagues which endeared him further to me.

He made sure he asked after your welfare to ensure that you were okay. He had that personal touch in his relationship with others. Almost every teacher has a pet name bestowed on him by students, so he had his but the most important thing was his diligent delivery of his lectures. Students in other departments spoke of how they stole into his class to listen to him teach.

He was the postgraduate external examiner for the department for some years. In all these years, he made great intellectual input to the defence exercises which in no small way contributed to the strength of our postgraduate programme in the department. Prof Chukwu will be greatly missed by all of us now that he is no more. All I can say is, may his noble and gentle soul rest in perfect peace.

English Literature: The Moderns (ENG 421); Abia State University, Uturu; January, 2000, the first month of 21st Century. Those were the course, the venue and the year. The course was cross-generic, exploring the literary oeuvre of such icons like Joseph Conrad (prose), T.S. Eliot (drama & poetry), and Ezra Pound (poetry).

Dr. Austin Chukwu strode into the classroom, one of us carrying his chair and following in tow, as he oozed the kind of aura that quickly indicated that he was in for a serious academic business. He mounted the platform and started off on a subject that ordinarily should have been talked about in a sombre and grave tone, but which he made light of. “Welcome to another century, the 21st century”, he enthused. “As usual, this century will bring with it so many things – some positive; others negative. New people will be born in this century to swell the ever-increasing world’s population. Many who are now living will die in this century, too. Considering my present age, I will die in this century ha ha ha ha ha. Yes, Dr. Austin Chukwu will die in this century ha ha ha ha ha. Even some of you staring at me now will die in this century ha ha ha ha ha. That is the nature of our existence, the fate of us all as living mortals”, he paused, while we laughed along, though without mirth. When he resumed his speech it was no longer about 21st Century, or about death. He had delved into the main business of the day, a lecture that lasted for two hours which he interspersed with comic remarks.

It was indeed an engaging lecture. But the high point was the histrionics with which he talked about death and the vanity of human existence. Even as grave a matter as death is, he diminished its ferocity in such a manner that we all felt it was after all a non-issue if we must die. He almost made us long for death sooner than our time. That was Dr. Austin Chukwu for you!

Earlier, he had taught us about three other courses. So we were already used to his theatricalities, and no student ever wished to miss his lectures as he had a way of enlivening even the “driest” of courses. But he would always remind you that “Dr. Austin Chukwu is not generous with his marks ha ha ha ha ha. I don’t give you ‘As’ or ‘Bs’, you earn them when you work hard. If you want marks for free go to Father Christmas ha ha ha ha ha”. He proceeded to supervise my degree project and I earned a ‘B’. I had become to him a sort of a son. By then he had transferred to Ebonyi State University and was coming from there to conclude the project supervision.

The next time I came to see him, he had become a professor and a Faculty Dean. I came, armed with a proof of having concluded a programme on Master’s Degree, hoping that “my father” would readily absorb me into the lecturing job. But he said no. I was bearing To Whom It May Cocern, not a statement of result. I went back disappointed. A few months later, I came back with a statement of result, and noticed that he had served out his two tenures as a Dean and was heading a department. “My father” still said no again, declaring the department bottom-heavy. In spite of my tearful eyes, coupled with the pleas from Chief Odicha Ude (Okeugo) (then Head of Mass Com. Department), all Prof. insisted on was that “Augustus is my son… I know him better than you do, Chief. But this department is already bottom heavy ha ha ha ha ha. We want a person who already have a PhD; not one still on it ha ha ha ha ha”. I went home disappointed again, not really thinking that he was mean but that was Prof. Chukwu in his firm and objective nature.

Years later, we became colleagues at Federal University Ndufu-Alike Ikwo (FUNAI). I was merely an Assistant Lecturer, and he was my Dean. The next six years I saw him saying no to many opinions that would have elicited straight yes from me; and yes to several positions to which I would have said flat no, if I were in his shoes. And in all these situations Prof. Austin Chukwu would still be laughing expansively, injecting innuendos, aphorisms, analogies, and other rhetorical figures as he talked. Our board meetings, either at the departmental or faculty levels, used to be occasions for debonairness. The same condition applied during our ASUU congresses, or any of the University programmes he attended. And who were you not to be infected by his ever-hilarious mien, unless you were naturally denied of the emotion of laughter by your creator! You dared not go to Prof. Austin Chukwu’s office to exchange pleasantries with him if you were not prepared to spend the next four hours there. He would entrance you with humorous stories that you would laugh until your sides ached. My mind began to mature and broaden greatly about him. I began to understand him better. No wonder my first ever publication was on a festschrift in his honour. He subsequently read through all my essays as manuscripts and made his inputs, thereby making them acceptable for publication.

I miss Prof. Austin Chukwu – his infectious conviviality, his resoluteness, and his fatherliness. I miss the reach of his academic prowess, his erudition. He was a mascot, a humanist and a prophet. He died in the 21st Century.

It is true about life what the preacher wrote in the book of Ecclesiastes chapter 3: 1-2,“There is a time for everything and a season for every activity under heaven: a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot.”

Our great professor, Austin Chukwu, has fulfilled his time here on earth. I believe in his life time, he participated actively in the drama of the rhetoric about time as outlined in the narrative by the preacher in Ecclesiastes chapter 3.

He was planted, he grew and bore fruits which many enjoyed. Though he has gone now, yet the seeds from his fruits are growing here and there. So he lives on through the great impact he made in people’s lives.

I am one of those who enjoyed his fruit. I first came to know professor Austin Chukwu when I came to FUNAI in 2013. I think it was, during our Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities board meeting, and he as the Dean was presiding over it, that I first had that contact. There is no way that professor Austin Chukwu will not leave a great impression on you when you hear him speak or you spend time in his presence.

Proudly an academic and a professor at that, and he made no apology for it. He inspired me to hold my shoulder high in my chosen profession as a lecturer.

Prof always had stories to tell, from which you draw inspiration and lessons from. Typical of our African heritage of oral traditions. I somehow saw him as a 'mobile' teacher because there is always something to learn whenever you come in contact with him – whether in a meeting or one-to-one, and of course you can’t leave his presence or office in a hurry.

Our lives they say is a collage of the different people that have impacted us. Professor Austin Chukwu is one of those pieces that make up the collage of my life.

I know you are gone from this side of life, but still I want to say, thank you Prof, for your encouragement that made me want to strive to be the best in what I do and to be thorough. You fired up the desire in me to want to be a professor too because of those times you declared proudly that you are a professor and the superiority of our profession. Your words keep echoing in me: “let’s encourage her. Let’s encourage her”.

Thank you Prof.

Like someone said, you were a voice for the voiceless. You fought for me and others, where no one could have stood for us. You were not afraid to speak your mind and stand for what is right. Like it is said, “ When I grow up I want to be like you”. Yes, there are many things about you I want to emulate.

Thank you Prof.

My only regret is that I didn’t get the opportunity to appreciate you well enough before you left. I guess it only means I should “pay it forward”, that is, to be a blessing to someone else the way you have been a blessing to me.

I end with this Igbo hymn that has been resonating inside of me:

Nani n'olu-ayi, nani n'olu-ayi,

Nani n'olu-ayi k'ageji chet'ayi,

Otu a k'ayi gesi si n'olu uwa nka la ;

Nani n'olu,lu-ayi k'ageji chet'ayi.

(Paraphrased: The song says it’s by our works we would be remembered when we leave this world).

Professor Austin Chukwu will always be remembered.

DR. IFEOMA M NWEZE (Mrs)

PROFESSION: LECTURER: LANG/LING/ST. STUDIES/THEATER ARTS

RWD: COLLEAGUE

COUNTRY: NIGERIA

POSTED ON: SEPTEMBER 21, 2017

PLACE OF WORK: FUNAI

A TRIBUTE TO THE LION OF ANCIENT STANDING -OUR TEACHER, OUR MENTOR AND A SCHOLAR PAR EXCELLENCE

The great Lion of ancient standing, I salute you! You never belonged to the category of the weeping lions rather, you distinguished yourself to the class that devoured its prey when it is necessary; a lion whose roar protected the weak and sets the enemy on the run. You fought for what many of us appreciated –justice, equity and fairness.

Going through the pavements of many Universities, a journey which began at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (the Den of lions and lionesses) through Abia State University to Imo State University, Ebonyi State University and finally the Federal University, Ndufu-Alike IKWO (FUNAI). You arrived at FUNAI at the right time being the right person for the right job and the post of Deanship of the faculty of the Humanities and social sciences; you were a square peg in a square hole. Your arrival marked the beginning of the programmes in the two faculties which today, through your effort turned into two distinct faculties. Bravo!, no wonder the staff Welfare Association of the faculty of Humanities gave you the Pioneer Leader’s Award as the pilgrim father of the faculty.

Proooooof! As we fondly call you, you were an inspiring administrator, an entertainer, a comedian, a story teller and a consummate being. Permit me then, to describe you in the words of Robert Green Ingersol at his brother’s grave: ‘‘this brave and tender man in every storm of life was oak and rock but in the sunshine, he was vine and flower’’. St. Paul in 1Corinthians 19-23 said “I became all things to all men…I have made myself servant to all…” Prof Austin, your fatherly advice and the manner of approach to the matters concerning individuals and the faculty were exceptional, a fact which gave character and tradition to the faculty. The stability which the departments in the faculty enjoy today derived from the above qualities epitomized. Re-echoing Nwachukwu’s (2005) words on Kay Williason’s death, we lament that, the pilgrim centre to which the scholars could go to drink from the Aeolian springs has suddenly vanished and the scholastic boom busted. Why now, when many faces beam with smiles and enthusiasm on remembering the weight you throw on complex cases to calm the storms for individuals, departments and the entire faculty. Why now, when the hope of many are raised to the highest, when the rays of the sun of the sunshine faculty which you nurtured is at its peak.

Well, these ‘whys’ are just evidence of helplessness in an agonized situation like this. We should brace ourselves and face the reality. To Prof. Austin Chukwu’s family, I am not in doubt about the immense grief and sorrow that must have shrouded you following his transition. It is obvious too that his passing away has left a vacuum in your life and the entire town of Afikpo. I share in your grief and the pains your family members are passing through. Hold on to his legacies since your Dad was a father par excellence whose charitable works touched so many lives. However, as you mourn, be consoled and comforted by the fact that his physical demise is a mere transition to eternity. My prayer is that he will join the celestial fellowship in heaven. He will therefore, walk in the streets of gold in heaven as he beholds the saviour.

Adieu!

Erudite Professor

The great comedian

The pacesetter

The Lion of ancient standing!

References

Ingersol, R.G pmnewsnigeria.comshowers of Tributes/retrieved September 19, 2017

Nwachukwu, P.A. (2005). A Funeral Lecture in Honour of Kay Williamson. University of PortHarcourt.

The Holy Bible: The Revised Standard Version.

Dr. Ifeoma M Nweze (Mrs)

We received with shuck the news of the death of Prof. Austin Chukwu which occurred on Monday 7th August 2017.

From our undergraduate days in ABSU, he proved a father, a confidant and a last recourse. His apt and timely advice did magic.

In FUNAI, as a staff of his Faculty, we were again privileged to be sheltered by that love that we could trust, those word that encouraged and assured, and that educated intelligence that proved a panacea. These and more defined him.

And now all these are gone. Prof. is no more. Our tears remain endless because the huge vacuum already created can never be filled. But the legacy he left is our consolation.

As you go to God Prof., go with the belief and satisfaction that you lived a fulfilled life.

Cheerio Prof.

I am sure my tribute to you will be one of the shortest and that is because you are a man who talks when necessary. When I see you, hear you talk and tackle confusing issues amongst your colleague, I have hope as a Nigerian Academics. I remember when you said "Politicians should come to us as intellectuals and not the other way. You are my hope in a not so attractive profession in Nigeria. You are my hope of wanting to become a Professor one day. Rest on Man of Humane Letters, someone is following your steps down here..Rest on

It didn’t register at first. It must be a mere coincidence of names. It couldn’t be the colossus, Prof Austin Chukwu that I knew. So, I thought, until expressions of condolences came pouring in from the social media, then I made a few phone calls and the brutal reality dawned on me. Prof, the tragic news of your sudden demise was like a punch in my solar plexus! I was dumbstruck with shock and sadness. DEATH! DEATH! Not indisposition? Not an injury? The finality of it all was shattering.

How could you, a towering intellect, let Death snatch you from us like that?

Why should you, a literary icon, make such a hasty exit?

How could you, a fearless, indomitable personality succumb so easily to Death?

Why should you, a dogged, invincible fighter suddenly surrender?

How could you, a vocal, irrepressible Activist be gagged forever?

Why should you, a renowned Prince of Ehugbo slip away without pomp and pageantry?

Several hows and whys went through my mind. At the end of it all, it dawned on me that we are all helpless, powerless and defenceless in the face of merciless Death. He visits without notice, when one least expects and one capitulates. So did you.

I recall with nostalgia, your active participation in ASUU-EBSU meetings during which you always held the Congress spellbound with your thought-provoking, awe-inspiring and well-articulated speeches laced with captivating theatrics and intriguing mannerisms. Your mere presence emboldened us in our struggles. Your tenacity and vociferousness gave courage to the faint-hearted, assured wavering minds and lifted the dispirited from the doldrums.

Prof, we were all together at the birthday anniversary celebration of Prof Akachi-Ezeigbo organized by ANA-Ebonyi a few months back. You appeared healthy, although with a few tell-tale signs of graceful ageing. You made a humorous remark about one of my poems that I had read out and I was tickled by it. You played a major role in the publication of my first poetry collection “Daisies in the Desert” in 2012. Your words of praise about my literary creativity when you read my manuscript, spurred me on to get it published. You were delighted when I gave you a complimentary copy of the collection.

The following poem, which is an excerpt from that collection aptly describes your sudden exit:

A beautiful, sunny day

Music plays in your soul

Laughter lurks on your lips

Merriment glitters in your eyes

As Bliss weaves her cocoon around you

Somewhere, he sits,

Watching. Waiting.

For the right moment

A master of stealth!

As you savour the sweetness

Of life’s largesse

He sneaks up to you

With fun bellowing in your voice

He creeps closer

Suddenly

With meteoric speed

He deals a blow

Crippling. Deathly

The light goes out

Darkness descends

The world comes to an end!

Prof, your exit is a huge and irreparable loss to your family, friends, the academia, the literary world, ASUU and humanity. You were indeed a legendary figure among the intelligentsia. You were unrivalled in oratorical skills, unequalled in bravery and superlative in scholastic achievements. You were manliness personified. You are unforgettable and irreplaceable.

Prof Austin Chukwu, you were phenomenal!

Have a blissful rest in the Lord.

A…d…i…o…s! A…d…i…o…s!! A…d…i…o…s!!!

Dr Clementina Igwebike-Ossi

Dept of Industrial Chemistry, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki

Oh Prof. Austin Chukwu, it is true that the news merchants has it that you have gone to the great beyond!

But we know that you still lives on......

The shoe you left is too big and so expensive for any body to just wear!!

