At 81, Hannah Anike is still strong and agile. In this interview with OZIOMA UBABUKOH, she talks about how her family coped during the Nigerian civil war and what Enugu looked like in her days
What was your educational background like?
I did not go to school. My father was a great farmer, so we joined him on the farm as young children. Though the colonial masters forced us to go to school, we resisted all their moves. We gave them bribe so that they would allow us farm and not go to school. We felt that going to school in those days was punishment, but I have since realised that education would have done me more good.
Since you didn’t go school, how did you then spend your youthful days?
As I said earlier, we spent all our days farming. I am currently 81 years old and I am still farming. Aside farming in those days, I was also involved in selling farm produce in the market to make some money for the upkeep of the family. I was also a member of several dance troupes, because I used to be a good dancer. I am old now but I still dance. I was given the name Jibugwu Nwanyi and Ojiugo when I was dancing in my youth. There were dance troupes and groups in those days where we learned dancing for one year. At the end of the learning process, we would invite our husbands and children to come and watch us dancing.
We would cook for them and entertain them. They appreciated our dance steps by giving us gifts which was usually money. We kept some of the money for ourselves. We were usually invited to occasions to entertain guests with dance. People came from Abakpa and Emene end of Enugu State and from other neighbouring villages and towns, and even from places in the present Ebonyi State to come watch us dance. Our dance, in those days, was like a tourist attraction.
Can you remember when you got married to your husband?
I was a teenager when I got married. I can’t remember exactly when, but I remember that I got married a few years after I started seeing my menstrual cycle.
How did you meet your husband?
I met him through my uncle, the late Francis Ugwu-Anike. I first lived with one of my maternal uncles, the late James Ayogu, at Ogui-Nike, after which I went to stay with another maternal uncle, the late Francis Agbowo, at Iji-Nike. It was at Francis’ place that I met my husband who was from Ogui-Nike, that’s in Enugu North Local Government Area of Enugu State.
What really brought you together?
I was a very fair young woman and so many men then ran after me because of my complexion. One of them was my husband and immediately he proposed to marry me, I accepted him with all my heart.
How many children were you blessed with?
I had six children – two males and four females. Two of the girls died when they were about five years old due to lack of health care facilities during the Nigerian civil war. My first child is Mrs. Deborah Nnamani and she lives in Enugu. Deborah was the wife of our former traditional ruler, Igwe Augustine Nnamani. The second is Mr. Ikechukwu Anike; he is a retired customs officer and also lives in Enugu. Others are Uchenna Anike who works and lives in London and Mrs. Ebere Mbah who lives in Abuja. Before I married my husband, I had a son, Joseph, from another man but I will not want to go into the details.
What effort did you make to save the two children that died?
Health facilities were not good enough in those days. Uche would have lived if the right health equipment was available. Ngozi died because of the effect of the canon shots and bombings during the civil war. Ngozi would have survived if there was a good hospital during the war.
How would you describe health care system in your days?
I never sought the assistance of traditional midwives each time I gave birth. I gave birth to my children at St. Bartholomew’s Anglican Church Hospital, Onu-Asata, off Ogui Road, Enugu State. It was even the Igbos who were working there and the hospital is still existing.
Did you train your children from the proceeds of your farm?
My husband and I trained them from the proceeds we made from our farm. Training them was never a problem because I was hard working. Whatever I made from the farm, I deposited it all for the upkeep of our children. My husband was also doing the same thing. I still farm and my husband was even a farmer till his death in 2009.
What is your most treasured moment in life?
God has made every day of my life a treasured moment. God is the one that makes me happy. But if I have to choose a moment, it will certainly be the day I led people to Christ. My parents were not Christians, but when I married my husband, I became a Christian in the Anglican Communion. I drew men to church. I ensured people were baptised and received confirmation. Working for God makes me happy. I earned the title of Nne Okwukwe (Mother of Faith) in church. But generally, I will say that I have no particular treasured moment. There were so many great moments I have had in life. I am always happy when my children successfully put to bed. I love seeing my grandchildren come into the world. I also get so happy seeing people go to school because I didn’t go to school. I enjoy seeing people who read so hard.
I have 18 grandchildren, which includes Emeka Nnamani, a former member of the Enugu State House of Assembly. I have 12 great-grandchildren.
Which moment would you consider the worst so far?
The day I lost my granddaughter, Chizoba Nnamani, would always remain on my mind. I will never forget her. She was in her 40s when she died in the US.
How then did you cope with her death, considering your old age?
Initially, my children hid it from me. When they realised that people would start coming to say sympathise with me, they had to let me know. That was less than two weeks after she died. I was able to get over Chizoba’s death because I believe so much in God. I advised myself that I couldn’t question God.
How did your family cope during the civil war?
We were always running. We suffered so much and moved from different places, to the extent that we ran from Enugu to Uturu-Okigwe in the present Abia State. We walked on our feet with children strapped to our backs. It was a very scary situation, as there were bombs everywhere. We were still on our way when we heard that the war had ended but we couldn’t return to Enugu city, so we went to Abakpa and stayed in uncle’s house.
At Abakpa, I engaged in petty trading so that we could feed the family. The situation remained like that until calm returned to the region. I pray that God will not allow such thing to happen again. The civil war was a very bad experience.
I was always falling sick during the war. It was during the war that my daughter, Ngozi, died. The shock from the canon shot at Nkalagu in the present Ebonyi State killed my daughter. Many people died in the same manner because there was no hospital for treatment.
You look very healthy at 81. What is the secret of your longevity?
I believe a healthy lifestyle makes one live long. I will say God has kept me strong and alive. I don’t drink alcohol and soft drinks, so I have every reason to live longer. I don’t eat fried food and some other unhealthy food, so it is possible I could live up to 100 and even longer. All these have kept me strong.
But I am not God. Only God that knows when I will die. Even if He says I should come home now, I will hold no regrets. God gives life, power and blood. I am happy that He has given power to me to still farm, even at my age.
What is the effect of civilisation on your lifestyle?
I don’t think the modern times have affected anything negatively in my life. For instance, there is light and it helps us see at night. The roads are there and it has enabled transportation of people from one place to another. Back in those days, we would trek to Abakpa and Abakaliki from Enugu, but today life has been made simpler.
How will you compare today’s Enugu to what it was in your time?
The dirt in Enugu State could make one sick. In the past, people didn’t throw things anyhow, but today the drainages are filled with dirt and the state government and residents are doing nothing about it. Even the Enugu State Waste Management Board is not even helping matters; their officials litter the environment in their attempt to clean it. For instance, after putting the dirt into their truck, some of them keep dropping off on the main roads while they are moving, thereby making Enugu city dirtier. Now that it is like this, I will advise the Governor (Sullivan Chime) to regulate the activities of ESWAMA and ensure that Enugu becomes very clean, as it was known for. I will advise Chime to be God-fearing and watch over the people he is leading.
What is your advice to the young ones?
My advice to my children and every young person is that they should have the fear God. They should allow God to guide their ways. I will also advise that they study well because that is the only way they could develop themselves. I call on youths of today to desist from acts of kidnappings, armed robbery, and lead a better life. They should change their ways and follow God. I weep whenever I see youths killing. Killing is a taboo. It is not good to kill what God created. In my days, there was no kidnapping, but today we find such things everywhere. There was no armed robbery in my time. We could leave the doors open and go to sleep, but now, I don’t go to sleep until I ensure that the doors are locked.