The Emelonyes: Twins driven by passion in arts and law

With these two artistic twins, no mountain is high enough; no valley is deep enough. Here is the story of Uche and Obi Emelonye, a pair of twins bestriding their careers in law and art.

BY NGOZI EMEDOLIBE

If a computer was asked to design the duo of Obi and Uche Emelonye, three words must be part of the algorithm: tenacity, art and law. Employing the first factor, the twins have made outstanding imprints on the latter two, which is why the story of their activities in both art and law will always make an interesting read.

Although they were born some 57 years ago today into an artistic home pioneered by Linus Emelonye, their father, they have reached the zenith of their careers propelled by the zeal to surrender a better legacy to their oncoming generations than they had.

While Uche Emelonye is currently the Country Representative of the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights in Sierra Leone, he is also a professor in a UK university, while nurturing the music career of his daughter, Uchechi Emelonye, fondly called Princess of Afrosoul.

His twin brother, Obi, also a lawyer has had an rich career in filmmaking, and easily stands out as one of the most recognisable filmmakers out of Africa, with a string of blockbusters.

Both were born when the world was getting set to witness one of the greatest calamities against childhood – the Nigeria-Biafra Civil War. The incidents of the ensuing crisis inadvertently affected their father who after his studies in England had returned to a prosperous life in Nigeria, working in companies such as Golden Guinea Breweries, before settling in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

But he had to be forced back to his village, Umuma Isiaku Ideato, present day Imo State, with his young family, to escape the hostilities occasioned by the crisis.

Of course, these early influences, may have toughened their skin, firing in them, the passion to be successful at anything and everything.

The attempt to do well in many endeavours spawned an Obi Emelonye that started and ended secondary school as a science student, excelled in Fine Arts, studied Theatre Arts and Law, tried his legs successfully on professional football and ended up a trendsetting filmmaker on the African continent.

By the time the duo was set to go through primary and secondary education, the effect of that great loss, was almost weighing down his dad and this affected the quality of life he and his twin brother had. While his parents and other siblings lived in Lagos, they were dispatched to attend secondary school in Urualla, a suburb in Imo State.

Both were supposed to attend a seminary school, St Mary’s Seminary School, Umuowa, Orlu, but while Obi made the cut-off point required for enrolment, his twin brother, Uche, could not and enrolled at Comprehensive Secondary School, Urualla. But after a year, his parents withdrew him from there to join Uche at the less-fashionable Comprehensive Secondary School, Urualla.

Life in Urualla for the twins was characterised by some degree of deprivation in a loose sense of the word.

They had little to eat, and would trek miles to attend classes from a rented room which they shared with another student.

As day students, they were made to cook their meals, when there was something to be cooked, which was luxury for them at that point in their lives. When there was nothing however, they would trek miles to their ancestral home in Ideato to get some food stuffs.

Obviously, a life they wished was completely forgotten due to the harsh economic realities at the time, but the twins will not forget a bitter shave with death all in the name of escaping thirst and hunger.

Uche recalls this incident thus: “Having been joined by my twin brother in secondary school in 1980 and having regards to the economy of my parents at that time and the fact that we were day students, one of us would usually go home every Friday afternoon during school term to replenish our food stock and pocket money.

The distance from school to home is approximately 10 kilometers. On that fateful day, it was my turn to go home. Without the comfort of a public transportation, the distance was to be trekked under the scorching sun.

Having trekked from Urualla to Obiohia, which is half way into the journey, I stopped by a local grocery kiosk to ask for a cup of water. Kind enough, the kiosk owner offered me a glass of water with a caveat that her jerry can of water was recently used for kerosene and while it has been washed, the smell of kerosene may still be perceived in the water.

She innocently offered me a class of water which I gulped in utter thirst. While I smelt and tasted kerosene in the water, I imagined that it was the lingering kerosene smell that the shop owner warned me about. By the time the innocent woman realised her mistakes, I had already gulped a full cup of kerosene.”

But the youngsters were survivors. They were created to survive and conquer, which is evident in the kind of lives they are leading today.

In spite of all those, they have had stints with sibling rivalry. Uche recalls that: “Growing up as a twin was full of fun memories. The fact that I have a natural ally in my twin brother on all issues and against all peer-adversaries is inestimably reassuring. It is an impetus to confront the challenges of growing up in a seemingly unregulated and bullish society.”

Intrinsically, Uche began to use his brother Obi as the benchmark for excellence, and would see anyone who was able to out-compete his brother as super human. He still remembers two individuals in the primary school who dared to.

“One of my classmates that stood out in my primary school days is Erowo Asaka. We were then at Local Authority, School II, Ajeromi Apapa Lagos. He was so spectacular for me because he was able to outdo my twin brother in class.

In 1979 and during our last year and term in primary school when all the three classes of primary six are graded together, one class mate stood out again for outperforming my twin brother.

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Marcel Eluagu took the first position, my twin brother was second and as was customary, I came behind my twin brother in the third position. I did not really excel in any extracurricular activity in primary school. I was so frail that I was not suited for any of the sports events in school.

My only known excellence in extracurricular activities in primary school was when I was appointed the ‘head boy’ of the entire school. It required me for a whole year to be punctual in school on time to ring the school bell calling for attendance at the morning assembly, ring the school bell for change of lessons and break time and ring the bell declaring end of school day and lead the entire school in a closing prayer.

This appointment was the first biggest surprise of my life. I felt much undeserved of it in the face of my twin brother.”

But this did not make Obi feel he had an edge. Although, he got into the university before the twin brother, he encouraged him to stick to his passion of pursuing Law as a course and would from time to time host him at the University of Nigeria Nsukka, where he was studying Theatre Arts.

When Uche was through with Law School, and Obi had relocated to England to pursue his passion, it was he that that felt he deserved a car as a young lawyer and did buy him one.

For steadily overcoming the odds of life and attaining the peak of possibilities in art, law, academia and philanthropy, this pair of twins deserve the flowers as they turn 57 today!

QUOTE

They have reached the zenith of their careers propelled by the zeal to surrender a better legacy to their oncoming generations than they had.