The vacuum you created in the hearts of Comrades, Scholars, Students, and host of friends is too wide to be filled!!!

Prof. your words lives on...... A great activist!! Defender of the downtrodden....... A quintessential orator and a humorous scholar to be with.......

Your mental alacrity is second to non.....even uptill the heavenly hour.....your remained highly alert. I remember my last meeting with you, few days before your demise.........how you were able to recall the interaction we had five years ago, when I first met you..........how you told me almost everything about my academic root & all I told you before then.

Ga nke oma ezigbo mmadu!!!

Oke osisi ndi Igbo ji eje mba!

Adieu Prof. Austin Chukwu.

This is a dirge for a hero that was once here but gone, leaving many in bewilderment about the future of the struggle between the oppressed and the oppressors; in a World full of oddities, uncertainties and treachery of man by man. This is a dirge for a legend now transited from our World leaving a gaping hole in the coalition of the oppressed class as they struggle to survive in a society where class characterization of men have taken a turn for the worse. It is a dirge for the people’s hero in a society where Mao Tze Tung’s dictum of politics as ‘war by other means’ is taking a trajectory for the worse between the haves and the have not; the rich opportune class and the poor disadvantaged class; the strong and the weak, set in motion by the avarice of ruling class for ages leading to struggles once hidden, but is now an open fight.

In today’s World of unfettered manipulation of the laws of the State by the ruling class to alienate the mass of laboring men/women, from the proceeds of their labour, our leader has transited leaving a legion of the oppressed who he stood for over decades in the midst of an eternal contention for good over evil; which having taken a turn for the worst, is degenerating into a state of nature where modern day second slavery now predominates the affairs of men.

There can be nothing better than an eulogy made for Professor Austin E. Chukwu in behalf of all the fallen heroes at the academic frontiers of intellectual strive under which liberation struggles have will continue to occur in the efforts to sustain the fighting spirit of the living legends who, having gone, left behind a few men of valour to lead the legions of the oppressed through various battles already that are coalescing into a formidable war of all against a few, now almost done in the victory of good against evil. In our expected victory of the working class against the exploiter class, we console the living among us over this loss by clinging unto the ray of light in the horizon pointed out to us in the past by the founding fathers of labour unionism against modern day second slavery being perpetrated in our land by the exploiter class.

Proooooof; with our struggles set to culminate into the downfall of oppressive rules across societies, we salute you. We salute you from the slums, the dark alleys and hiding place of the oppressed masses to the class rooms of the millions of subjugated African scholars. From the labour camps and animal farms a.k.a Nigerian Universities where a few compatriots ascend the command post of the ivory tower and hold their head high in dignified defense of the defenseless while a few fall cheap for the crumbs off the table of the exploiter class who recruit them to further our oppression; we salute you. While these few agents of the exploiter class among us with access to the command post of the ivory tower where they savour and relish the juicy positions of the labour camps in our society; having fallen prey to the antics of their principals in control of the state structures may not want us to celebrate you as one of the few men left standing in defiant defense of the weak through thick and thin, we say adios to you our labour leader who never bowed to the pressures of ‘self’ in acquiescence to the antics of the pitti-bourgeoisie.

While subterfuge remains the norm among a few who have crossed the isles to become glorified errand boys of the exploiter class in order to deepen our expropriation; this is a dirge for Professor Austin E. Chukwu who lived and died as a colossus of many kinds but most importantly, a friend of the oppressed peoples through his defense of the rights of the laboring masses of our time. Prooooof, the masses are hailing you from the broken bone valleys; where African young academics and labourers are subjugated to delayed, under-paid and unpaid wages as well as other forms of intimidation by colleagues who once fraternized with us but are now our slave masters by other means having become advantaged to command us from an opportune position.

In a Society fast degenerating into the abyss where the voice of the voiceless is becoming faint, this is a dirge for the ‘Labour man personified’ who had an astute position in honour of the down trodden without minding whose ox was gored, so long as the end justified the means to the enthronement of egalitarianism among the academia and beyond. We celebrate the exit of an icon; ‘Professor Austin E. Chukwu’ who was and will remain a legendary Labour man who kept asking all around him a question; ‘are you for or against the ASUU struggle?’

As rhetoric and repetitive as this questions posed by Prof. Austin E. Chukwu often sounded and will keep reverberating frighteningly to the less discerning minds, a few sagacious men have taken this to heart while assiduously and steadfastly seeking to unravel the secrets behind this ominous and challenging question. The few that understood the trend of thoughts of this icon of radical scholarship in the labour union camps were opportune to acquire the greater wisdom from the pains of the struggle by African labourers which Prof. saw as a supreme sacrifice required of a few to set all men free from the shackles and bondage of the modern day second slavery that is sweeping across Africa. To Prof, the few among the inteligencia once revered for their integrity but who have in recent times been selling out for crumbs off the table of the crude capitalists in our land to re-enact the proverbial Esau–Jacobian pot of porridge must be re-oriented and thought to ‘re-tool’ their unionist arsenals for the good of all men.

Reminiscing on the days of Proooof’s views at ASUU meetings about the dignity and value of Labour as that which demands appropriate recompense of the labourer for his labour hours in whatever field of his engagement; creates nostalgia about Karl Marx’s magnum opus concerning ‘the value of labour-power constituting the conscious and explicit foundation of the trade unions within which great importance must be placed on the protection of the interests of working class’, because a ‘labourer is worth his wages’. For Professor Austin E. Chukwu; ‘a labour union remains the only organization of workers with avowed dedication to the protection of their interests by their quest for improved wages and hours of working conditions’ and the liberation of all mankind from the impending doom being designed and orchestrated by the exploiter class in our midst aimed at ushering in a modern day second slavery.

As much as different types of workers belong to various unions; which cut across many frontiers of human endeavour, Professor E. Chukwu’s primary calling was with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) which he joined and remained steadfastly dedicated to in all the decades of bargaining for better conditions of service in the Nigerian Universities. Suffice it for us to recall at this juncture that the history of ASUU struggles cannot be complete without linking it to the history of the struggle pioneered by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) which was formally constituted as the foremost National federation of trade unions in the country in 1978; having gone through the mills under the various names and siege laid against the working class in Nigeria by the many dictatorial rulers of our time.

The Nigerian Association of University Teachers earlier formed in 1965 grew to become one of the formidable specialized labour unions with many icons such as Professor Austin Chukwu who have walked in the footsteps of our founding fathers of lobour unionism to metamorphose into today’s Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) in 1978. The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) remains a Nigerian Universities union of academic labourers with a history of militant action with effective leadership and followership cutting across all academics that are worth their calling to scholarship.

When the union was active in struggles against the military regimes during the 1980s, our erudite Professor Austin E. Chukwu joined as a young academic. All through the 1980s when the union organized National Strikes to wrest fair wages and University autonomy from the shackles and bondage of the ruling exploiter class in Nigeria, the then young and budding ‘Dr. Austin E. Chukwu’ was in the vanguard. Throughout the days when ASUU was intimidated, variously, proscribed and re-invigorated by the 1990s, Dr. Austin E.Chukwu was and remained an ASUU man and grew in the academia to become an iconic ‘Comrade’ Professor who had no apologies for fraternizing with his ASUU kit and kin across the strata of the academia.

When this present lame-duck democratic caricature in vogue across Nigeria was concocted by ‘a dictatorial military junta’ in 1999 Prof. Austin E. Chukwu had gone through the ranks to become an astute ‘Comrade Professor’; an ASUU leader from Imo State University Owerri, to Abia State University, Uturu, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki and our own dear ‘ soaring’ eagle; Federal University, Ndufu-Alike Ikwo where he settled down in esteem as the colossus revered for his forthrightness, candor and astute stand for justice, equity and fairness to all without prejudice to any.

Alas, Proooooof has stepped aside leaving us to thinker deeper about our lives in the eternal struggle of good against evil. In bewilderment we have stopped to ponder and pander over the travails of our lives as the battle ground continues to change against the wiles of our oppressors who continue to shift the goal post towards the fruition of their desire to enthrone a modern day second slavery.

Who will stand in the gap for the labour unions with the departure of this arrow head amidst the gaping hole in the hearts of the rank and file as the army of the working class as we continue in our quest for good over evil? Who will lead us further in a Society where the civil societies have failed the people; thanks to the intransigencies of the dictatorial ruling class in Nigeria? With the attendant loss of faith in the Institutions of the State and the Political leaders, a loss of a labour leader such as Prof. Austin Chukwu to labour unionists is a great loss. In the vineyards of our academic endeavours, where the hope of the masses linger in expectation of victory of the unions against the slaves masters’ grand standing to push all mankind into a modern day second slavery, where do we find a replacement of great loss?

This bell tolls for AC!

My Lion of the Great,

My brother and colleague,

Our intellectual dynamite and

Consortium of literary muse,

This bell tolls for you!

An all-rounder,

Our rallying point,

How come you set out for

This journey

Without a word for kith and kin?

With your journey,

Friends are friendless;

Brothers and sisters, brotherless;

Oh no!

OkammutaAustin Chukwu,

We shall meet to part no more.

It’s two times the drum heralds a man;

If not at birth,

It’s at death.

Our warrior extraordinaire,

Where are you?

Why did you proceed to this journey of everyman?

…Not discussed?

…Without a whisper?

…Not bargained for?

….Without a parting word?

…not even a parting kiss!

Onyebrother,

Keekwanu?

How are the mighty fallen!

May the day that heralded

This journey –

this 7th day of August, 2017 –

Remain accursed!

Who could accept this

Doleful news, this truth of fiction,

This sad tale of truth that pierced and

Shattered our psyche and reason?

Dumbstruck!

Ewuh!

Ewo!

Eghu a taaanyiigun’isi!

Chi ewere la ehihejie!

We mourn your demise in sackcloth

And ash on our heads,

In this time and space!

We’d neither tell this

Truth of bitter in Gath,

Nor in the streets of Ashkelon,

Lest our detractors rejoice,

Or daughters of the non-essasexult.

We’ve been bitten by a cloudless rain

In the dry of season,

We’ve sighted this palm fruit

Ripen at the tail of its frond;

This thisnessand thatness!

This historic trek of Chukwu to the Chukwus

Has dug a confounding chasm

And left a yawning lacuna no man

Born of woman can bridge.

My very dear colleague,

Why did you leave us midsea

In this chilling cold wind of the harmattan

From the Sahara, cascading from the transcontinental air mass

With its thunderous rumbling of indignant Amadioha?

Ere long you’d be ferried across the Sty

Ere long you’d drink waters of the Lethe.

Onyebrother

We aint in a hurry to join

You now in this unwanted journey

Of everyman;

Alas!

We know not when the come comes to come.

My great Chukwu,

Your tell tale of life,

In sarcastic diction,

Is brutal Truth,

Though painful,

But a spring of salvation afterward.

My intellectual pathfinder and behemoth,

My literary colossus,

My metacritic of paragon,

My literary historian and philosopher-king,

My teacher of teachers,

We miss your fountain and cistern

At a time unsuspecting,

Without opportunity to bargain!

We well recall

Your counsel, my brother:

Let’s not mourn the

Demise of our trees,

Our forebears too far,

For we’re already parents!

My Lion of the Great,

You roared and pounced, simultaneously,

An ephebi, now a sophist

From the Zoo ofUniversitas,

Yes, MahadumnkeNaija;

You’re ubiquitous

Like your peers, charging like the charging ram,

In the restoration of man’s dignity.

As you embark on this eventful journey,

You swell the ranks of our ancestors.

Yours is a life well spent,

For sweet is the memory of the just;

As we suddenly recollect that this bell tolls for you!

NgoziAnyachonkeya

1 am, Staff Quarters, AIFPU, 19 September, Nkwo, 2017

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

NgoziAnyachonkeya, FIIA, DLP, Reader, holds a PhD of University of Nigeria. He is Director, Directorate of Affiliation, Collaboration and Linkages (DACOL), at AkanuIbiam Federal Polytechnic, Unwana, Nigeria and Orator of the Polytechnic. He is a poet, novelist and playwright and has published widely.

What is Literature?

Literature is a written composition from which we derive pleasure, understanding and meaning, and which is appreciated because of its value as a work of art. Some people use the term literature in a much more diverse way outside its province as a subject of study. But then, any written document in another sense is literature. In this case, such people are using it loosely to mean anything written. The literature student should be very careful not to join in that kind of band-wagon otherwise you lose your own essence.

What do you understand by the Okumkpo Masquerade performance?

The Okumkpo masquerade performance can be seen as a theatre. It is a moving theatre. But people in the theatre arts have been arguing over it. There was a famous essay by M.J.C. Echeruo which he called “The Dramatic Limits of Igbo Ritual”, in as much as many people have debunked what he is saying, I believe that he has drawn our attention to certain things about ritual, because sometimes we may make mistakes, we may simply begin to think that anytime there is a ritual, it is drama. It is not true, especially for me. I am a Roman Catholic, somebody had once quipped that ‘Roman Catholicism is all ritualism’. Actually, there are lots of rituals in Roman Catholicism. I think that many of us may not have grown up in our traditional religion. We see it as part of the dichotomy between traditional religion and Christianity. And I think that Christianity, which religion in itself is ritualistic, right from the Greeks, the Romans and so on, and owes its origin in Judaism, is ritualistic. Jesus Christ for instance, after eight days of his birth, was taken for circumcision. So there is ritualism in religion except that sometimes people think that it might detract from the whole essence of communing with your God, particularly when we now lay more emphasis on the rituals rather than the substance. Even in those churches that claim not to have rituals, you still have a bit of ritual; it is just that the Roman Catholic church over does it.

Question: What you are trying to say in essence is that the Okumkpo masquerade performance is both dramatic and ritualistic.

Yes of course, but what I am trying to say is that our drama (that is the Okumkpo masquerade) is almost tilting towards the “art for art’s sake” even though we had rejected it earlier, especially in the western society. We are tilting towards “art for art’s sake”. But I think what happens in any movement is an attempt to avoid too much of anything, even though every movement itself can be an extreme expression of a desire. But the fact is that the society has always believed that everything must have a purpose. So people who are involved in the arts – the artists – must take that into consideration which is why they always talk of African art expressing some aspects of our lives, sometimes in rituals. There has always been that contention between the meanings of art. But again, in mainstream criticism, you find out that art must have a meaning; art must have a purpose, but where the purpose outweighs the art, then it becomes something else, which we express in, “all art is propaganda but not all propaganda is art”. Just as some churches will be saying all religion is ritualistic, but not every ritual is religion, because at a stage if you become too ritualistic, you are missing the whole purpose of linking up with your maker.

