He has been out of sight for two years; He was a legacy stolen: Nollywood Filmmaker, Eriacy Confidence writes a powerful tribute to mark his father's two years anniversary

Nollywood Filmmaker, Media Practitioner and CEO of Coneri Media publishers of Coneri Magazine and conerimedia.blogspot.com and organizers of Miss Cross River Central Beauty Pageant and Cross River Achievers Awards Eriacy Confidence Oba writes a powerful tribute to mark his father's two years Anniversary. His father, Late Elder Silvanus Oba Ndoma passed on on the 30th May 2017 and was buried in his home town in Yala Obubra on
 the 17th June 2017.

He writes

He has been Out of sight for two Years now.

"A Stolen Legacy" A Kidnapped father. 

In what looked like a joke, a brief illness compelled him into an unstoppable vehicle and traveled with him across the borders, to a land familiar with only the breathless like a single father kidnapped away from his children, leaving them in tears and hunger of care . 

He was a father yet he was more and will even be more to the generations that shall spring up from his blood.

He was a legacy hung in the walls of the hearts of all those who came in contact with him in the course of his short sojourn on earth. He was a legacy stolen by the cruelty in the hands of death. 

He was father taken against his will, kidnapped by death in the face of his gallant army of children.

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He started that journey on the 25th of May 2017 when illness paid him a visit and by 30th of May, although still close but had already grown too dumb to speak and too weak to resist that enemy that at first posed friendly but later sweet talked him into an everlasting abduction. And on the 17th of June 2017, he disappeared from sight in a speed, faster than light and sound that left us in tears. A legacy has been stolen! A father has been kidnapped like a hen taken away from its chics. 

He has remained far from our reach and out of sight for two years now, resting below our feet, like a beautiful rose trampled upon by men.

Elder Honourable Silvanus Oba Ndoma, Papa Actor as he was fondly called was born on the 1st of July 1947 to the family of Late Ndoma Ogar and Ewaje Adigha of the Agriculturally rich Echinghro Village, Ogana Clan, Nkum Okpambe Kingdom, Yala- Obubra, Obubra LGA of Cross River State. After his First School Leaving Certificate from the Presbyterian Primary school in Ofonatan in the present Ikom LGA in 1962 , he was employed as a teacher by the missionaries in 1963 and driven by the spirit of entrepreneurship, he broke away and established a commercial school in Ugep, headquarters of present day Yakurr LGA. The ignoble incident of the Nigerian civil war rained flood and cruely swept away his investments into the abyss leaving him in the sea of draught and in the heat of lack.  In 1973, determined to put the losses behind him , he joined the Local Government Service of the South Eastern State as an Adult Education Extension Worker. And like a deliberate ganged up against his survival tactics, the Military Government of Mohammed Buhari, incumbent President of Nigeria terminated his appointment in July 22nd 1985 on the ground of rationalization and reorganization of Local Government service across the country.

 Unknown to them that he was  being driven on the path of the destiny of becoming a respected Leader, first class entrepreneur, astute politician,  strategic development expert, crowd steering singer,

A popular voice Etc .

He went into full time entrepreneurship and later became one of the first contractors in Yala building several schools,  market stores and culverts. He opened one of the most popular restaurant in Obubra that served as the market place for ideas: a rallied point for political and social discourse. He became a vendor spanning a decade , a registrar in the customary court and an astute politician of no mean repute. He was the first person to own a commercial bus in Yala and the only person resident in the community in the 60s who could convert written words into typed scripts behind Olympian typewriter as one of the great wonders of western Education. Late Dr Matthew Achigbe described him as Zik of Yala, only second to late Chief Ben Ogri in the entire kingdom who held sway in the first republic. He inspired not only Yala people into greatness but the entire Obubra especially during the political era of the 80s. 

He was a member of Obubra Local Government Caretaker committee and thrice chairman of Yala Development Association, an organization he co founded with Late Augustine Eka and Clement Edim and helped  nurture to limelight and bowed out living several hundred thousands of Naira in the purse of Ogana Development Association which he was Chief Executive, a  rare feat for leaders of our time. He was intercepted at the border of furnishing a state of the art modern beach for the people of Yala Obubra by kidnappers in the guise of sickness that lasted just a few days without a demand for a ransom.

