We mustn’t abandon our culture, religion for western civilization, Don tells Africans

A Professor in the Department of English and Literary Studies, University of Nigeria Nsukka Prof. Damian Opata has warned Africans to not contemplate on abandoning its culture and religion for western civilization.

Opata said this in Nsukka in a lecture titled: “Reflections on Africa, the Tragic fall, and the Remaining of Us” while delivering 2018 Chinua Achebe memorial lectured organized by faculty of Arts.

He said the forceful grouping of communities with diverse culture and religion by colonial masters had led to continued conflict in Africa.

“Many homes have torn apart because converts of Christian Pentecostal group that neither listen to their parents nor elders in the community.

“Because of western civilization some Africans now see everything about the African traditional religion and culture as fetish and evil.

“As a result of this imposition of this western culture and religion in the name of civilization there has been constant conflict between adherents of traditional religion and Christianity,” he said.

He urged Africans to go back to the drawn board and think of original tradition from their ancestors they would beget as legacy to younger generation and not copied and innovated culture from western world.

Its legacy of disrespect for traditional African religion and culture by colonial masters encouraged corruption and immorality.

“Must Africa continue to imitate the western world, when Africa will be original so that one day the white people will imitate us, “he said.

The professor of English applauded Achebe who devoted his literary career and essay writing to investigate and expose the effect of colonialism on Africa and Africans.

“Some of the literary work of Achebe exposed evil effect of colonial rule in Africa as well as the western world wrong impression about black people.

“Achebe was a literary giant who used his books to tell correct and true story of Africa that was painted black by some writers in the western world, he said.

In a remark the Vice-chancellor of the UNN, Prof Benjamin Ozumba commended the faculty of Arts for organizing the memorial lecture of the world celebrated writer (Achebe) who during his lifetime contributed immensely to humanity through his literary work.

“Achebe did UNN, Nigeria and Africa proud in his literary work especially in his book “Things Fall Apart” that is read in many countries of the world,” he said.

Earlier, Prof Christain Onyeji, the Dean faculty of Arts in UNN said the faculty had maintained a tradition of organizing a biannual international conference and Achebe memorial lecture since 2012.

Onyeji said this was to create a platform for academic discourse and scholarly harvesting of ideas in the arts.

“The world class contribution of Achebe in the global knowledge scheme and his giant strides motivated a memorial lecture in his honour, being a former staff of UNN.

“The faculty of arts by this memorial lecture re-affirmed its resolve to keep alive the memory of the literary giant of our generation whose name and contributions have become global phenomena.

“Achebe as the colossus of our time will continue to live in our hearts and minds,” he said.

The dean commended Opata the lecturer of Achebe memorial lecture 2018 for delivering the lecture at no cost to the faculty or the university.

“The faculty and University are grateful and proud of you for a job well done,” he said.