Echeruo has had some supporters though, but a great majority of people did not support him especially because they felt that he was looking at art squarely from western eyes. There have been other ways of art, and when I say art, I am using it in place of theatre, in place of drama. Drama is not just western. Different parts of the world have their own drama. Somebody has talked about the Japanese; some have talked about the Chinese in the east, and not too long ago, Yoruba traditional drama. In fact they are moving from place to place, the Yoruba. Even though as the world is becoming a smaller place, each form of drama tries to initiate or to take aspects of another one and incorporate it. That is why theatre can talk of proscenium stage as well as the theatre-in-the round and somebody will tell you that theatre-in-the round is closer to our own way of seeing theatre in the Ehugbo context. When we go to a playground (like Ogo Ehugbo), people stay almost round it and when things are happening, there is always some kind of communication between the audience and what is going on there, that is theatre… In the original form of western drama, we didn’t have the kind of detailed characterization as we have now. In Everyman (medieval drama), Everyman was going out, he was meeting some of his characters on the way: he will meet Faithfulness, he will meet Intelligence and some of them said they were not going with him. These are characters. But gradually, drama began to expand, and began to have characters, individualized characters, no longer characters representing an abstract entity. So it has been a big movement from medieval drama to say Shakespeare’s time where you now begin to have, say, a character like Macbeth, where we now begin to have a character like Hamlet and so on. But even within Macbeth, you see that Macbeth has grown out from the original conception of Ambition, so that if we are still dealing with the medieval times, instead of Macbeth, we would have had Ambition as a concept. Our own drama had not developed to that level, but that does not make it any less drama any more that you can say that medieval drama was Igbo drama, but you know, as the world begins to become more complex, things have to become much more complex, so that even in the modern times, you find out that the characterization in drama is not exactly as Shakespeare’s characterization, something has been added to reflect the kind of complexity that you have in the modern world. This is why you now have things like Theatre of the Absurd; because there are some assumptions that have been made. Even when Shakespeare was writing, he was writing in line with the assumptions of the Renaissance and the Elizabethan times. Then after so many world wars, and human beings finding that they can no longer be complacent, they can no longer take things for granted, that there is a lot of fear about the existence of man, that questions are being raised, so many movements came about that some are even questioning “what is reality” and started talking about issues such as the Theatre of the Absurd, for instance, where somebody is sleeping with his wife, and in the morning what he sees on the bed is a cockroach. Brecht (Bertolt) himself was saying look, look, look, don’t even be bothered about whether somebody thinks that you are joking, that is a make-believe; that actually theatre is make-believe. In the Renaissance, they wanted you to have “a willing suspension of disbelief”. That is a way of getting you to catharsis, but Brecht was even talking against catharsis, this is very deceptive because he wanted his drama to lead you to action, but once you have this catharsis, and you cry, you become complacent. So you can see the class system coming into play, he saw the Elizabethan drama and so on as too much of a bourgeois kind of thing that just reflects the situation of the moment. So when you come to Okumkpo, Okumkpo is drama, the entire thing is theatre, within it is drama and the dramatic element is what happens; the interaction. The Okumkpo displays its dramatic elements by way of songs, just like the choruses in the Greek drama. Even some modern playwrights have invented choruses which help to give us the mood of the play and to see how the playwright is looking at what is going on. So in our own case, it is through the music, the song that we are able to identify what he is doing, because the Okumkpo, number one, was begun as a way of checking the behaviour of people in the society. It is a kind of check on excesses and misbehaviours. The Okumkpo watches the society, and do not forget that the Okumkpo is just one of the attributes of our traditional system in which we have the lower cadre and the upper cadre. The lower cadre which we call the “umu-ena”, suggests the uninitiated people, but the fact is that this uninitiated people also have their own Okumkpo, which is called “Okumkpo umu ena”, and I’ve never heard anybody suggesting that in any case, the performance of “Okumkpo umu-ena” is inferior to “Okumkpo Ogo”. No, it doesn’t follow, but it is always felt that when you are initiated and you are older that you are more mature, you are more experienced and so on. It is assumed that the “Okumkpo Ogo” is likely to deal with much more fundamental issues than “Okumkpo umu ena”.

Question: Do the functions of the Okumkpo umu-ena differ from those of the Okumkpo ogo?

No, it is the same function. In fact everything in Ehugbo that happens at “Ogo”, happens at “Ohia Umu-ena”. For instance, there is “lughulu umu ena”, there is “lughulu ogo”, and there is “oteru umu-ena” and “oteru ogo” and so on. It’s just like saying that you are moving from primary school to secondary school, to tertiary institution. It’s just that in this case, they had only two levels: the uninitiated and the initiated. In those days to be able to be initiated was totally different from today. You have to undergo all kinds of trials for so many years. It was our own form of education because during that period you will be taken into the history, the laws of the land and so on. It was a process of transformation. Okumkpo itself is just one of those things that happen as far as the ogo cult is concerned. But the Okumkpo now differs from the rest in the sense that it goes as a group. You may have the Nnade okumkpo (the Father), or the Agbogho Okumkpo (the Maiden) whose dressing in fact typifies the beauty of the feminine caste in the society. The Agbogho Okumkpo looks like a maiden, a beautiful maiden. So many different characters will be there, and then there is always some kind of dialogue after which (dialogue) it is now put into a song, and the song will now make references to certain people whose behaviours have been found to be aberrations. In other words, they have not been in conformity with the norms of the society. The reason why some people think that it cannot be real drama is that it doesn’t go too far to now look at individual as characters, but looks at concepts; for instance what does the Nnade Okumkpo do, what does the Agbogho Okumkpo do and so on, and the “Nnade” Okumkpo will control all the other Okumkpo masquerades. They normally move from place to place. In the morning, the crier (Oma-ewa or early riser) will go from place to place to tell some people, look oh, we have a case with you so that, if possible, come and watch it.

There is an immunity granted to the Okumkpo because sometimes, it might say something that is not palatable. The person being referred to is not supposed to go to court because the Okumkpo is not a human being. So the concept of mask itself which is also found in ancient Greek and the rest of them now come in, so the Okumkpo must be masked.

Question: What are the functions of the mask of the Okumkpo?

To show that they are no longer ordinary human beings, in our society, masquerading suggests that the person is not an ordinary person, which is why we are told in modern drama or Elizabethan drama about “the willing suspension of disbelief”, for instance that when Austin Chukwu is playing the role of Macbeth and he is on the stage, it is not Austin Chukwu that is talking, it is Macbeth that is talking. Remember, in Things Fall Apart, the Egwugwu masquerade came out and Okonkwo was one of the Egwugwus. Even when the wives saw the sprightly walk, as far as the people are concerned, it is no longer Okonkwo at that particular moment. He is simply one of the elders of the clan that have resurrected to come and intercede. Just as we Catholics were told that the bread, as soon as it has been consecrated is no longer ordinary bread, it is now the actual body of Christ, the wine, is no longer ordinary wine, and it is now the blood of Christ. It is very much a matter of faith. It is faith, which is very important.

Question:- Is it possible to locate the origin of the Okumkpo masquerade?

It is difficult to locate. I think it was part of the attempt to maintain some element of decorum and certain level of behaviour within the society, just like satire. Okumkpo is satiric. It is highly satiric. They will come and demonstrate how you did certain things. They will mock you. People will now be afraid that if they do the same thing, Okumkpo will sing for them, they will now refrain from doing it. I think it is inborn in man in the society that sometimes you have to develop certain systems by which to check the misbehaviours of your members in the society. It is always directed at satirizing some people in the society with a view to correcting the ills in the society. That is the main function of Okumkpo, but then it is expressed in poetic form. Its music is poetic. When you analyze its music, you find poetry in it and that’s the literature we are talking about. Some dramatic works engage in dancing which has led to the setting up of opera and the rest of them, so there is a close relationship between music and poetry. Okumkpo uses local idioms which is why many people may not understand its language and also because it uses local ascent. For instance, most Ehugbo indigenes who grew up outside the community, find it difficult to understand the language. If you are not part of that locality (Ehugbo), you may not understand it. For example, if any Ehugbo man tells you “na anaghi a chi ite eboo na-aga mkpa-mkpa” you will not understand it unless you are an Ehugbo indigene that is rooted in the language and native idioms unless he explains it to you in Standard English that “it is not advisable to take too many responsibilities at the same time”.

Question: Does the Okumkpo Masquerade performance have a specific time or period when it takes place?

Yes, you have to find the season. It is a seasonal thing, and sometimes it may not be every year, and because it is quite expensive to prepare. It is just like the “Oke nkwa” or “Akpoha Ngodo” masquerade which I suspect may have come from the Akpoha community through the Ngodo people. It involves so many people dancing, including highly rated people in the society. It is another way of an Ehugbo man saying look, in spite of my height in the society, I am still loyal to my people, and he agrees to be part of it, but it is dramatic. It is just like Corpus Kristi, the people moving from place to place, creating sceneries especially during the “unwu” (when the Ehugbo await the New Yam Festival), so many activities are preformed in Igbo land and other parts of Africa.

Question: Outside the cost, is there any other thing that determines the occasion for an Okumkpo performance?

There isn’t, outside the fact that it is done during the Okochi (dry season). Not much is done during the “Udumini” (rainy season) because of the disturbance of the rain. In modern times anyway, somebody could just suggest that it has been long since an Okumkpo performance took place. Lately, the part of Ehugbo that has held most performances has been the Ozizza group of villages, and people now tend to question whether it is only the Ozizza people that now dominate the Okumkpo performance. It appears the other villages in Ehugbo are losing interest or they are not able to get the right number of people who will be willing to go for the rehearsals (because it is thoroughly rehearsed).

Okumkpo is highly satiric; there is no doubt about it. V.S. Naipaul raised a similar issue when they said he was a satirist, and he said “I’m not a satirist, I’m just an ironist”. Then again, just because V.S. Naipaul says so, does not mean that he is not a satirist, but he was raising a very fundamental issue. He said when you are a satirist, it means you still have hope; that something can change, that something can improve, because the essence of satire is to make people change. Typical Naipaul said he had lost hope and that this people will never change. But I think that the critic, even if he listens to the writer, should not completely assume that everything the writer is saying is true, that’s part of criticism. You should now go yourself and have your own impression of the work of literature. Don’t just end up like “Achebe says this or that”, because many a time, a writer does not even know where he is going, a writer may not know his destination. As soon as the writer brings out his work, it is his own quite alright, but he ceases to have control over it, he leaves it, free. Sometimes of course, when a critic goes overboard, a writer is free to say look, I’m not sure that is very correct. D. H. Lawrence was talking about Miriam, (in the poem “Last Words to Miriam” and the novel Sons and Lovers) and he said that Miriam is patterned after his former girl friend, Jessie Chambers, and Jessie Chambers said no, I’m not like Miriam. But that is not my problem as a critic because sometimes you can model a character after somebody, because it is a work of imagination. You are not a historian. That is why some writers don’t even tell you who they modeled their characters after. But, I think D.H. Lawrence made that mistake by saying Miriam was modeled after Jessie Chambers and that was why the latter flared and came after him.

In a sense, I would want to say that Japanese drama is even closer to our own drama, and even Chinese drama; they are not totally like western drama. Somebody challenged me one day when I was delivering a lecture on the origin of the novel, and the person said: Sir you are always discussing the origin of the western novel or British novel, that before even before the British thought about the novel, that the Japanese and Chinese had already had their own novels, and I said it could be true. But again that is part of the limitations of some of the courses we took, but again it may not be a limitation because I was doing English. I didn’t do much of French literature. We leave French literature to those reading French; we leave Dutch literature to those reading Dutch and so on. But that does not stop me, now that I have come out of school, to really find out how the novel originated in other parts of the world, so that it gives me a wider view to see whether what they thought as their own concept of the novel, may not have satisfied their own (British) concept of the novel.

I think that Okumkpo is drama, but it is for us to prove, to show that it is drama. We have to look at what other people have said. The likes of Ossie Onuora Enekwe have written on it in Igbo Masks: The Oneness of Ritual and Art, Emeka Nwabueze has written on it, and he is supporting Echeruo and doesn’t think that it is drama.

Question: What do you think is the relationship between the audience and an Okumkpo performance?

The fact is that Okumkpo is our own thing. It is part and parcel of the (Ehugbo) society. It is the people themselves who even are expecting Okumkpo to appear, so you do not have the kind of distancing that you normally have is western drama, which is what they are trying to cover up now by talking of theatre in the round. The problem with the proscenium stage is that you have the stage, the curtain opens, and then the curtain closes. It’s like you are watching the television, so there is always that gap between the audience and the players, there is nothing like audience participation. But in our own case (that is Okumkpo), there is audience participation. After the songs have started, usually there are songs that can be imitated even immediately. They are not too long; they are not too complicated, so after a while, the audience joins in the song.

Question: Both male and female?

Everybody joins in the song. And because they already know the person being parodied, because it is a parody, people are being laughed at, they even take more delight, so there is a close relationship between the players and the audience, because the audience are just members of the environment: the language they are using is their dialect, or language and they understand the idioms being used in the songs, so the language is well understood by the people and therefore, they can even join, so the participation is very, very important. It is a celebration. It is essentially a celebration. This is the same thing that happens in Pentecostal churches. Their songs take the form of celebration which is why they enjoy enormous singing and dancing. That is why the epic for instance relies so much on the inspiration from the Muse. It is a formula for any epic. It is called the invocation of the Muse, so you cannot talk of an epic without the invocation of the Muse because it is supposed to be a great work of literature. It is written down and it is accepted. Therefore, you need all the support of all the muses, which was part of the problem that Milton (John) had, because Milton felt that the ancient epics, like Homer’s “lliad” and the rest of them were written by pagans; that his own was a Christian one, and therefore he tried to make some changes and because of that, he had some difficulties – it was a gallant failure as far as I am concerned. That’s why people say that the first books of “Paradise Lost” are almost making Satan the hero, because he was still bringing those attributes of the hero like boasting and at the same time humility and Jesus Christ cannot be boasting.

Question: What do you think are the gains that accrue to the Okumkpo performance?

The gains are that the society will become much more stabilized.

Question: I mean the players themselves?

The players themselves have only just done their duty as members of the society. They don’t see it as anything to be gained, they just believe that it is their job as Okumkpo to help to stabilize the society, to the norms and the expectations, to the proper behavioural pattern as agreed to by the society. It is the deviants that are mocked; it is the deviants that are caricatured. So the feeling that after the performance there would be some stability, serves as the gain, because they themselves at that point in time are not ordinary human beings. It is an article of faith; they are spirits of the society. According to the African belief system, there is always an interaction between the living and the dead, which is why they cover themselves. An Okumkpo, therefore, is simply an embodiment of the ancestors of the place, so they come from time to time to remind us of how to behave within the society, so you can see that the ritualistic element is very important, which is what Echeruo was trying to say. For him, it was just pure ritual, but we are saying that it is not in all cases that it is just pure ritual, because if you look at it from the origin or the beginning of medieval drama, it started from the church, just as Greek drama started from religious observances. So there is no way in African tradition that most of these things cannot have a religious bearing and it is that religious bearing that also gives it that immunity, so that you don’t even think that you are going to take them to court, you have to accept it, it is part of our (Ehugbo) acceptance that they are religious, they are spiritual, therefore, whatever they are doing comes from our ancestors, you don’t complain and you don’t openly quarrel with it.

Question: What impacts has Western civilization had on the Okumkpo performance?