He was head of Eyo and mouth piece of truth and development. He stood up for the masses, bold and fearless, receiving their bullets innocently with a gallant smile. 

He fought "dearly" for their welfare in a society where good is paid with multiplied evil. He was  humble, honest, easy going, associated with people across divides, enterprising, loving, jovial and caring to all.

He was tall like an Iroko 

Sweet like honey comb 

Wise like Solomon 

Opened to all like air 

And strong like the rock 

He defeated all odds of life only to be striped of all these titles by the tricky tactics of death.

Death is a coward 

Weak and powerless

He hires assassins like sickness and accidents

Conflicts and famine 

Wickedness and other

Allies to fight his fights.

Whereas he hides behind events employing allies to weaken his opponents

Before he can appear to do the finishing 

He doesn't have the stamina to engage humanity 

 Death is not man enough

To face life in a battle 

He parades with a  borrowed victory 

Without winning a fight with baits spread around like net to catch preys 

If not he would'nt have defeated a black belter

Like my father.

In Conclusion.

On the society and social life:

Becoming an influence too powerful to resist in the later part of his life, Hon Silvanus Ndoma became a walking wisdom as he employed his wealth of knowledge, experience and time in tackling critical issues in the community. His thought provoking and incisive opinions always instilled peace and calmness in discerning hearts during meetings, social gatherings and everywhere he found himself. He believed that " The society will only contribute to the life of an individual if the individual can contribute to the life of the society"

 On injustice:

He fought against injustice, corruption and irresponsibilty as he believed that " He who doesn't have a caution to life cannot have a caution to death" and " Anyone who can waste words can waste anything else"

On service:

He spent virtually all his life serving the public holding different positions politically, educationally and communally. To him "Life is not meant to be lived. It is meant to be served. And to serve life, you must be of service to others" and "Life is simply service remembered and death service forgotten" 

 On death:

 He believed " Life is good yet death is better. It is good for the young and evil to the aged. Yet death is better to the old and evil  to the young'  and any old man who fears dead was never proud of life when young" To him, death is payment for the good done in life at old age but if life is taking untimely, it is meant to be resisted. He believed that " When a young person dies when his father is still alive, his father should be seen as a bad man.For no good father can tolerate his blood being wasted"

On wealth, poverty and Affluence: 

Although, he was mocked for being poor towards the last days of his life, Ndoma was highly rich and influential. he believed that " Unless a man is educated, he is not rich despite how much he has. All educated people are rich although they may not have physical money "  and "Unless wealth is spent in Education, it is not spent wisely and until education becomes the language of all humanity, man is not close to freedom". This led him to fight for the education of his children. 

On corrections:

He was renowned for correcting others and particularly his children, conveying a hash message under the cover of a smile. " A parent that cannot correct his or her child doesn't know the cost of having a bad youth in the future" Do things right when you have the privilege to because there comes a time when you would want to but the courage, strength and time may not be available." He would say. 

He served his community even better and to the best of his ability in his days. 

On religion and evil:

Silvanus Oba Ndoma was a devout Christian baptized into the Catholic faith. He believed that" One who hurts others in the cover of religion lacks true claim to knowing God" and " Christianity is not living in Christ but Christ living in you"

 He was not only a father to me but an inspiration, a legacy stolen partly from humanity. He was a Thinker, an idealist, a philosopher, a social mobilizer, a development strategist, a political force , an entrepreneur, a great Nigerian. My father.

As we celebrate Father's Day today, may God bless you from wherever you are father. We ( Innocent, Hycent, Charles, Esther, Cyprian, Theophilus,  Joseph, Winie, Winnie Jr, Linus, Patience, Endurance, Gift and I 'Eriacy') your estate love you so so very very much.

Happy Father's Day 

Late Elder (Hon) Silvanus Oba Ndoma (SON)

ERIACY CONFIDENCE OBA