Elkana Ubeku is a retired Nigerian Air-Force Officer and now a pastor in the Pentecostal Church of God (Olezi), Araya Isoko-south local government area, Delta State. He is the immediate younger brother to Late High Chief Dr. A.K. Ubeku. In an interview with our senior report at his home town, he bares his mind on the controversy surrounding the late icon as it affects his only son and delay of his burial ceremony.Excerpts:
Let’s know you Sir
I am Pastor Elkana Ubeku. A Retired Air Force Officer. I am of the Pentecostal Church of God (Olezi), Araya.
Sir, how is Late Chief Dr. A.K. Ubeku to you?
He is my elder brother. We have been together from my youths. He is a man with a difference. He was highly educated. He doesn’t thrive in what thrive people. He takes his time to do things. Even if you give him something, saying this is a gift from the government in monetary affairs, he won’t take it from you. But rather he will direct or advise you to go and give it to the less privileged. So he was a man in the mist of perverse society.
Sir, kindly tell us about the controversy surrounding the death and the pending burial of Ubeku as it affects his uncles family.
The problem is that the misunderstanding came from the wife. Chief has got his children two girls and one boy before he got married to Beatrice (the current wife). So there wouldn’t have been any issue but Beatrice drove the boy from the house when he was young for certain mistakes. And even the mother of the boy went to beg her so that she can take him back she refuses. And up to a certain moment she denied the boy the right to a father. And the boy was not happy when the father was looking for the post of the president, the boy challenged the father. He wrote in the National Concord Newspaper then and said, “You want to become the president and threw your son away” and that infuriated my brother. But on the long run you know father and son, those issues must be resolved. But when the woman drove him away she refused the boy entry even after the father and son has reconciled. I don’t know why she is so particular about this boy. Why she doesn’t want the boy to be in the father’s house. So the boy was raised by his mother’s family. Until I have to come in and the father said they should go for a blood test. Then I said over my dead body. I went to my elder brother, and said to him that this is the work of Beatrice and that she is the one who is agitating for a blood test. So two of us went to him and we said there will be no blood test and he has got the child right from the beginning and if he has done anything wrong he will apologize to you now. So that this matter would be closed. We don’t want division. No matter what is it? The boy then said l’m sorry for what I have done. Will that not be enough? So what is the hell about the blood test? So he looked at us and said ok in that case I forgive him and they drank together and they forgot the past. But up till time he died. Even when he was sick the woman didn’t dim it fit to inform the son that his father was sick. And even if the son was aware, the woman wouldn’t have allowed him to come to the house.
Is it as serious as that?
Yes, so what can the boy do? And when the father died I sent him to Lagos. I told him, look, go and sign your father into the mortuary. He went with my eldest son. And when they got there the first born, Flora, who is a woman came and said no Emetomo cannot sign that she have to stand in that position as the first child. But because I knew such assignment is not for women that was why I sent Emetomo and my son to fill that gap. I queried her but, she said, “I never knew that my father Chief A. K. Ubeku has a son.” So that is how the boy was denied signing in his father into the mortuary. But then I knew where the source of that statement came from. Then I was not happy because the statement came from her instead of Beatrice.
The burial was initially fixed for May 3rd and later postponed. Why the postponement?
Yes, I was the one who decided that the burial should be postponed because there was no communication after signing in my brother into the mortuary. The only communication was that of my elder brother’s daughter, Flora. And I asked her if she was sent to me, she said no, that she came on her own. She told me that there is one Professor lkime who is saying that since chief is dead it is good to bury him early because of the rain. I looked at the matter from that perspective and I discovered that there are some hands underneath because I had heard that Erijo, Sam Ogri and Fred Odueme are trying to do burial arrangement to bury my brother unknown to us.
Did they take the decision on behalf of the family?
Yes they took that decision unknown to the family. And when I got to know that some people were making arrangement to bury my brother without my knowledge, I was not happy. Definitely if it were you, you will not be happy, am I right? I know you will agree with me. So I said, over my dead body. And I confronted them and asked them I thought you are all educated. And courtesy demands that I deserve a reasonable amount of respect as a brother to Late A.K. Ubeku that no matter what the problem is I am suppose to be in the knowing of every burial rite concerning my brother. I now knew the twist regarding the earlier date which I suspected did not come from the professor because of my earlier rejection through the professors advise so I suspected it came from Beatrice. And the entire family including me rejected it, because we suspected a foul play by Beatrice. So I concluded that information was not from the professor it was from the source we were suspecting and so we refused it. At this point in time the entire family met and decided that my brother A.K. Ubeku, as a high chief, a former managing director of Guinness, a man who contested number one position of this country, time should be taken to plan the burial of such a highly placed person. So the son came, and said he want to do the autopsy of his father. We held several meetings not knowing that the autopsy has been done by the wife who is in Lagos and did not care to report back to the family. Until about 3 days ago, 7th of May precisely, when a lot of people have spoken to her.
You mean she came 3 days ago?
No, it was through telephone, after a lot of people have spoken to her she realized her mistakes, and she pleaded for forgiveness and I did forgive her too. Who am I to say no? but what she did was not good, things are not done that way.
Is she an Isoko?
Yes, she is from Isoko. She sent some people whom we had a meeting with.
Has the family been able to resolve the entire anomaly and fixed a new burial date?
Of course, if not for the magomago, things were moving on well. There was no actually logger-head. All we want is to bury my brother. But then how much do we bury my brother. Through what means? The government people are also preparing for the burial though I have not been contacted. I have written a letter to the governor and told him I am going to give him a date for the burial. But the governor, said that they have decided that we should bury him not on the 3rdbecause of the president visit to Port Harcourt and all the south-south governors will be in attendance. And they shifted the date to 17thof May. Can you imagine that, they gave us a date?
Is the May 17th date now convenient with the children?
Except only one, that is Flora the first daughter or perhaps the woman or the second daughter. But I cannot voice for the second daughter. But to me and the rest, no, it’s not feasible. We understand that government people has realized that there is a mistake somewhere and we are looking at an amendment which will come later.
What do you think is in the mind of the family now towards December?
We can as well bury him any other month even if we did not shift the date to December, inspite of that I think the burial should not be rushed because chief is highly placed person. Every Isoko man will want to attend his burial. We are also aware that Emetomo has taken the wife, and daughter Flora to court. Because both erroneously convened a service of songs in hounour of my brother Ubeku at Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria lsland without his consent as the only son.
How many children have chief?
Three. Flora(daughter), Mena(daughter) and Emetomo (son). These are the ones am aware of before the demise of my brother. The birth of that boy and who should be the father should not be in contention at all. He is a son belonging to High Chief A. K. Ubeku, so what is the shouting all about? The three children were born before Beatrice was married into the family. So what are we saying!
Sir, you mention 3 children, but information at our disposal shows that there is another female child who has just surfaced. What is your take on that?
I am 74. If somebody come from the corner and say I am a daughter to so, so, so, don’t expect me to take it because from day one of that child even the mother must know that High Chief has a family. He must have put in a word to one of the family member. So far no one has come to us to say this is for your brother ooo or sister ooo, but we don’t want everybody to know. All these years, my brother should have known about her before his death. So why after several days that the man is gone you are coming to tell me that I belong to Ubeku’s family? I won’t take that because l’m not a child. I want things to go in a proper way. I am a pastor. I don’t deceive people. I don’t do things the crook way people do, no. I want everything to go in a platform such that if I say A then it is A, then B is B.
So no date for the burial?
To me, I won’t tell you lie. There is no date yet.
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