The impact it has had has not always been positive because you cannot talk of Western civilization without Christianity, sometimes many people are reluctant to participate in it. That’s just part of it because it comes from the Ogo cult or “Ohia umu ena”. These days the “Umu ena” are no more mature, people tend to get themselves initiated at a very young age, they don’t even go through all the ceremonies, and they pay money. They just go into the hiding place in the night and in the morning come out and tell you they have been initiated. So many of those things have been cut down in order to move on with the time and because of our beliefs, so many people are reluctant to do it, except once in a while, people may just gather the courage, as they did a few years with “Oke Nkwa”. Many of them were willing and were even spending their money to get involved, what you may call part of the cultural regeneration, but generally people tend to be lukewarm even though they could be nostalgic. The lukewarmness is that they think that going back to doing it people may say they are combining traditionalism with Christianity.

Question: Is it possibly because there could be sanctions?

Well there may be no sanctions, but people will start criticizing you and people also think they are coming down by going back to “Ogo” to do all those things, but I think there is nothing wrong about it. For instance there was a day there was a wrestling contest going on at my village Ogo and I went to watch and some people were saying, “oh!, so you people come to watch wrestling contest? We thought that Christians have said that those who watch wresting matches participate in traditional worship”. And I told the particular person that said so, “Please shift, let me sit down. Do you think if you say so that I would go back to my house? No I won’t!”

The truth of the matter is that every aspect of our life has a religious implication. There was no demarcation between life and religion, the kind of things that Muslims do, that’s the truth of the matter! Normally before a wrestling season, the natives consult some oracles. There is a deity for wrestling, the Okumkpo does it too, but it does not involve the individual. There is no where it is written that if you want to wrestle, you must go and consult the deity, no! So you, who are a Christian and want to engage in a wrestling contest, would rather choose to pray to your God for inspiration and success! There is no compulsion that you must consult “ekweteri” (the god of wrestling). Those who believe in it visit it, while those who do not abstain from doing so. I think as we are moving in modern times, or post-modern if you like, we should take into account that we are no longer that kind of homogenous community, which is what most African societies were and which is why we are living in enclaves. In many ways, things have changed. For instance, we used to have serious cases of sickle cell (anaemia) simply because we were inter-marrying so intensely that the genetic influence of the disease was very high. But now that our people (Ehugbo) are marrying out, it has drastically reduced. Marrying around though, had its own social benefits, but I think the medical shortcoming far out-weighs the social benefits. Because we were marrying around, there was greater cohesion. The tendency of remarrying was also very high. It was common practice for women to move from community through others in endless remarriages. This made it possible for a woman to have up to five or more children from different husbands. But it helped to maintain some cohesiveness in the sense that in the same cultural area, the same thing was being paraded. There was also a high mortality rate at that time, a woman may give birth to up to nine children and lose five of them through causes of death.

Question: In your view, is there anything that could be done to rejuvenate the Okumkpo masquerade performance?

Once we come back to our senses and agree that there is nothing hidden about it, it will come back, I believe it will come back, and we should be humble about it and also be aware that it is exposing an aspect of our culture, it is a way of revealing something about us, something inherent in us and that it can even contribute to solving some of our modern day problems. People seem to act with impunity these days but Okumkpo can help to regulate it. The fear of Okumkpo in those days was the beginning of wisdom. I think it should be part of the rejuvenation of our culture, except that culture itself is dynamic. For instance, what we call “Nkwa umuagbogho” these days is not what it used to be in the past. “Nkwa umuagbogho” was exclusively for wrestling matches; you don’t talk of the “Nkwa umuagbogho” outside the wrestling arena. But that has changed now, we have modified it, we have modernized it, it has now become something for special occasions. It has even been privatized and domesticated to suit the demands and needs of different Ehugbo villages. And I think that is what it should be though sometimes there is an abuse, but that is part of it. Gradually, if there are abuses, you remove them, but what they have done is even to intensify it by adding other elements that are not usually involved in wrestling. So the Okumkpo also can be modernized.

Question: Can the Okumkpo masquerade performance serve as a tool for regional or national integration?

It can. It can. Other people can copy it; after all I’ve seen some people who are not from Ehugbo who have copied the “Nkwanwite” dance. It is because they liked it. The “Nkwanwite” has drastically changed from what it used to be, “Nkwanwite” was simply a way by which marrying people said good bye to a girl and welcomed her into a new fold. It was entirely a female affair. It is actually a welcome party, welcoming girls to the married folk. It has been modernized. Sometimes modernization involves some bastardization, that’s part of it. That’s the way the world is, you conform, you try to change in line with changing times.

Question: What is your view on the origin of Ehugbo?

Well, I have read history books, and I try to read from the experts, because not everybody can be a historian. I’ve always told people that there is a difference between history and legend, there is a difference between history and myth, though they are related but there is a difference. The difference is that history has a control, history has evidence. You must show evidence, you must prove it. That is why in America some universities are treating history as a social science. It is not just something that you believe. Scientists have belief systems, and over the years, they have been passing it on from generation to generation. That the Ukpa people (of Ehugbo) claim that the first man in Ehugbo (Aja Ibere Kwukwu), came down from the high heavens through a rope, is not history, but then it is central to the belief system of the people, just like faith. We try to give some semblance of deification to our founders, to show that they were not ordinary human beings, so historians do look at them and make some deductions. But real history can be verified, even though oral tradition has its own difficulties, but then even when you have ten oral presentations, you have to look at them. Sometimes, some of the things they say can be dismissed.

Coming to Ehugbo, because of our location, when there was expansion (the Igbo people expanded), there was expansion in Igbo land owing to over population, and especially from the more populated parts of Igbo land. Those were the areas that the Igbo people originally settled en masse. Then there was land pressure, that’s why the Imo people call themselves Igbo hinterland. People were moving out. The behaviour of Igbo people wasn’t different from the behaviour of people elsewhere, but for different reasons. As they were moving out, they were settling at the more habitable places. You find out that they were looking at the plateaux, which were not normally flooded. It was only when they had exhausted the plateaux that they were making use of whatever they found. So the upland people were there before the lowlands people. Lowlands were always flooded, that is the truth of the matter. Then as people were migrating, they migrated in batches or in hordes. People did not just migrate one day and this took place over a long period of time and because there were no roads, because they were going through the forests (we are living in the forest belt), then cut down trees to create paths. Movement was not as easy as that, there were no horses because our part of the African continent didn’t tolerate horses because of tsetse fly and so on, so most of the job was done on foot except those that lived around the rivers that could use canoe or boat. Some migration took place through boats and canoes like some parts of Ehugbo. So Ehugbo people didn’t come in one fell swoop; they were just coming and settling, just like other people. Gradually, when you settle in a place, curiosity will push you into wanting to know who and who lived around you, and in finding out, you may either meet a very hostile person or a very friendly person. This may either lead to fruitful co-operation or aggression. No place was ever peopled in one fell swoop. Our people (Ehugbo people) like other Igbo people were not original settlers in Ehugbo. Most Igbo territories except the core Igbo areas like the Okigwe, Orlu axis down to Awka (These were the areas where Igbo people originally settled) before they now started migrating upwards, eastwards, westwards and southwards and you find out that most of our people have traditions showing that they moved from that central core. You also find out that the places that lack water are the places that were last occupied, the tendency of human beings is to go to where there is water, so when you find people living where there is no water, you should know that they didn’t see any other better place.

It is the belief of some people that the Ehugbo people were the first to settle at Osso Edda, but because the terrain lacks water, they moved further upwards to the present Ehugbo location. The Edda people were willing to, and the Edda people are more aggressive because of their terrain. Their original settlement was Nguzu and Ekoli, but the hilly and uneven terrain forced them to move downwards. Some people lay claim that the original founders of Edda were Ehugbo people but the latter were later absorbed by Edda people who came down from Owutu.

OH DEATH!! You do not sleep nor slumber always looking for your prey and when you strike, it’s at the time you are least expected. It is at the time life is so meaningful to the person you have marked leaving sorrowful tears on the eyes of the bereaved. You are wicked never satisfied, I hate you.

The day that will remain indelible in my mind is that fateful Monday morning, August 7th, 2017, that was the day the breaking news of the death of GREAT IROKO was aired; I can still hear the sorrowful sound of my sister’s voice. I am yet to come to terms that Prof has gone to sleep. The shock and the devastating effect of this is too much for me to bear. I know that death is inevitable end of every mortal, but why must it be now, why must it be Prof Austine , Chai ONWUASOANYA, you throw your fangs on every family, you respect nobody, neither the strong nor the weak.

I will not stop to ask what life is. Here today, gone the next moment, living in life is so unpredictable, I would have wished you stayed little longer because you still have lots of unfinished jobs to offer to humanity. You will be missed by your beloved once. I am devastated; I don’t know what to say. Your humane, oke di ogeri-igwogo is second to none.

My joy is that you left indelible mark on the sands as a pilgrim. I equally believe that you will be among the billions of humans Christ Jesus will resurrect when the come to rapture the just, because you are precious in his sight.

My prayer is that God Almighty should grant the soul of my big brother and in-law Prof Augustine Chukwu eternal rest and console the family, friends and colleagues and all that are affected by his death.

To my dearest sister and children, our beloved though dead lives and will forever live, he shall forever touch your lives with the same love and tenderness he is noted for.

Nwoke Ike

Di werimoche

Di Ogeri-igwogo

The Iroko that hates injustice,

Okewa, Ikemba, Laa na udo

Zue ike na aka Chineke Nna.

Amen

On behalf of the entire Family of THOMAS AZUGO of Amaizu Afikpo express our heartfelt condolence to the Family of Prof. Austine Chukwu on the death of their husband, father, brother and mentor.

This is not a time to mourn but a time for thanksgiving for all the wonderful and mighty things that the Almighty God did in his life and the ways the Lord used him to touch lives even in death.

Prof loved everybody around him and it is our prayer we all keep alive the values he cherished and remain united in love.

May the Almighty God grant his gentle soul eternal rest. AMEN.

You could never mistake it

Neither can you misplace it,

You could never resist it

Nor can you disapprove of it.

Not with fine tones

And serenading ambience

Yet ebulliently sagacious

With sartorial elegance

The carriage of royalty.

It rings

It rains

It booms

It chimes

Imports so clean and clear.

Soothing

Caring

Chastising

Admonishing

Didacting.

Alas, the griot pulsates

The audience mesmerized

Surugede is on

Dare the brave move?

Or the bard sigh?

For the day nights

In yet bright strays.

The stars dim

In salutary affirmation

The voice is soundless!

Oh thou voice!!

Where art thou?

What message for the royals?

What tutelage for the egglays?

What courage for voiceblings?

Alas, no voice cometh forth,

The Voice is no more!

Go, everyone

Your own voice mould

In the plainways of the Voice.

Chooks O. Oko mnge, mnipr, mwef, PHF+++
Editor-in-Chief/CEO, Clarion Publications Ltd.
+2348033357724, +2348082407605
[email protected], [email protected]

TRIBUTE TO MY QUINTESSENTIAL MENTOR, PROF. AUSTIN CHUKWU

Like the plant God raised for Jonah, you have been taken away when the heat of the day of life is still blazing hot… Oh merciless death!

The news of your demise came like a lightening thunder, shattering my tranquil soul. To many, being lachrymose is exclusive innate potency of women but I became one as tears spontaneously run down my cheeks uncontrollably when the incredible news filtered the air.

The Great Echelon! The goose that lays the golden eggs. The Mighty Iroko has fallen! The epitome of excellence: a rare genius, very loving, honest, meek, brave, vocal, dedicated, benevolent to mankind and diligent to his profession. Unu dikwanu ole? (How many are your kind?).

Oh! Nasty death! You are a cruel invader, ferocious medieval marauder, bringing to naught all that is held great and glorious on earth. You have plundered my Diamond and I despise you! You are a sadistic teacher of mysteries, invader of our joyful hours.

Like the potter, you inspiredly moulded my dreams. Becoming a professor of your quality becomes an inevitable ambition of my essence, to be actualized soonest.

My quintessential Prof., you taught me how to be civil but not servile. Your outstanding humility and moral rectitude continually marveled me. I recalled vividly your words in the class: “Ukwueze was right…” you echoed thrice…a confirmation of those indelible words of Raph Waldo Emerson that ‘a great man is always willing to be little. ‘

The indomitable lion, your academic pedigree roars across the globe. Your gigantic strides in literary world are immortal. Your passion for teaching profession has no comparison. You have never missed your classes even as the Dean and when unfit health-wise. Ultimately, your integrity is tested by your blunt refusal to be compromised in your professional adventure. You refused to be co-opted and celebrated with the political thieves in the midst of suffering Nigerians. You rejected several political appointments and awards from corrupt leaders. Yes, you never minced words when you satirized the polity and continued to uphold your moral virtues and dictate of an ideal society devoid of the stench and rottenness of corruption. Like a wounded leopard, you fought for the students and lecturers in the midst of debasing and unjust practices in the university system.

My marvelous teacher, mentor, counselor and confidant, knowing you has made my life richer in so many ways. You are an embodiment of the believe that: what we have done for ourselves alone dies with us, what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal. You died but your fabulous deeds live forever. Your favorite gospel track by Jim Reeves: “This world is not my home I ‘m just a-passing through My treasures are laid up Somewhere beyond the blue…” says it all about your daily preparation for heaven.

Thank you for being one of the best professors any student could ever ask for.

Adieu Anyi dikwanu ole!

Adieu Prof Ibiakwa!

Adieu Quintessential Professor of English, till we meet to part no more!

Professor Austin Chukwu was a tall figure in the academia and trade unionism. He lived and died a dogged activist, versatile scholar and humane administrator. Most people who interacted with him shared his intellectual greatness, spirit of goodwill, wise counsels, goo humoured nature and effective leadership qualities. He believed fervently in the core human values of justice, fairness, honesty, hardwork and discipline. Guided by his principles, he became a bold, fearless and outspoken critic of man’s misdeeds in both public and private sectors of our national life.

As a former Chairman of ASUU, South East Zone, he was an exemplification of self-sacrifice. He put aside personal interests and fought courageously and unrelentingly for justice, fairness and good working conditions for academic staff of the university system. Face to face with Governors, Vice Chancellors , State Legislators, Traditional Monarchs and fellow Academics, Professor Chukwu was never a fair-weather character. He called a spade a spade no matter whose ox was gored

Over and above, Professor Chukwu was a boundary and cultural breaker. He treated all those who interacted with him with respect and honour, irrespective of faith, ethnicity, status or gender. He taught people to break free from the habit of fussing about earthly desires and deprecated arrogance, power struggle, man’s inordinate craze for status and brazen exercise of authority. His amazing and incredible exhibition of humanness of life endeared him to many and also incurred him the dislike of an infinitesimal number of detractors. This explains why he enjoyed massive and unquestioned popularity wherever he worked, whenever he stood to address the public and with any group he led. Both in name and nature, Prof. was a good-hearted and an affable personality. We should not only mourn the death of this great scholar and leader but also endeavour to emulate and keep alive and afloat his legacy of justice, honesty and discipline. As we commit the body of Prof. Austin Chukwu- a prince so outspoken, so versatile, so much admired and loved - to Mother Earth, I pray that he finds perfect peace and rest in our Lord.

