The Neglect Of Our Heroes Past With Focus On Prince Nico Mbarga of Rocafiljazz

 

The Neglect Of Our Heroes Past With Focus On Prince Nico Mbarga of Rocafiljazz 

Owan Otu

Tourism all over the world is one of the tools for national branding in a bit to attracting foreign nationals and inflow of capital. The leadership of Cross River State took advantage of this and began to exploit its tourism potentials from 1999 and in a short while, it projected the State into limelight as a tourism destination in Nigeria and Africa at large.

Among the tourism potentials exploited in the State include; geographical features like the soothing vegetation, calm waterfalls, beautiful mountain elevations, unique forest animals etc. The development of recreational centres around these geographies and the birthing of the Calabar carnival that was entertainment packed, changed the narrative for the State, as all year round and especially in Decembers, visitors thronged the State to be part of the Carnival activities, although today the State is living in past glory. 

Music was one of the major ingredients of the Calabar carnival, as visitors and onlookers were thrilled to beautiful tunes of both local and foreign artist. Although Cross River State has a few musicians who have made marks in the local and international scene, but what is surprising is that the State has left dormant, the few potentials it should have developed to consolidate on its tourism agenda. 

The focus of this article is on the State’s neglect of music as a major tourism potential, with emphasis on Prince Nico Mbarga. 

Prince Nico Mbarga was born by a Nigerian mother from Obubbra Local Government of Cross River State, to a Cameroonian father on the 8th of April, 1950 and grew up in the town of Ikom in Ikom Local Government of Cross River State. He spent his early career life in Onitsha Anambra State and then relocated to Ikom where he established and built his residential home, and the famous Sweet Mother Hotel, which was the biggest in Ikom as at then. 

It is interesting to note that Prince Nico struggled his way to stardom from scratch, as his mother was a subsistence farmer and his father a local timber dealer, who passed on living behind young Prince a responsibility of taking care of his poor mother and siblings. 

Even though he had no opportunity to acquire formal University education, he grew up with a strong spirit of self-development, and was a lover of knowledge, as a result, self-tutored himself through reading of educative books, no wonder he became very exposed, with a powerful command of English language, he even had an unpublished manuscript before his demise. 

His music journey to stardom started in 1973, at the age of twenty-three, when he was picked up by EMI records, where he recorded his first hit, I No Go Marry My Papa, which sold reasonably well. But his greatest hit ‘Sweet mother’ was recorded at the age of twenty-four, in Decca studios Lagos. The song was released in 1976 by Rogers All Stars, selling about thirteen million copies worldwide, and breaking a global record as the bestselling record in Africa, and one of the bestselling globally. 

Prince Nico Mbarga is one Nigerian musician who was not just making rhythm and melody, but he was very philosophical in his lyrics as he practically hypothesised about every aspect of society, life, in-fact there is hardly a subject that he did not sing about, he has songs for every mood and occasion, with special focus on love and family life, which is the basic unit of society. 

Among his many hit songs bothering around humanity are: Christiana, Stella, Welenga, Wayo inlaw, Oh death, Akie special, na my choice, Music message, Happy birthday, Impossible, No die no rest, Welcome, Love and unity for Africa, Family movement, Good father, Lucky marriage, My pikin, Tribalism, Simplicity, Free education, Green revolution and of course Sweet mother, among many others. 

Sweet mother song has grown to become an African Anthem, especially in Mother days, and marriage ceremonies. 

In 2004, Sweet mother was voted as BBC Africa’s best song of the year. Prince Nico Mbarga’s music has been able to write the name of Cross River State and Nigeria internationally, and yet his own story has not been written back home. 

Through hard work, dedication and resilience, Prince Nico grew to become a big brand for Cross River State and Nigeria in the international space, attracting different accolades and awards from various groups and organizations, including but not limited to: 

Copy right society of Nigeria (COSON) award for best song of the 70s 

Mariam Babangida award for best song of womanhood

BBC award for best African song of the year 2004

Federal Government award of special recognition in the centenary celebration

Hit FM award for contribution to the entertainment industry

Documentary project about his life and times, by Sammy Kent of BBC

Cross River State at fifty award for his contribution to entertainment 

Udara Tv award of recognition for his contribution in the music industry 

Sculpting of his image at border road junction, now Prince Nico Mbarga roundabout, by Chief Ray Ugba Murphy.

It is however not remarkable, that after more than two decades of his demise, the Cross-River State authorities, especially in entertainment and tourism, is yet to write a story or give recognition to one of the greatest music legends that the State has ever produced, as he seems almost forgotten, yet the third line of our national anthem says ‘the labour of our heroes past, shall never be in vein. 

There is nothing significant found throughout the State, that can point to the fact that the State once had a figure like Prince Nico Mbarga. Even the once popular international Calabar carnival, before the Covid outbreak, that had music as one of its major ingredients, whereby both local and international artist were invited annually, to feature live in concert in various music categories, as the case may be, had Prince Nico missing, as no special dedication had ever been done in his memory.

