The retired Catholic Bishop of Benin Diocese, Patrick Ekpu, who will be 82 in October, speaks with JAMES AZANIA on his childhood experience, his more than five decades as a priest and other issues
What was your childhood experience and who were your parents?
Childhood as I came to know what was happening around me was pleasant and it was the kind of experience a child will have if he lives with his parents and other siblings. My father was John Inidia Ekpu Igboke; Igboke was his father’s name, and my mother was Otiekpe. Arebamen was her maiden name. We were two boys and four girls.
Can you tell us about your siblings and what some of them are doing?
My only brother lives here in Benin. Next to me is a female. I have another sister who lives in the United States with one of her children.
Which schools did you attend?
I attended Government School in Uromi, Edo State. In 1943, I was transferred to Holy Cross, Benin. My last two years in primary school was at St. Joseph’s Catholic School, First East Circular. In 1950, I was admitted into the minor seminary. At the end of that year, I went to Oke Are in Ibadan and completed my secondary school, after which I came back to what is now St. Paul Minor Seminary in Benin. It was a major seminary then. After three semesters, the seminary was moved to Bodija in Ibadan. In 1963, I was transferred to Iguobazuwa in Benin and after about 11 months I was appointed to be in charge of the parish in Ibuzo, now in Delta State. I was there at the beginning of the civil war. Later in 1967, towards the end of November, I was transferred to Igueben in Benin and after about one and a half years there, I went to Boston University in the US.
What did you study there (Boston University)?
I read Sociology.
Did you set out to become a priest?
By the time I was leaving primary school, I had made up my mind to become a priest.
Why?
Well, at the time I began to think of it, I had not even been baptised as a Christian. I remember shortly before was baptised, I saw late Father Ojefua and I told him I would like to be a priest and he said I had to be baptised first. There were not too many African priests in those days; they were few. By the time I left primary school, there were only three Nigerian priests in what is now Edo/Delta. So, the possibility of you seeing them was almost not there. But God has a way of infusing ideas into somebody’s mind and leading him to that goal.
Alternatively, what would you have loved to be?
In the course of study, I loved logic and I was a good logician, but felt I would make a good lawyer. So, I toyed with the idea, but it was not something I thought through.
What were your parents reactions when you chose to become a priest?
My father did not disapprove, except he said he had only heard there was a Father Paul Emecheta in Asaba area, who allegedly got married and had a child before joining the priesthood. My father did not mind if I had a child and then became a priest. But my mother did not understand the full implication of her first son becoming a priest.
Would you link the taking over of missionary schools by government to level of moral decadence in the society?
I will because those who went to faith-related schools would have been taught that depriving someone else of his right is evil. But those who have never been told that either at home or in the church are just pragmatic in whatever they do. To such people, whatever profits them is okay. They are not bothered whether it hurts other people or not. It is okay as long as it profits them. They might have heard that certain things are bad and they may even know it themselves but because nobody has sat them down to tell them it is wrong, they will simply be doing that which is bad because they see people doing it.
The church is facing the issue of gay marriage, how will you react to that?
We all have a role to play in that regard by enlightening our people because we are throwing our culture away. Have you ever heard where a male cow is going after a male cow or a male camel going after a male camel? If we saw that practice, then we might say it is natural for a man to do that, but you know that the issue of procreation is social. It is the environment that affects people’s behaviour and if the social environment encourages what you are doing, or promotes it, then you can easily fall into it. But if it does not, then it will not develop.
What was your daily schedule like when you were in service?
Well, it has changed with changes of circumstances of life. I used to wake at 4am and clean up. Thereafter, I would go to the chapel and pray. I remember when I told my friend in the US that I used to wake up at 4am; he laughed at me and asked if I was crazy. I later shifted it to about 5am and when I retired I changed it to 6am. Immediately after waking up, I go to clean up the chapel for morning devotion, after that I will have my breakfast. After breakfast, I would go to the office. I have my lunch at 1pm or some minutes after. Thereafter, I would have my siesta and after that I would go to pray at the chapel and sometime I go for exercise and I would go back to the office.
What time do you go to bed?
About 10pm.
I learnt you and Anthony Cardinal Okojie are friends?
We were contemporaries in the seminary. We have been friends from college days when he transferred from St. Gregory and came to join us in Ibadan. I discovered he came from the royal family of Uromi, and ever since then our relationship has grown stronger and stronger.
Tell us more about your sporting activities
I was never a sportsman; but sometime I play tennis.
What is your best food?
What may be my best food may not be available to me.
What is it?
I like the German breakfast which consists of bread, liver sausage, cheese and cup of coffee.
Does that contribute to good health?
I’m telling you about my best food. Well, people associate good health with balanced diet. But what is good for you might not be good for me. It depends on what one makes up and the circumstances surrounding it. The food you eat in Nigeria is not what you’ll eat in Germany, United Kingdom or United States. What may be good for us here in Nigeria may not be available in other countries and may not be the best food.
You will soon be 82, what will you say is the secret of longevity?
I don’t know whether there is any secret, for me I think long life is a gift of God, because one has seen others who apparently were quite healthy and led normal good and acceptable lives, did regular exercise, yet died young. Others in the same circumstances lived much younger. So, nobody really knows what the secret of long life is.
Can you recall some of your best moments?
At the age of 11, I left home and I have been in Benin City ever since then. So, there were not too many occasions when I and my siblings sat together or enjoyed things together. As a result, I cannot recollect some of those moments. But I remember when I was going back to school in Ibadan, in 1955. My immediate younger sister and I were together and we took a picture. That was the last time I saw her because she died a few years later.
Can we count that as your worst moment?
I wasn’t around then. I was in Ibadan facing my studies, and I wasn’t around to experience the sorrow the family had at that time but I felt it very much later.
So, you cannot recollect any of your worst moments?
The moment that made me feel very bad was when my eldest sister lost her only child. It was a very painful moment and after that, she never had a child again.
What are those changes you see in the present generation that are different from those of your period?
There was more discipline and willingness to take instructions from your elders. But it appears there is uncontrolled freedom or licence for people to behave the way they like these days. People don’t seem to have a sense of direction, they don’t know and they don’t want to learn from those who know. That is very dangerous.
What do you dislike in people?
If somebody tells lies; he’s a liar, I cannot tolerate lies. No matter the circumstances, always say the truth. I have a very high regard for someone who is truthful.
What advice do you have for the youth?
I will advice them not to take hasty decisions. They should consult those who know and seek advice before taking decisions. They should always be patient. If your friend has a car, don’t say you must also drive a car even when you know you don’t have the means to acquire a car. Avoid doing things that can put you into trouble.