The Unfading Echoes

How hard it is to evoke you in this limited space!

Larger than pen and paper,

You fill pages upon pages of lives.

Here is but a nutshell:

Enyi Oha, Nwanne Oha, Omelu Oha, Nna Oha,

Humanity is your tribe.

Everyman's moon and everyman's shade,

Can you indeed be spoken of in the past tense?

Can you really die?

The blind are aware of what they do not see

And so do we remain conscious of you, your body though unseen.

In your corporeal absence, you pervade our senses - stubbornly.

Your legacy lives, therefore you live

Death, you are a delusion!

Images of PG lectures and seminars with you

Perpetually irrigate our memories

Mastrpieces of British Literature, Caribbean Literature, African-American Literature

Literature and Society - anything literature

Possessed of a passion for the verbal art, you relished your profession.

To you, literature was life, and life, literature.

Before you we sat,

Acolytes, savouring the outpouring of your knowledge

Our wits awakened, our perception widened and sharpened,

We hailed, "Proooof!"

How can we forget?

Even in this memory, you live!

Mobile critic, mobile historian, master of the spoken medium!

We would not go to greet you in a hurry

For greetings often grew into hours of insightful narratives, of discourse on diverse subjects

Such was your versatility, such your vibrancy

"Prooof" you were and always will be!

He was the roaring voice that resisted injustice

The single eye of objectivity

The open book with niether guile nor falsehood

The untiring voice that rebuked wrong and rejoiced with what was right

The voice that thundered in ASUU,

Raging for the dignity of the profession and of comrades.

Behind the militant, intimidating demeanour

Lay a tenderness so easily touched by the pains of others.

Certainly, he loved life and valued people.

Kindness and fellow-feeling propelled his voice -

His voice that rang true for all

Irrespective of clan, class, colour, creed, gender.

Courageous, fearless, matchless, unequivocally loud and clear was his voice

A voice for the voiceless

A voice on the path of truth, justice, honour

A voice that could not be hushed!

Now, that voice recedes

And now voiceless, we groan

Our mirror is broken; our candle, burnt out; the glory departs

And now our hearts sink; gloom engulfs us

The rope has dragged the elephant

The axe has dared the shading tree

And now we mourn - deeply

You left as you lived, valiantly - not raging at the midnight

Curtain drawn, the light goes off stage

Our happy laughter suddenly stops.

Surely, your life was not an idiot's drooling tale, signifying nothing

But an account of a colossus, with unfading significance

The cast moves on with the continuing drama.

Still, your life echoes among us - immortally.

A LETTER TO MY MENTOR WHO WENT GENTLY INTO THAT GOOD NIGHT

Dear Prof,

Did you know you’d leave us so soon? I am still hurting and yet to think of you in the past. You were the livewire of any gathering you honoured with you presence. Your amazing energetic interactions and infectious laughter cannot be compared to any other. Did I tell you my initial impression of you? That I was afraid of you before we started our journey as student and teacher? I didn’t. Let me start from the beginning.

Prof, before I got that admission as a Post-graduate student of Ebonyi State University, I never heard about you. One of the reasons was my movement from Port Harcourt to Abakaliki. The day I went to EBSU Pg. School and saw your name as my supervisor, I got back to my office and told one of your former students. She told me I was in trouble. I probed her with questions to understand what she meant; she resignedly told me you were unapproachable. Two days later I met a couple that went to Abia State University, and at the course of sharing the joy of my admission with the wife your name came up. They corroborated what the lady in my office told me. They so much discouraged me and made me entertain so much fear. Then I decided to pay you a visit at the permanent site even though lectures had not started. I knocked on your door and I was at the verge of stepping into your office when your voice jumped at me. “Stay there! Who is that?” Prof you were facing me but it was so dark that I couldn’t make out your face. I introduced myself. “What do you want?” You asked. I told you how the Pg. school put up your name as my supervisor. “Am not aware of that, go back” You dismissed me. I was as confused that as I was leaving I tried closing your door and you stopped me in a voice that got me more despondent.

When we started lectures proper I discovered I was sold a dummy character of you because you were the opposite of the picture they painted. You made learning and research fun, you interspersed teaching with history, and anecdotes of life. You were accommodating, engaging, and kind. As the only woman in our class I was determined to work as hard as the men if not better. You helped me achieve my aim by your unparalleled commitment to work. You knew our individual weaknesses and encouraged us to build on our strength. Prof, how did you discover the unhealthy rivalry among us then? You were quick to envisage that some of us were awarding low marks to others during seminars out of spite. Some were also hiding materials and negatively critiquing seminar paper of their perceived enemies.

Do you remember that day when the vibe was too upsetting, you had to suspend everything and talked to us as a father? That was the day you called us to order and talked sense into the mischief makers. Your told us that we were pursuing a higher degree that entails research and commitment and that we should stop behaving like students joggling for positions. It was terrible and ugly but your intervention helped savage the situation. You also realized that some of our papers were internet downloads that were not properly documented. You were livid the day one of us went to the Net and got somebody’s paper and presented it as his idea. That was the day you cautioned against plagiarism and warned that “you cannot be said to have integrity when you made up your mind to cheat” Over the years you remained a constant source of encouragement to me and my course mates. You taught us friendship, love, and the gains of scholarship. You are irreplaceable.

I want to thank God for the privilege of meeting you in life at the course of my study. You were among the giants that bestride the literary landscape. When I was in the University of Port Harcourt, one of my lecturers, Prof Nkem Oko used to tease us by asking us if we had met Prof. Charles Nnolim. He’d say “pray to meet him before you die…” At our alarmed outcry he’d change it to “before you graduate”. Am sure he never met you! I told Prof. Nnolim about you last year and he showed interest in meeting with you. You two together in a room would be something to talk about. You gave your all, all you had inside you and more to your students. Thank you for not holding back even after our studies, you continued to give your time and words of inspiration at every chance.

The news of your death got to me on a Monday. I was heartbroken. My first thought was of your wife. I knew how close you two were and I was anxious for her. But Prof, I want you to know the promise she made to me. She promised to hold herself together for the sake of your children and for those of us that loved you both. She is going to be okay. We are mourning your death but not like those without hope, you are in a good place.

Rest in perfect peace till the day we all will meet to part no more.

I remain your daughter

Udo Okoronkwo-Chukwu

I still find it difficult to believe that our mentor, the great “iroko” tree that provided shelter for many has fallen. Prof Austin Chukwu’s death came unannounced and was so devastating that I kept asking myself this rhetorical question – “Why Prof Austin Chukwu?

He was a vibrant man and a lover of all people. He never discriminated against anybody, notwithstanding his status in life. He accepted all that came to him for mentorship with an open arm. He was a crusader of academic excellence.

Prof was a man of integrity. He was fair, firm, upright and transparent in his dealings with people. He was the Professor of the masses, the mouth piece of the down trodden. He lived and fought against injustice.

He identified with all that celebrated by gracing the occasion with his physical presence, what many in his status cannot do. Even when he barely knew us, he accepted to be the chairman of our wedding and so he became a father to me and my husband.

He was a man of peace. It was his belief that no quarrel or misunderstanding is beyond settlement. He, therefore, reconciled many who would have been perpetual enemies.

Prof, was a colossus, people describing him will take it from the angle they saw of him, just like the proverbial elephant described by blind men who gave their description of the elephant from the angle each of them touched.

The truth is that Prof Austin Chukwwu’s life is worthy of emulation. Although he is gone, he will forever remain green in our memories because the legacies he left behind will continually speak of you.

Adieu

The Professor of the masses;

Good bye

The Prince of our land;

Good night

Our Big Daddy

May you rest in the bosom of the Lord till the resurrection morning when we’ll meet to part no more.

NNAMDI AZIKIWE UNIVERSITY, AWKA

Professor Ngozi Ojiakor

Department of History and International Studies

P.M.B 5025, Awka, Anambra State Nigeria.

THE EXIT OF AN ICON PROFESSOR

TRIBUTE TO PROFESSOR AUSTIN CHUKWU

To an unknown philosopher, “Death is the absence of presence, the absence of being, the endless time of never coming back, a gap you cannot see, and the wind which blows through and makes no sound”.

The exit of Professor Chukwu signified “the end of an era”. He was a seasoned academics administrator per excellence, an erudite scholar epitome of excellence and a super star academic.

When I first met him, his knowledge in all fields of academic discipline amazed me that I told myself that this man belonged to a different era.

History is replete with men and women of unparalled competence whose philosophy, exemplary conduct and performance had conferred substantial degree of immortality on them.

So shall it be with Prof. Austin Chukwu. He left indelible prints on the sands of time. To everything, there is a season, a time to be born and a time to die.

Adieu Distinguished Prof.

May his soul Rest in Peace.

Prof. Ngozi Ojiakor

Professor of History and International Studies

A TRIBUTE TO AN ACADEMIC ICON, PROFESSOR PRINCE AUSTIN CHUKWU , PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH AND HUMANE LETTERS.

Our dear Prof,

I have battled with this reality for weeks now and still find it very hard to believe that you are gone.

You had been our academic father, mentor, and boss. Your untimely demise was too sudden and shocking to us. Your demise was an eclipse at noon; it is still incredible and bewildering. Your demise is a thunderous fall of a giant pillar of citadel of learning in Nigeria. Your demise is a great quake in the entire literary world.

A great custodian of knowledge and standard, a great reservoir of Afrocentric values and stance;

A defender of the weak and the oppressed;

Oke nna, your exit has left a gulf, a vacuum which non can fill, a shoe too large for any to step into; you were just phenomenal

Okeennna ee!!! You got the best out of me ; You made the best out of me... when it was as though I was at the verge of quitting.

Thank you for reaching out to me and giving me an opportunity to learn and be mentored by you. You showed me the warmth and affection of a father.

Thank you for walking me through the long path from graduate assistantship to my present position; from my first year of Masters Degree programme till the day of my PhD graduation. You remain my intellectual father of all time.

I sorely miss your reassuring, assertive speeches

I miss your candour and encouragement

We miss your lively lectures, conversations and debates

Your friends and followers are weeping

Your fans wish to have you back but God knows the best

Adieu, The people’s Professor

Adieu, The Prince from the loin of the Omakejali

Adieu, The Oke nna

Indeed, we have lost, but we’re glad ... heaven has gained

The entire staff and students of the Department of Sociology/ Psychology/Criminology & Security Studies, Federal University Ndufu Alike Ikwo received with great shock and consternation, the demise of your dear husband, father, grandfather, brother, and indeed our own mentor and pioneer Dean, Professor Prince Austin Chukwu, whose sad and untimely demise occurred at the early hours of Monday, the 7th day of August 2017.

While we are beginning to accept the fact that the sad news is indeed a truism, we are consoled by the obvious that your husband, father, brother and our own academic father Prof Chukwu lived an accomplished life—by all standards. To say that Prof, in all human endeavours, and particularly in the field of academia, touched and influenced lives that came in contact with this renowned and enigmatic scholar is simply an understatement. A very unassuming man, Prof never allowed his intimidating scientific status to weigh on any of his peers, subordinate and younger academics. From IMSU to ABSU, to EBSU and finally to FUNAI, he was a true academic par excellence and an administrative model to the envy of Max Weber—the colossal Sociologist behind modern Bureaucracy. He ran a true ‘open-door’ administrative policy—welcoming and entertaining suggestions, advice and listening to diverse views from seniors and juniors with unrivalled and unequalled rapture. Prof Chukwu was a man of excellent character, impeccably honest, very transparent in his relationships with people, systematic and critical, and above all a man of high degree of integrity.

It is axiomatic that the inevitability of death awaits all mortals irrespective of one’s status in the society. Therefore, we join the Omakaejali Akpu Chukwu’s family, Amizu community, Afikpo, Ebonyi state, the whole academic community and indeed all believers in equity, fairness and justice to mourn and celebrate the life of this renowned Nigerian, an African Laureate and statesman as he is being committed to mother earth today.

Our prayer to God is to console and give you and your entire family and indeed all Austinians (those who believe in Austin’s school of thought), the fortitude to bear this painful and irreparable loss. We will continue to keep all he stood and fought for glowing in contemporary Nigeria’s intelligentsia and the world at large. After all, to quote Michel de Montaigne “It is not death that alarms me, but dying”.

Kindly accept our heart-rending sympathy.

It is with deep sense of sorrow that I commiserate with you and the entire family over the demise of your beloved father, Professor Austin Chukwu who slept in the Lord on 7th August, 2017 on attainment of 66 years.

Your late beloved father lived a good Christian life. He was a man of honour, an ASUU veteran and also a renowned scholar whose academic records are worthy of emulation. His death therefore, is a monumental loss to the entire family, friends and well wishers, Ebonyi State, and Nigeria at large.

Please, take heart on this unfortunate loss as I pray the Almighty God to grant your family the fortitude to bear the pains of his demise.

I, on behalf of my family members of Eze’s Cabinet and the entire good people of Afikpo Autonomous Community deeply console the family of Late Professor Austin Chukwu over his death which occurred on Monday the 7th day of August, 2017.

At this period of sorrow, be assured that we share your grief since death is the lot of all mortals about which none of us can question God.

We had expected him to live longer so that the younger generation would benefit from his wealth og knowledge, but alas God’s wish has been done.

May the Almighty God grant his soul eternal rest and give you and those affected by his death, the fortitude to bear the irreparable loss.

Accept our sympathy and condolence.

On behalf of my family (Dr. and Mrs. Smart Otu), I wish to convey our heartfelt and deep sense of sympathy to you on the untimely but peaceful passing to eternity of your amiable husband, father, grandfather, brother and the people’s Dean and Prof., Professor Austin Chukwu. While your late husband and father lived, he epitomized love, kindness, care, Ehugboite and stood for the rights of ordinary people all over and indeed every Ehugbo man and woman. His staunch defence of Ehugbo cause was uncommon and priceless. To suggest, therefore, that his demise is devastating, and has left a big vacuum which can never be filled again in your family, Afikpo, Ebonyi and academic community, is simply an understatement.

As you and your entire family mourn and grieve this irreparable loss, we want your family to know that we are standing by you—sharing in your grief and agony. Our collective solemn prayers is that God Almighty should give you and your family the fortitude to weather through this trying moment of yours while continuing in his amazing grace to protect you and your family always.

Once more, accept our deepest condolences.

How do I sing thy praise,

Thou lion of the Prestigious University of Nigeria and lot more;

That Lived to educate the World,

What true Veteran is.

How do I Sing Thy Praise,

Thou art not the Sun Flower that bloom,

Just in the very early sun,

But when the day do bloom,

Looses its beauty to afternoon Sun.

For You, the evening sun take the Pride,

Thy Fruits art there to show.

Thy unique qualities that fadeth not,

Oh thou Veteran of the oppressed, poor and academia,

Over flowing with care, Knowledge and Wisdom.