Someone may argue that Prince Nico Mbarga passed on before the Calabar Carnival was even birthed, but in the records, we have seen the State government invite children of the late Fela kuti to feature live in concert in the Calabar carnival shows, and yes both Prince Nico Mbarga and Fela Kuti reigned in the same era and died in the same year 1997, but their children are carrying on with their legacies, so we have same antecedents. 

If we take the case of Fela for instance as mentioned above, who was a Lagos State resident until death and burial, we can see that there is a deliberate consolidation of his legacy by both private and public institutions of the State. If you drive around the city of Lagos, you get to see stories of Fela kuti told at every corner you turn to; on bill boards, bridges, interchanges, buildings, roundabouts, markets, recreational centres etc, about the legend that the State once had, and as a result there has been a preservation of value over the years. 

The Lagos State government to a very reasonable degree, participates in the annual Felabration events thereby adding value and building a big brand is attracting foreign capital annually. 

Let us assume that for whatever reason, it has not come to the notice of concerned authorities in Cross River to recognize Prince Nico Mbarga, but in 2017, his children made a proposal to the State government, through the platform of the Nico Mbarga Sweet-mother Foundation, a foundation Prince himself conceived of while alive, but made possible by his children twenty years after his demise in 1997. The proposed project was conceived in a bit to remember and honour his legacy, so it was tagged; ‘The 20th anniversary/immortalization concert of Prince Nico Mbarga’. It had three basic elements;

Official unveiling of the Nico Mbarga Sweet mother Foundation

Unveiling of a book (feminism) edited by Peter Bissong and Oko Jerome, from a background of the manuscript he developed while alive, the book was made possible by a group of academia, in the Faculty of arts, University of Calabar, in his honour, and 

Unveiling of rocafiljazz rebirth band.

A detailed proposal was prepared by the Sweet Mother Foundation for the event, and several attempts were made to brief the State Government through the offices of the Special Assistant to the Governor, on events and entertainment, Commissioner for Culture and tourism, Commissioner for Information, and Commissioner for Youths and sports respectively, of the proposed event either for endorsement, participation, sponsorship or partnership, but the effort yielded no positive result, as the proposal was greeted with the excuse of there is no money in the State. 

Attempts were also made to either secure a day to mark the anniversary on the platform of the Carnival stage installed at the Calabar Christmas village where entertainment usually run for thirty-one days, or at least secure the Ikom sports stadium for the event, still there was no positive response from the authorities. 

Also, children of the late Prince Nico (Rocafiljazz rebirth band), led by Nico Mbarga jnr, made efforts to perform in the music events of the Calabar Carnival, but again they were turned down on reasons that the carnival was low key.

Exhausted in making a number of dishonoured requests and appeals, it became clear that the situation was hopeless, due to the coldness of the authorities towards the many request, a decision was reached, to review the proposal and rally around well-wishers of the brand to host the anniversary/immortalisation concert in the capacity that could be afforded. Thankfully the event happened and was a big success, as it witnessed the unveiling of the Sweet Mother Foundation and Rocafiljazz rebirth band. 

It is common expectation, that a figure like Prince Nico Mbarga be given due recognition by the concerned authorities in Cross River State. The least expectation should have been an official endorsement of the project, even if there was no money in the State as claimed, in fact, it is also expected that the Prince Nico Mbarga’s brand which can compete with other international music brands globally be tapped by the Cross-River State tourism bureau to its advantage, unfortunately it has been left dormant.

Locally and internationally, his lovers have not stopped celebrating, revering, pouring ovations, and making efforts to connect with a legacy that was cooked in a small tropical town of Ikom, on Nigeria’s eastern border with Cameroon, packaged in Onitsha and Lagos respectively, and served to the entire world on the global entertainment table.

Today, a Prince Nico Mbarga’s search on YouTube show a number of copies of his music done across the globe. In Colombia South America for example, it has been discovered that the music brand of Prince Nico is still competing with modern day music, as most DJ’s play it in different events and celebrations. It is common to find images of him displayed in music events, and his records in shelves of music shops for sale, coupled with a serious interest by music lovers in connecting with his legacy back home. 

Before the Covid outbreak, there has been serious interest by event planners in South America to have Rocafiljazz band perform live in the Barranquilla Carnival in Colombia, no wonder the Nico Mbarga Foundation’s social media handles are getting highest patronage from South America.  

As the saying goes, a prophet is not honoured in his own hometown, hence the little or no recognition back home, but it is time we start changing this.

All through the famous music events of the Calabar Carnival, proper recognition has never been given to the Prince Nico Mbarga’s brand by authorities, and we all know that if he was to be alive, he would have been a major authority, since music was his primary constituency.

It may interest you to know that this year’s anniversary concert is coming up again in December 2021, on a yet to be announced date, ‘there may be no money in the State’ as claimed, but it takes more than money to birth a vision, it takes more than money to give honour to whom honour is due, it takes more than money to encourage a vision, and it takes more than money to make-up for something that is overdue.

If Cross River State would continue to boast of being the number one tourism destination of Nigeria, if the labours of our heroes past would not be in vain, if we must consolidate on the past to better the present and future, if we must rewrite our history, if the young and upcoming must be encouraged, then as a people, we should begin to celebrate, honour and give due recognition to all those who have branded us positively even in death. Now is the time…