A Wassail For The Wayfarer: Biodun Jeyifo At 71

But still, in spite of the amazing brilliance of these works that established his reputation, his latest publication, Against the Predator’s Republic, which I have referred to above, may well turn out to be his magnum opus. Assembled from what were originally newspaper columns, and hence targeted at a popular audience, the collected articles are so varied and broad-ranging, so rich in assorted information, so diverse in style and content and commentary, that one cannot take them all in one reading. It is certainly a massive volume, with over 600 pages of close print, and so passionate in its missionary purpose is it that you can dip in at random, and pluck from any page a different treasure of knowledge and delight. Moving from plain prose to poetry, from dream to didactic analysis, from music to meditation to plain ratiocination, the author’s omniscient assurance reminds you of the best of Franz Fanon, in parts, and Walter Benjamin in others. Or of the book that Karl Marx, in collaboration with Jean-Paul Sartre, would have written if they lived together in our time. An encyclopedia of sorts on the biography of our nation—covering history, sociology, economics, philosophy, and much more—it should be required reading and made a primary test of literacy for every educated citizen. But all the same the irony of all this is that the essays can only be said to be in the interest of the Talakawa, and not for their direct consumption. The register of discourse is pitched much above that of the common street level; the rhetoric is of a sophistication foreign to the simple grammar of popular exchange. It is in fact, perhaps to the author’s own disappointment, a work of profound intellection, requiring not just a sympathy with social causes but also a certain level of consciousness to fully appreciate. The “dear compatriot” that the author continually addresses will unfortunately not be, I am afraid, the common man on the street.

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And there are still other paradoxes. When you think of BJ and several others like him that were forced into exile, and you take account of the luminous careers that they have forged there outside, you become even more bitter about the wastage of the military years. What kind of profligate country would have been content to lose to others the contributions of people like Abiola Irele, Toyin Falola, Michael Echeruo, Molara Ogundipe, Kole Omotoso, Niyi Osundare, Tanure Ojaide, Akin Adesokan, Tejumola Olaniyan, Chika Onuigwe, Sefi Atta, Chimamanda Adiche, Teju Cole, and so on, and so on? Did I hear you exclaim? But these are just in the area of Literature alone. Now add the shining stars we hear about in the fields of Medicine, Business, Architecture, Aeronautics, Space Engineering, Computer Science, Information Technology, Fine Arts, etc.—when, in the homeland, and after squandering millions of dollars, we have not been able to develop enough capacity to feed ourselves, or generate electricity, or even fabricate toothpicks! Nor have we, after numerous wars and blood-shedding, been able to produce a political leadership of sufficiently stirring vision to shun venality, mediocrity, and corruption, and launch us forward to greatness.

For these reasons alone, biographies such as BJ’s are of signal import, for they stand as exemplary narratives for all of us, and in particular the young. They demonstrate for us not only how our past was sabotaged, but also, how our future can be salvaged. They show us the way to recuperating our lives from despair, and our children from hopelessness and defeatist nonchalance. It is probably too late now to lure our exiles to return, but we can at least persuade them not to turn their back completely on us. For they can help end the nightmare of history which seems to have condemned us to a fate of continuous anomy. They can join in the challenge of producing a new progressive elite, that will help give birth out of all our contradictions to a new and thriving nation.

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I salute you, BJ, activist intellectual and insatiable wanderer, on your coming to another milestone. As you so perspicaciously put it yourself , “The conditions on our roads mirror the conditions of the poverty, insecurity and despair that shape the lives of the great majority of our peoples everywhere in the land. For most Nigerians, the journey through our roads and highways is exactly like the journey they are compelled to make through life as they live out their allotted time on this earth…” (APR: 546)

The traveller, you assert, BJ, always returns home. But only if he or she is lucky. You and I, and our close friends, have been among the most fortunate on our journeys on the planet. It is not over yet. But let me re-assure you that, even if the victory has not been won, and may not be in our lifetime, the fight has been well worth it. But one last word, for time is running out fast against us—but if you put your mind to it, applying the same zeal with which you follow the tennis tournaments, you might just come to be a better cook after all! My free advice.

A happy birthday, my brother, my friend!