Unto them you called your own; Mentored with tenderness yet untold,

Embraced us all, your colleagues and comrades to an unprecedented height,

Envied by all.

Thou Prince of EKUMA-EJALI Dynasty,

Crowned with thy persistent spirit,

Thy blood runs in my vein by imitation ,Learning me thy good ways,

Though, thou Lie Low today; Yet, though Live in me and indeed in all comrades of EBSU, ABAKALIKI.

Austin Chukwu,
the Oracle of the Holy speak, of the queen's people.
The grand interpreter of the white man's totems.
And all other markings on their converted papyrus.
The mace of the men in the cult of oration.
It is still noon, who blew the whistle,
who called you indoors?
Now that the festival is about to begin.
Now that we speak in English but still think in Igbo,
Requiring a human notice board to explain,
What we are sure that we have understood.

Austin Chukwu,
the height, greatness is growing to reach.
our reply to their constant chide.
The evidence that we are not dumb.
Strewn about are your papers, oh man of letters!
Potents we don't understand, but potents that prove our being.
How like rumpled things we shuffle in grief,
the mass of us that has breathed your exhale,
to know we that we do not yet know.

Even now, that we eventually learned that language.
We have done so in reverse.
So we know not how best to say this,
But we would never forget, even if memory fails,
Dear Austin Chukwu, we can never forget you.

© Samson Abanni Ikenna
07031069611 < [email protected]

IJERE (BIG MASQUERADE)

In search of Golden Fleece of Education, we made our way to Ebonyi State University (EBSU). Their best, several teachers did to remove the raw and crude nature from us.

Into the next level, we met him, the lion, “My name is Professor Austine Chukwu, the Dean Faculty of Arts, your lecturer for African- American Literature,” he introduced himself. With the first encounter with him, the Prof. made an instant, great and life-changing impact in us.

As he demanded, we introduced ourselves one after another. During this exercise, Prof discovered that as English Students, we had become more British than Nigerian. Worried by this, he systematically and consistently began to work on our minds. He gradually reclaimed us back to our people. He made us conscious of our heritage, our identity, our roots and who we truly are. Prof made us to stubbornly take pride in our culture, our colour and our heritage. Then, we became proud to black, proud to be Africans, proud to be Nigerians, proud to be Ebonyians.

Prof freed us from mental slavery, made us to see the beauty of our own culture, its splendor and uniqueness. He made us go home to applaud and appreciate our parents for preserving our culture. We began to embrace and cherish what we had previously discarded. We became apostles of African culture, highly emotionally attached to our heritage and began to preach it passionately.

My Prof! the Iroko of literature and African Culture, the Academic Per Excellence, the Ijere Masquerade, Enyi! Onye Ukwu.

What do I talk about in you? Is it your tall, huge, handsome appearance, your deep guttural voice, your kind-hearted, considerate and helpful nature, your great sense of humour or your lecturing skills?

I remember vividly how you normally held us spell-bound for several hours during lectures, how everyone used to laugh from the beginning to the end of every class while you impacted the serious morals in the lessons.

The impact and influence you had in me made me a completely different person from the moment I first met you. I was never the same.

Nna anyi ukwu, jee nke oma. Laru juu.

Ogbonna Joseph Onyebuchi

Tel: +2348034237922

+2348175848212

Date: 04 September 2017

PROF. AUSTIN E. CHUKWU : YOU HAVE PAID YOUR DUES

When I received a call from a revered colleague and friend, Prof. GMT Emezue, to participate in a festschrift in honour of Prof. Austin Chukwu in 2014, two major thoughts whelmed up in my mind. The first was one of excitement and exultation at being recognized as to be thought fit to be part of an intellectual exercise that is associated with Prof. Chukwu; the second, a somewhat foreboding one, as festschrifts are always associated with the twilight of a glorious academic career. I immediately exorcised the second thought from my mind, assuring myself that Prof. Chukwu was still, in my own estimation, of middle age. Besides, the vibrancy and agility of his persona belied such thoughts.

I came to know Prof. Chukwu from 2002, when I joined Ebonyi State University as a junior fellow in the Department of History and International Relations. Prof. Austin Chukwu, who also joined the University from Abia State University about the same time, was later appointed Dean of the Faculty of Arts, to which HIR, as we refer to our Department, belonged. Consequent upon this appointment, and in addition to his accommodating, if condescending disposition, he quickly became a fried to all and sundry in the faculty, if indeed, the university, Prof. Chukwu will hold you spell-bound each time you got yourself into his office whether for official or personal reasons.

During his tenure as Dean, most of the intellectual exercises that had gone into limbo - holding of faculty seminars, publication of EBSU Journal of the Humanities – were resuscitated. In his mentoring role,

Prof. Chukwu made effective use of the Faculty Academic Board meetings to prod and encourage Academics, especially the younger ones, as some of us then were, unto the usual refrain in the academia – publish or perish!

An Academic par – excellence, Prof. Chukwu will insist on a painstaking consideration of all results presented to the Board from the Departments, making sure that best practices were followed in marking and grading of students’ scripts. Whenever any evidence of malfeasance was noticed, Prof. Chukwu will never hesitate to return such result to the Department for reconsideration.

It did not take long for the Professor to emerge as a rallying point for excellence and due process. Though he did not occupy any office in the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) executive of the University, any ASUU Congress that did not have Prof. Chukwu in attendance came to be regarded as “not worth it”.

The activism of Prof. Chukwu came to the fore during recent government interference in university administration and structure - to wit a reorganization and a purported excision of some Departments and Faculties. As the matter came up for the consideration of the University Senate, while others were pandering to the perceived wishes of the government of the day, referring to the Governor as the “proprietor” of the University, Prof. Chukwu submitted with gusto, and to the applause of all discerning minds, that the Governor was a “visitor” to the University, who will come and go! He maintained that the University belonged to the people of Ebonyi State, and it behooves them to determine its structure, nomenclature and such like.

When Prof. Chukwu eventually left for the newly established Federal University at Ndufu Alike Ikwo, there was palpable sense of bewilderment among staff, especially academic, as to who was to “bear the cat” in ASUU and staff welfare issues, amongst others.

It is apposite to state for the umpteenth time that Prof. Austin Chukwu was an Academic par - excellence, a complete university man, a patriot, an activist, empowering and mentoring personage.

Prof. you have paid your dues! Fare thee well!

Oga diri gi nma !!!

Each time I remember the sad truth about this tribute, I am jolted to face its stark reality. It has taken me quite sometime to come to terms with the verity that I’d be writing your tribute, which really is not one of my strengths. My hand is feeble and my pen too nibble at the pervading presence your humane image cuts in the pantheon of laureates. Prof, you epitomize an insatiable academic personage with an outer candour of many colours. This outpour of emotions bespeak of an enigma you represent in the academia. Your fatherly role is evident in every penpusher who has ever had the rare privilege of siting under your humane tutelage. You are a trailblazer as attests to your sojourn in the academia; ABSU, EBSU and FUNAI, each leaving decibel accolades wrought in academic heroism. Words have failed me once again like the proverbial (mythical) wood pecker on a day as this. But I take solace in the fact that our paths crossed and left with it fond memories.

Okee ye, I’ll surely Miss You

Our Dept. will miss You more

ASUU-FUNAI will miss You most

Above all You are a great loss to the academia.

Sleep on the Prince!!!

Teary eyes follow behind
the chime of parting gong,
and the hearts of the bold
melt like wax on a crucible
when their hero falls in the
arena. Lo my cheerless lot!

Silence has taken over the
square! Our minstrel's song
is snubbed by the high wind.
The throaty laughter of our
mentor is now a faded article
shelved for legendary tales.

For the low, he was low, and
his height yet was high, for
frequent appearance makes
no less of a great masquerade.
The great finger that motioned
even dimwitted ones to limelight!

He stood oft at the threshold,
impermeable like a bottle cork
warding off injustice and hatred,
bidding the fallen up on their feet.
Prof! Glorious ancestry, rare talent
and royalty, a trinity of fullness!

Receive, Ehugbo Omaka Ejali, your
prince! The land that knows well
her king, must salute her prince!
Let the cannon boom! Roll the drums
out! Let dancers take over the square,
for the sojourner has gone to rest!

Trepidation II

The first time I came across Professor Austin Chukwu was at The Ebonyi State University, and he immediately made an indelible impression on me. I was an anonymous invitee in 2006 to a Faculty of Arts Seminar during Chukwu's tenure as Dean of the faculty. My late friend, Ezennaya Okereke, then of the Department of Philosophy was presenting the paper and had invited me to witness and audit him.
In the final analysis the paper underscored the point of the indispensability of the inputs of the classical western mind, as represented by Plato, on the evolution and development of the African mind and matter involving socialization and civilization. When it came time for interaction, Professor Chukwu shot up like one stung by a scorpion, and with aristocratic airs that bothered on sure-footed erudition, he dismissed the position of the paper, rather blaming the West for much of Africa's present woes, to the enjoyment of the audience as evident in the positive uproar and thunderous hand clapping that ensued.

Whereupon Mr Odicha Ude, then Head of Mass Communication Department, apparently miffed by Chukwu's "reductionist" temper on, and disposition toward the impact of the West on Africa, recalled the charming Professor already coasting home with victory. Ude posted a teaser in the neighbourhood of: "Dear Prof, that was beautiful as usual. But, let me ask, if the white man did not bring civilization, surely you would not be a Professor of English today, speaking elegant language and receiving high ovations and feeling important, would you, sir?" You could have heard a pin drop. I thought that Mr Ude had hit the Prof below the belt. Especially as the man, for dramatic effect, feigned fear and confusion as he slowly stood up until he regained his full, tall, almost gangling stature that could intimidate.

"You are quite right, my good friend and junior colleague,” – Chukwu never failed to remind you to respect your superiors since it was the measure you gave that you were sure to recoup. “But, can't you see, that is the point! I became a Professor of English. I became thoroughly misguided by western miseducation, their systematic brainwashing, their intellectual arm-twisting. So that where I should have been a better Professor, a Professor of Ehugbo, I became a Professor of ...." The ensuing laughter and thunderous ovation drowned the rest of the intellectual banter, and for over five minutes the hall was awash with mirth and hand slapping for a good measure. And so, the bug caught on…

Then, I joined the service of man and country, 2015, largely on Professor Chukwu’s iron-clad recommendation, here in FUNAI. But not before Chukwu satisfied himself that there was a very good, if not excellent reason to have me placed. His painstaking approach was for the sake of the Department – and I found that what was sauce for me the goose was also sauce for all such other ganders. The informal interview was as intensive and disconcerting as the most formal ones. He would sit you down in his office – by the way, he was Dean and surprisingly talked with you as though an equal – and engage you in a never-ending intellectual discussion that traversed all facets of life. Then, once in some unguarded while, he would state, rather casually, “ I wonder if you have read Wole Soyinka’s first novel…what is the title again… of course you were expected to be upbeat and not just provide the missing link but much more to your advantage, suggest some views of life that made the novel passable and Soyinka, a rated novelist if though he could never match Achebe in this genre. Chukwu would nod a certain level of satisfaction and impression but could only be done when you were able to show that you were a rounded gender scholar, posting the question, “ What was Nnolim’s grouse with that famous article of his, “A House Divided”? with an ironic non-chalance.

Later, the venerable Prof would call you, a few weeks after your resumption, into his office and after the pleasantries, begin, “You know that your name is Nwachukwu. That means ‘son of Chukwu’. Since I am Chukwu, it stands to reason that you are my son. Son, listen carefully, never take advantage of your students, particularly your female students. It is the most grievous mistake any academic would make. It doesn’t make you a champion. If you cannot control yourself and must fool around, for Christ’s sake, go outside this University. I bet that if in your depraved state you introduce yourself as a University lecturer to ten females, at least, four will be willing to fall for you. In that case, it becomes your problem with your God and family. But to compromise academic standard and professional decorum, to take advantage of your position of strength to lure your student into any kind of amoral relationship is at least, unacceptable. I tell you this before hand, because this is part of what you must guard against if you must advance in your career.”

Not that I had by any means given “my father’ any cause for concern, no. This had been Prof Chukwu’s sermon not only to me, his ‘son’ but to all members of staff of the Faculty of Humanities. The last time he gave this advise was in a gathering of all male lecturers of the LLLTA Department, a month before the surprising flight, summoned at the instance of the sitting Dean, Prof. GMT Emezue. As though Prof knew that he was bidding his darling junior colleagues the final farewell, with fatherly admonition, he used anecdotes, personal examples, pointers to repercussions, apt analogies and all to drive home this point. This was to ticket home his fatherly role as a model in the Faculty and the Department, down to the ELS unit.

Prof Chukwu is also everlasting in his capacity to build confidence. He never failed to remind his audience that he was Professor of English – that English that was, and probably still is, a nightmare to many a pontificating Professor of some other Chairs! He was quick to do so during the staging of Hon. Nwagbaoso’s play at FUNAI a month or two before the Eagle flew. Certain to remind all, even the Vice Chancellor that we should always work with time, he announced his calling and told Nwagbaoso how impressed he was by the latter’s display of dexterity in his plays, some of which were staged and performed that day by some‘gifted’ 100 level Theatre Arts students. He capped that eulogy with the statement that he thanked God that he remained patient and waited for donkey hours before the play could begin in an allusion that was intended to remind the de facto FUNAI citizen, our amiable VC that the event did not kick off at the time advertized …

Professor Austin Chukwu gave me his farewell handshake, August 3, 2017, being a Thursday; nor did he know it was such, neither did I. I was headed for the ‘Bukkateria’ at the small gate when the avuncular Prof hailed me to a stop. When I told him I was headed to purchase gala to stop the nagging in my tummy, he patted me on the back and said, “You could get yourself something better. After all, your salary has been paid.” I told him I was on hunger strike because I had merely received 80% for the sixth time. He laughed and patted me on the back, rather affectionately, “Run along and fetch your meal. If 80% is not well managed, 100% will certainly not be.” That was not in support of the salary shenanigans, but rather an admonition to prudence, financial prudence. That was Professor Austin Chukwu’s parting gift… to me…

Let me for the salute pipe him a rooky strain

And thus flies the very Eagle:/ Loud, nimble wings and wise / Through unsullied causeways heavenwards / Rare, snow-in-Ebonyiland rare
Majestic and towering, an unassuming Caesar/Sure and pervasive, like Chloe perfume
Sempiternal, gold blanket enveloping the bewildered sky
Oh Eagle in flight– Light out!
Light of Life, so brief /Life, a brief candle – Shakespeare could hardly be wiser

And when the Eagle flies to surer (?) climes

And takes with him the Light –

Silent, seething hearts

As we grope

In a forest of indeterminate musing:

Hook! hook! everywhere

Piercing my insides, my insides!

Thorns and thistles, red-hot hook

Prefigured plodding, peppered pains

In my eyes, my innards!

But wait awhile your wallow, that’s a hunch

There’s the Emanation of the trillion-life Phoenix

Or why do I hold this pen?

There’s this fertilization of the simulacrum –

Or why do I sing this lay?

