I want to see my son again before I die, Mama Nwakama

By Uzoma Nwankwo

        One wish is on the lips of a distraught mother, Mrs. Bridget Nwakanma, 75. That is to see her son, Nwakama Kelechi Kenneth again.  The lad who was alleged to be a member of the now proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in Aba, Abia State, was believed to be among the youths that were declared missing when some security operatives allegedly swooped on them at a spot near National High School along Port Harcourt Road, Aba, on February 9, 2016, where they were holding a private meeting.

Nearly two years after, Kelechi has neither returned nor anyone heard from him. News of his disappearance has so far been hidden from his aged mother who is both diabetic and hypertensive until recently.

Kelechi’s elder brother, Onyemaechi, said the disappearance of his sibling has been a devastating blow on the family, as it has caused his ailing mother sleepless nights.

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“Each time she remembers Kelechi, she is always pensive as she rues his absence. He is one of her favourite children. It got to a point where we could no longer hide the fact that we have not seen our brother for quite a while from her. This is because she feels him all the time. Anytime anyone who knows Kelechi comes around to see her, she would be asking a series of questions: “Have you seen Kelechi lately? When was the last time you saw him?’ It is always questions and questions. This is one terrible moment we always try to avoid. But it keeps coming.”

Onyemaechi said although he had no idea of his brother’s whereabouts, he was upbeat he was still alive. But he said what baffled him was the fact that he had remained silent. He said he was confident that no one in the family offended him, admitting that he was an active member of IPOB.

“Since he had not come home, I wish he should be getting the feeling that all of us, especially our aged mother, is eager to see him again. Even if he can’t write us, he ought to have called to say, ‘I’m alive and well; I’m in so, so place.’ At least, we can secretly go to wherever he is and see him in case he was fatally wounded and receiving treatment somewhere.”

He recalled that some of his brother’s friends in IPOB had admitted that they were attacked on that fateful day they were holding their meeting, but could not say if he was killed or wounded. But they said they saw him in the heat of the pandemonium as everyone was running for his dear life,” he stated.