At the ivory towers, Ishieke Campus of Ebonyi State University; my nimble eyes was set on the Canadian trained Professor of English Language and Humane letters. His words as Dean, Faculty of Arts was Platonic. His oratorial charms were powerful. His fierce tone was a threat to campus cultists and management. Then came his intellectual evangelism to FUNAI. He was fierce in his quest for transformation, a single voice that changes the rhythm of academic music and administration. For me, he was a father, Moses and motivator who readily encouraged my PhD and exaggerated the creative 'kpim' in me.

A week before his death, I shockingly tried to carry the Academic Giant, shoulder high, teasing him that it is time he should walk no more with his legs but be carried shoulder-high as His Royal Majesty. Paradoxically, Prof invited those around to warn and stop this small boy (me) as His Royal Thrown is YET to come upon him the Prince, while handing over spiral bound copies of results he signed and backdated to me. Paradoxically, just as I was returning from Umuahia on that day of your ascension, after a religious research with my friend that returned from the Rainbow Nation and we were busy breaking our fast with 'Bush Meat'; came a dangerous salutation. It announced the death of my academic father and the banquet ended.

That was when the intellectual lord joined the litany of saints. That was when the voice of the hopeless became enthroned as His Royal Majesty in the land of our Heavenly Ancestors. That was when Prof Austin Chukwu left us to sleep amongst God's Dearest.
Adieu Great Soul!
Adieu Great ASUU Leader!
Adieu Great Administrator!
May God keep you in His Right Hand!
Good morning as you wake in heaven!

I first met Prof Austin
Chukwu (then Dr Austin Chukwu) in January 1998 when I joined the second year
students of the Department of English Language and Literature of Abia State
University, Uturu as a Direct Entry student. His lecture was the first I
attended and till this day, I still recall some vivid imagistic snippets from
the humorous but highly pedagogical and dramatic technique he employed in
teaching us the popular Medieval English classical epic “Beowulf”. Quite iconoclastic in many ways, Dr Austin
Chukwu taught us other courses through which he imbued in us the art of
critical assertiveness and scholastic preciousness. Encouraging us to freely
ask questions and raise reasonable objections in class, he sharpened our
critical acuity and never imposed any academic material on us.

In 2013, Prof. Austin
Chukwu was excited to see me after so many years. His strong recommendation
helped to make me an academic staff in Federal University Ndufu-Alike Ikwo
where he was then the pioneer Dean of the Faculty of Humanities and Social
Sciences. Working under him as my Dean, I discovered with great shock that he
was still maintaining the same philosophy for which we knew him many years ago.
My last encounter with him was the day I took a copy of a Book of Tributes in
honour of Professor Ben Obumselu to him. Quite happy and excited, he hugged the
book and immediately began to read through it. I never knew that soon, he would
sadly become a subject worthy of such grand obsequies tributes! What a
coincidence!

I write not to mourn
the passing of Professor Austin Chukwu but to celebrate a quintessential scholar;
a pragmatic pedagogical formator whose positive input and impact in the life of
humanity is likely unequalled and unparalleled. As his former student and
younger colleague, it’s difficult for me to forget Prof’s wise counsel- usually
straight from the heart, or his practical approach to issues and situations. Prof would always acknowledge that he was “frank
to a fault” and that was because of his activist nature which abhors sycophancy
and pretence. He would always say his mind not minding whose ox is gored; he
was never cowardly and detested dictatorial tendencies. Among his legacies is
the audacity to reasonably speak the truth to power without blinking!

A Humane Mentor and Great
Exemplar, Prof Austin Chukwu was a father to many of us. While he would correct
you with enormous aplomb he would be quick to scold and approbate you once you
depart from the right path but would usually lavish praise and reward on you if
you do the right thing. A Man of Steel
and Velvet Heart, he was usually firm and unshaken when fully convinced of his
position yet in his lighter mood, you would savour the humorous tinge of his convivial
personality. An Astute Humanist who cherished human association, Prof valued
the company of both the young and the old; he passionately detested staying
alone.

Ihe e ji echeta mmadu bu olu o luru n’uwa

Ihe e ji echeta mmadu bu olu!

What we remember someone with

Is the work he has done in the world;

We remember someone with just the works!

Scholars don’t
die! They live in their works; in their legacies!
The carriage and candour with which Prof Austin Chukwu carried his earthly
dealings, with and among men, endeared him so much to us. As I use this opportunity to condole with his family,
I encourage them to bear his physical loss with sublime equanimity. As Carl Sagan observes, “to live in the hearts
we leave behind is to live forever.” Prof’s distinctive fatherly and scholastic
depositions are indelibly etched in our memories! He lives in our hearts having merely transited
to take his rightful place among the immortal Mortals!

Prof Austin Chukwu! Our dear Prof! Our own Beowulf! The Activist
Scholar! The Humane Humanist! Your legacies, we will surely keep! Your good works
will ever speak of you! But we will miss you!

From
the ridge of the roof

to
the steps

of
the literati heights,

stream
of tears fall like a fountain

for
he set to sail

to
the Happy Isle,

the
famed abode of men of valour

that
fell before him.

This
ferry of professorial height,

this
ferry on which my kindred spirits

and
I

sailed
on voyages to the sea of learning,

this
sturdy pillar

on
which scores of scholars

stood
to blossom,

this
doyen of humane letters:

at
his prime, he took the fall.

Our fecund
ferry sank

off
the coast of wit,

off
the turbulence of life,

into
the nadir of the ocean

of
limitless slumber

with his air of erudition

safe
that which to us,

his
seeds, he bequeathed.

Oh,
the Ehugbo Liner plunged,

leaving
us afloat tidal forces,

stirring
our lachrymal glands,

forcing
our tears to drown the earth!

BONNE NUIT CHER PROF.!IN THIS PATH CALLED LIFEHEROES BRAVE THROUGHWARRIORS WAR THROUGHTHROUGH RIDERS MAY RIDETHROUGH STARS MAY SHINETHEN THEY COME TO NAUGHTAT THE END OF THE ROADOH YOU END OF THE ROAD YOU CATCH UP WITH THIS IROKO AS I CATCH A GLIMPS OF HIM FROM THE FAR BEGINNINGEVEN FROM THAT DISTANCEI FELT ALL THEY SAY OF HIM THAT AUGUSTINE OF AUGUSTSTOOD SO MIGHTY AND TALLWITH A CLEARLY LOUD VOICEAND THE PRIDE OF A LIONAT THE HEIGHTS OF AN EAGLEAN ICON, A LEGEND, A HERO, A MANGREAT LOSS AMONG THE EAGLESSO THE END OF LAMENTATIONIS KNOWING THAT KNOWING HIMWAS WORTH MY LITTLE WHILE AU REVOIR PROOOOOF.!

A TRIBUTE TO A QUINTESSENTIAL TEACHER PROFESSOR AUSTIN CHUKWU
I cannot recount the story of my Ph.D degree and academic growth especially in the former Department of English Language and Literature, Ebonyi State University without mentioning you, Prof. Austin Chukwu. Initially, I thought I was not cut out for a Ph.D degree, especially in English Language. I felt it was a mirage. But you contributed largely in making it a reality. You were a beacon, and you urged me on!
Your positive ticks and comments on my first creative output became curtain raisers and providential. Again, on the day of my Thesis Proposal Defense, you were present. After my presentation, another gracious, affable and jocund Professor, Prof. Emeka Otagburagu called me “Dr. Onyekachi”, I was so stunned. In your characteristic benign, sagacious and enthusiastic manner, you exclaimed, “Awa, claim it.” With faith, conviction and optimism, I replied “Amen.” “Thank You Sir”
Little did you think about the impact of those positive ticks, affirmative nods and assenting words. They were symbols of encouragement, inspiration, authority and hope!
Thank you Prof. I shall always remember you with a deep sense of gratitude for as the deer longs for the water brooks, your heart yearned for excellence, justice and equity. You were a symbol of uprightness.
We have therefore lost an icon whose life was a message, a colossus, a titan, a mentor, a teacher, a father figure, and a man of great values and strong beliefs.
Consequently, I make bold to say in the words of John Donne“Death Be Not Proud… For those whom thou think’st… over thrown Die not” But Waketh “ Eternally”
Our GIANT, Prof. Austin Chukwu lives on!
Requiescat in pace. Amen.

With indescribable enthusiasm we sat
Waiting for the lecture to begin
From our senior colleagues we had heard
Interesting tale about the lecturer
And so today we came prepared
To have a taste of our own account

Lost in the chatter we were
And so didn't hear him walk in
With fright we were jilted when a voice bellowed
''Are you third year students?''

"Yes, we are sir"
Was the hasty reply
As we scramble hurriedly
To take our individual seats

Dressed in Safari made of Ankara
His was a sight to behold
A huge body structure
And a voice to match his frame
A complexion rich in melanin
And eyes that seem to see
Through the very soul of thy being

I am Prof. Austin Chukwu
The Dean of this Faculty
I am the lecturer for this course
African American Literature

One by one we stood
And called out our names to him
I am Eucharia Onyinye Ani
My name is Ogonna Nnachi
Doris Chisom Duru
Simon C. Joshua
Pause...

"Where are you from?"
Enquired Prof. Chukwu of the last speaker
"I am from Ohaukwu sir"
Was the humble reply
With sympathetic shake of the head
Prof. Austin Chukwu thundered
"It is a pity, you have lost your identity"

On and on he went
And recounted the woes of our people
In our quest to be more British than the Europeans
We have relegated our African values
We have jettisoned our dialects
In the surge to speak the Queen's English
We have relinquished our ancestral names
To bear Simon C. Joshua
Like Christmas goats we sweat
Profusely under the scorching sun
While dressed in coat and tie
In the bid to imbibe the White man's ways

In Africa we call things by their name
I am Black and I am Proud echoed the Prof.
And like the dawn of a new day
We instantly felt a new awakening
In our consciousness of who we truly are

You liberated our minds
From the shackles of mental slavery
That seek to portray Black as evil
And worship White as god

And so our liberation continued
During the different periods we spent with you
We always look forward to your lectures
As much as we look forward to
Writing your course during the exams

Nothing less than five pages is acceptable to you
For question number one which is compulsory
And alas so we wrote
Because the knowledge had been impacted on us
And who will fail your course?
When even your facial expression conveys the message

We are Black and we are Proud
That is the confidence you infused in us
A big thanks to you 'sire'
We will never forget

In Africa we call things by their name
You are an Iroko
Odogwu Nwoke
A Masterpiece, best of its kind
A Warrior, but not of the sword
Forever you will be in our hearts
Farewell nwoke oma
Jee nke oma my Prof

I simply wish to believe that I
have been dreaming since that faithful afternoon of August 7, 2017 when I heard
about your passing on. This dream of your departure to the other side of
eternity is a terrible nightmare that I sincerely hope I wake up from it. Prof
Austin Chukwu, the great Iroko of Faculty of Humanities, FUNAI! A man that
brings happiness and direction whereever he goes! Ever caring, ever
approachable and always willing to meet people’s needs!

Prof Austin Chukwu! Oke Monwu!
Your sudden departure is another proof that there is happiness in death. You
did not even look back or give us any sign. Prof my guide and my friend!
Memories flog my dream and I hope I wake from this dream. However, if I fail to
wake, I totally submit to God who has provided the little opportunity for me to
co-teach two courses with you to be drawn closer to you. God, the great
Architect of the universe has concealed to us this happiness of death that we
may endure life.

Though with tears cascading my
cheeks, I don’t have option but to celebrate you my Prof. A general! A Motivator!
An Inspiration and a Role Model to many! An Administrator Par-excellence! An
Academic Guru! My Prof and My Friend! You are not dead. You still write virtues
in the heart of men that interacted with you. I say ‘Soar on My Prof, Soar on
Oke Monwu of Faculty of Humanities, FUNAI to your maker. Though we will miss
you but eternity needs you more.

Tweet! tweet!! tweet!!!, a little kaneri whispered me a shock.
That you walked on a part to our Great Ancestors,
Tell me I heard wrong, that you took this ultimate journey.
Could this be true Big Uncle?
That your battle ended and you took a Crown of Honour?

This lightening flash lasted long enough to show you this path,
Chai! my chord is broken...
A sunken heart is mine, sprouting off this brimming gutters.
Lowered to immeasurable debts in pains.

Oh I heard! that the Owl did not see your passing... else I would have seen the sign.
That the Great Ikoro( talking drum) thundered like loosed canon when you walked on.
To my father, your brother... I will honour thy passing you promised.
But your call got Us bemused and in total surprise.

I would ask you to stay if I could Sir,
As I would keep the sun shining still.
Farewell Great Uncle,
Sleep well Erudite Prof.

All too often we forget we are but actors on the stage of life and get caught up in our roles. We forget that we cannot with any degree of certainty say where we would be the very next minute or even what roles we would be playing next. Prof, your exit has reminded us once again of our frailty and limitations.The Iroko, the proud and confident Professor of English and the Humane Letters and were you Humane! You left something of yourself in everyone you interacted with and brought colour and life where ever you were. We will miss your laughter, your 'talk', your enthusiasm, your skills, your pride.Thank you for showing me the path of scholarship. Thank you for teaching me how 'to fish' and not just giving me fish to eat. Thank you for being YOU.

Our wall suffered another breach
Darkness had retreated, dawn was in bloom
But this didn't deter the evil reaper
Out in the open, on its routine death tour
What compelled you to turn your gaze here
To steal the pillar that propped up the edifice -
The Agbawo Dike Izu, Agbaghaisia of our time?

What if we were crippled by shock and despair?
The house tottered. The strong beam broke, fell
Our champions retreated like a defeated army
They searched in vain for the pathfinder -
The obu-uzo who opened doors for many
Embarked on a long journey never to return
A journey whose course knew only one direction.

He will not look back to behold our misery
Our lamentations can't bring him back
But keeping the flame of knowledge bright -
Even brighter than he left it -
Would lift his soul to heights unknown
As he waits patiently for a reunion
That must come in the appointed time.

Farewell, great man of the people
You were justice-and-fairness choirmaster!
Jee nke-oma, nnukwu Okachamara.

[ One without whom a decision cannot be reached.
Leader
Go well, great Professor]

"...Now Beowulf bode in the burg of the Scyldings,
leader beloved, and long he ruled
in fame with all folk...
...Of men was he
worthiest warrior wide earth o’er
the while he had joy of his jewels and burg.
Let us set out in haste now, the second time
to see and search this store of treasure,
these wall-hid wonders, — the way I show you, —
where, gathered near, ye may gaze your fill
at broad-gold and rings. Let the bier, soon made,
be all in order when out we come,
our king and captain to carry thither
— man beloved — where long he shall bide
safe in the shelter of sovran God.”
(Extract from https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/50114/beowulf-modern-english-translation etext version by Robin Katsuya-Corbet; released into the public domain July 1993.)
Source: The Harvard Classics, volume 49 (1910)

Prof, your academic fame and gallantry were sans pareil.
Your philosophical astuteness and literary perspicacity still remains unequivocal even among peers of quantum and substantial academic prominence.
Prof, you initiated us into the magnificent and scintillating world of literary metaphors and dazzling onomatopoeias.
But as it is ineluctable for even the best ones amongst us to double-over at the cataclysmic blow of antagonistic death, today we bow our heads in pain at the departure of a colossus, a man of monumental and prodigious academic proficiency, an embodiment of adroitness, a literary luminary, a voice to the voiceless, an activist of unassailable and inviolable propensity, with a proclivity of incorruptibility.
Adieu prof, for mere words cannot catalog your personality –
Beyond the mortal stream
Do find repose
In the bosom
Of Chukwu
The Prime Architect
Of the frail human destiny.

‘’You only live once, but if you do it right,
once is enough’’- Mae West.

Professor
Austin Chukwu, the son of the great Omaka Ejali of Ehugbo, Ezeogo M.O.Chukwu has
gone to rest.

We
first met one on one sometime in 2001 and ever since; I made it a custom to
visit him at his Afikpo home every Christmas holiday. You can imagine how sad I
was to know I won’t be sitting beside him this December, having spoken with him
in early February and telling him we will meet as usual in December 2017.

A
letter of recommendation, personally written and signed by Prof. Austin Chukwu,
opened a wide range of opportunities for me in 2007 when I started a career in
banking. I and my wife will forever be sincerely grateful to Professor and his
ever loving and caring wife Dr. (Mrs.) Christiana Chukwu for their selflessness
and love to us.

Professor
Austin Chukwu was indeed the peoples general, an erudite scholar, a soldier and
a proud Lion (University of Nigeria Alumnus). His influence on academics,
students and the entire University community can never be in vain. He had
achieved so much at the age of 66 years that we can never forget. Although, we
would have loved to have him around for another 50 years, but God decides and
not man.

He
was well respected and disciplined. Professor Austin Chukwu was never ruled by
material things or by the self-desire to take personal glory. He was very
straight with his well-articulated principles, and detested mediocrity and
injustice.

I
still recall sometime in 2002 on a Friday evening, Prof asked me to join him on
a ride to town from the Ishieke campus, Ebonyi State University. I sat with him
in his Volvo car; it was an inspiring evening I will never forget. He asked his
driver to take us to a ‘bush bar’ within the Abakaliki Township Stadium complex
where he ordered ‘Ishiewu’ and drinks.
A student (me), sitting with a distinguished professor and eating together! That
was how down to earth Professor Austin Chukwu was.

Trust
Professor, it was not just for the food and drinks, after that he lectured me
extensively on the need to have vibrant students centred activities on campus
that will provoke healthy debates on relevant issues within the university community.
He expressed his disappointment with students engaging in nonsensical ferocious
secret cult activities and challenged me and other students who felt disenchanted
too to act.

It
was this challenge that led me to co-founding- The Moderate Club with my colleague
Matthew Oyim, now a Commodore in the Nigerian Navy. The main aim of the club
was to stimulate real debate and challenge students towards bringing a positive
change to the university community and for our personal development. And in response to Prof Austin Chukwu’s
advice our first symposium was on anti-cultism
strategies towards curbing the menace of campus cultism.

Professor
Austin Chukwu served as Patron of the Club and recommended his very good
friend, Mr. Martins Ogayi, a lecturer in the English Language Department to
serve as the club’s Staff Advisor. He actively participated in several of our campus
symposiums.

I
remember in particular the conference we had titled ‘The place of EBSU in the global
village’ which had Professor Michael Awoke, then Director, Work-Study
Programme in EBSU as guest speaker. Professor Austin Chukwu as Patron of the
club served as chairman of the occasion.

I
still recall with fond memories how Professor Austin held the audience spell
bound with his very warm and unique style of speaking. He was articulate, and
passionate. There was this intermittent short laughter and smile accompanied
almost immediately with a different facial expression that will make you giggle.
He challenged us to wake up from our self-destroying lethargy, which hampered
our inherent potentials to be intellectually great and successful in life. He
reiterated that university education was meaningless without values. Almost at
every sentence the echo of ‘Prof’ followed by applause from students and
lecturers greeted his assertions.

His
support and guardianship energised us into taking our destiny into our own
hands, promoting healthy debate and engagement on campus. Today, when I look
back to the influence Prof had on us and how useful it has been to all of us at
EBSU, who were not even in his department, then and now I can only thank God
for the life of Professor Austin Chukwu.

The
likes of Dr. Edward Eleje, as a student and member of the Moderate club
presented several essays, he is now at the Federal University, Lafia,

Mr.
Ikechukwu Williams Eke, who succeeded me as The President of the club, and now
a Lecturer at American University of Nigeria, Yola.

And
Cmdr. Matthew Oyim , who was co-founder of the club, and now a Senior officer
in the Nigerian Navy. Just to mention a few are all products of the influence
of Prof. Austin Chukwu support to us while on campus.

Professor
Austin Chukwu was indeed and in truth an activist, a lover of art, history,
culture, languages and the family, my wife was his student in the department of
English Language and Literature at Ebonyi State University, she describes Professor
Austin Chukwu as the most influential professor
she ever met.

When
I was honoured by the National Association of Afikpo Undergraduates (NAAU),
Ebonyi State University chapter as the ‘Ezeogo’,
during the cultural day event in 2004, Professor Austin Chukwu and his very lovely
wife Dr. (Mrs.) Christiana Chukwu were as usual present to support us. I still
recall when Prof pulled me aside and said I was not dancing appropriately to
the rhythm of the traditional drums, and said I should move more of my right
leg than my left leg.

He
was a proud son of Ehugbo (Afikpo). He will always advise me and my wife to
speak Igbo language to our kids at home and let the teachers speak English language
to the kids at school. He strongly believed that the Ehugbo language was the
proto Igbo language, and that every other Igbo related dialect had its origin
from Ehugbo language.

Professor
Austin Chukwu was a Professor of English Language and Humane Letters, whose personality
bestowed him tremendous admiration from all that came in contact with him.

He
was so knowledgeable that they were no subjects that came under scrutiny that
Prof did not provoke insightful discussions on. He did love to take up challenges
and responsibilities; he spoke for the voiceless and protected the defenceless.

He
was indeed a pioneer in setting standard. That explains why he moved from ABSU
to EBSU, where he pioneered as Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, and
then moved to FUNAI where he also set the standards as pioneer Dean of the
Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities.

To
Professor Austin Chukwu’s brothers; Mike Chukwu and Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu,
his beloved wife Dr.(Mrs.) Christiana Chukwu and his lovely Children, please
accept my heartfelt sympathy on our loss.

From
today, let us all resolve to take on the advice below by Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862),
the development critic and philosopher whose philosophy of non-violent
resistance influenced the likes of Mohandas Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr. and
our own Austin Chukwu.

‘’On the death of a friend, we should consider
that the fates through confidence have devolved on us the task of a double
living, that we have henceforth to fulfil the promise of our friend's life
also, in our own, to the world.’’ -Henry Thoreau.

Adieu
Professor Austin Chukwu, my mentor, benefactor, and friend.

I had this professor who taught me a lot not only about English, but also about life. During my days in Ebonyi State University he taught with an energy and enthusiasm that touched everyone in his classes. He made us laugh, he made us learn, and he made us think as well. His name is Prof Austin Chukwu Here are just a few of the things that he taught me. He taught me that work isn’t just about getting a paycheck at the end of each month, rather that it is about loving what you do and doing what you love. He taught me not to take life so seriously that I lose the fun of living and that laughter is good when facing life’s difficulties. He showed me that life is best when lived with zest and vitality and that what you put into life is what you get back from it. He showed me that the school of life has no end and that we keep learning everyday of our lives. He explained how everything from music, to books, to people, to experiences can be our teachers if we are only willing to learn. He explained too that it is always best to learn with enthusiasm and to live with joy.

Apart from being family, I was truly blessed to have had such a great teacher at such a young age and more interesting is the fact that he has remained a teacher, father, mentor and role model even after school until his death. He opened my mind and started me on the path of a lifetime’s worth of learning. I have tried to stay a good student of life since then. I have also tried to be a decent teacher as well by passing on what I have learned in my writings and in my life.

Above all, he made me to understand that in this life, we are all students and we are all teachers. What we learn and what we teach, however, is up to us. I hope that I will be privileged to graduate with honors as Prof Chukwu did before he bowed out of this life. Prof, saying I will miss you is an understatement but I take solace in the fact that you lived in absolute purpose. May your gentle soul rest in perfect peace! Lerue Enya Nna!

Prof! Prof! like we fondly call you. You are a cheerful intellectual genre. Your humility in pride endured you the father of all. I have not known you for a very long time but you are such an icon; always willing to assist we the younger ones in academics.I always remember the enthusiastic and diligence of your feelings whenever you address issues. My greatest regret is that the cold hands of death did not allow me to benefit as much as I can from your literally prowess.I pray God grant your family the fortitude to bear this lost. Indeed, the literary community has lost one of its finest. May God repose your soul.

Professor Austin Chukwu was one of the finest professors and leaders in the Faculty of Humanities, FUNAI. I am so grateful for having been able to call him my friend and senior colleague to the end. Just knowing him made one a better person. I will miss him dearly. I am proud to say I learned from him in 2012 and I learned from him in our conversations over the past five years as he soldiered on. As John Donne notes in his oft-cited Meditations: "any man's death diminishes me...." We are all diminished by Prof. Austin Chukwu's passing on.

Death remains one singular phenomena that has placed the Creator far above the creatures. It marks the grand division between animate and inanimate. It opens the veil to greater freedom of Soul. Death assails both great and small, the illiterates and the literates, the poor and the rich. The pangs of death are overwhelming and must take its victim out of physical sight irresistibly, If not for these brazen attributes, how on earth can one expect you, Prof Chukwu to have succumbed without releasing verbal assault on this monstrous assailant that struck on the fateful morning while you were getting ready to be on your beat at Funai. Which mortal can dare you, our great intellectual giant and our erudite scholar in this manner? Of course none. It can only come from the invisible and invincible antagonist, that hovers around mortals, taking advantage of our biological and biochemical loopholes at shortest notice.
Like all great Souls that has bestrode this universe, you departed when the ovation was at the peak, not minding that ASUU-Funai has scheduled a congress during which a major decision was to be taken. Your exit took every member of the congress unaware, like a midnight storm, and almost leaving us like orphans.
Prof, you were a chip-off-old block whose indelible footprints will resist even the most violent soil erosion. You were a prince by birth and lived like one but without hurting the poor. You belonged to a class but chosen to close the classely demarcation. In all your action and inclination you always portrayed yourself as a man of the people and a man of courage. You had courage but chosed to be encouraging others, you had wealth but chosed to be detached, you had prominence but chosed to be humble. You maintained an open door for all irrespective of tribe, ethnicity, religion or race. You are splendid role model among homo-sapiens
You were a legend of a kind, an iconoclast in the academia, bestowed with uncommon level of intellectual prowess and unquantifiable pedigree of humility. Nobody who ever met you left without a smile, as you had the ingenuity to transform a saddened heart to a temple of joy just by a mere contact.
In the field of your chosen career, you emerged a champion among champions, a black man who taught the white their own language, Igbo man who taught the English man english, even on their own soil. You soared to the climax of your career against all odds and encapsulated your brilliance with god nature and Infectious humour, these qualities that are rare commodities among many.
Prof , you have touched lives, trained many, helped others, and established many. You have remained a reference point wherever attribute of good academics is the topic of discussion. If it were possible to gather all those you have trained directly and indirectly into one place, the number will almost be enough to make a full university. This to us, is the highest legacy any man can bequeath to the world on departure. Not withstanding your humane approach to life, you were a strong disciplinarian, who never compromised on standard, both at behavorial and academic levels. Your name have become a name synonymous with excellence.
While ASUU-Funai joins many to mourn your sudden translation, we are quick to remind ourselves that you liveth in our hearts. Not even death can separate us form your legacies that is scattered like diamonds on acres of land.
ADIEU GREAT SCHOLAR, ADIEU PRINCE AND ADIEU COMMRADE.
From: ASUU-FunaiSIigned: Dr. Ogugua Egwu Dr. Moses ALO Chairman Secretary

Oh Death! You have stolen an Icon, a pleasing example, an ENCOURAGER and a man of courage. My first encounter with you was at a faculty board meeting of Humanities as a pioneer Dean.I saw in you within a short time, a man who is worthy of emulation. You were not the first Prof. I ever met but you stood out. Your approach to academic matters reawaken in me the need to sail through in my choosen career.
Your prompt presence at ASUU congresses was a motivating factor for me to attend congresses.I remain amazed at your intelligent contributions and your dogged determination in driving home your point. You were so vibrant at the second to the last Congress and I never knew I would be the LAST. If I had known it would be your last, I would have wished you a GOOD NIGHT PROF.
Sleep on Prof. Austin Chukwu. I'll definitely miss seeing you around and the ginger you give at ASUU congresses.
Rest on till we meet to part no more.

And so this is it,Lying rest Like peace sleep Gone! Never to wake again Never to be disturbed again By this turbulent thingsA part of the whole You will see rest Beyond the realm For those who cannot change For those who play For those who are bare For those who bear It is not for alwaysLiving is not for always Nor death the ultimate We are here once But forever made (Ubani Kenneth)Prof. Austin Chukwu came, saw and conquered. He is forever made. He left his footprint in the sands of time. Such should be ours, sleep on the great lion, till we meet to part no more.

I knew this soul through the many times he helped, guided and made sacrifices for my mother in the university. I also came in contact with this enlightened being through his son-Peter- who was(and still is) my very good friend in high school.
He's no doubt one of the best scholars I've known in Arts, but these are what I remember him for: he always spoke up for what was right. He was like David standing up for justice against Goliath(he was much bigger than David though and his weapon was his voice!) He taught me to speak up when everyone else was scared to. How to shout for the right thing to be done when the need arose. How to be brave and outspoken! These are the qualities this beloved being gave to me--a young star(just like the sun gives its light to all). I will always radiate these gifts you have given me.
!I'll remember you-forever!

I join my dad as we collectively beam the light of gratitude and honour toward this soul, for his kinds deeds in service to others during his life on the planet.

Received the news of Prof. Chukwu's sudden transition with deep regrets. I have had an image of him as genetic soul brother. It is unfortunate that we couldn't relate more closely for all the goodness he showed us during our time at ebsu. Collectively we beam the light of gratitude and honour toward the great soul, Chukwu, for his kind deeds in service to others during his life on the planet. May God's angels gloriously receive him in His heavenly abode. Amen.

You bore your profession with pride and devoid of fear, your humanity on your sleeve and with fire in your soul.
Who was not touched by your erudite presence? You knew no class, race, position or gender in your fight for equality and excellence. When I had no one to stand in the gap for me, there you were standing tall, demolishing all opposition and finding me worthy.

Your candlestick may have been removed from us mere humans but your legacy will live on in many of us - one of fearlessness, erudition, justice, pride with honour and a trail of academic achievements. Even in death, you stand tall among the living.
Sleep on Professor Austin Chukwu.
Adieu crusader, maverick, icon and exemplar!
"Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live." - Norman Cousins