In the final installment of this article, I turn to my long-time friend, Dan Inneh, the former Secretary to the Oba of Benin, whose reflections offer yet another layer of richness to my life’s journey, share his perspective on my journeys and my life, adding a layer of richness to our shared journey;
Chief Newton Chuka Jibunoh is easily one of Nigeria’s finest men. A fine gentleman and a model for many who would want to live a straight and open life, a life of private peace and dignity. I have known Chief Jibunoh since 1984, during my years as Secretary to the Oba of Benin. In these years, I found him a man who follows up matters concerning all those who come close to him with keen interest, characteristic of a well-meaning guardian. Yet, in most of these cases, he was neither a guardian nor a family relative but one with largeness of heart; always willing to help. From my heart at all times, it is bravo to Chief Newton Jibunoh.
A nationalist but who is not a politician, Chief Jibunoh has continued to express the Nationalist content in him through Art. A collector of Nigeria Art works, he established Didi Museum at Akin Adesola Road in Victoria Island on May 11 1983. The Museum was founded in memory of Edik Jibunoh (Didi), his sister with whom he was very close but who died at an early age. It is significant that in setting up the Museum he opened a new chapter in his Nationalist drive. He requested his Royal Highness, Alhaji Ado Bayero, the Emir of Kano to inaugurate it.His Highness, Emir of Kano was also appointed the Chairman of the Board of Trustees. The opening and exhibition attracted a great number of visitors, well-over one thousand guests. It was his view that through Artworks, African’s contributions to the general human race accomplishments would be appreciated.
It was a huge encouragement to private Art Collectors, even Ekpo Eyo who was the Director General of the National Commission of Museum and Monuments at the time described it as excellent and the first of its kind by a private citizen.
The mission and vision of the Didi Museum was to serve as a forum for research and preservation of art and culture and through these vehicles promote the exhibition of contemporary Art works. The mission among others was intended to promote learning for younger generation about our African cultural heritage. In order to encourage scholarship, poetry and literacy works were to be encouraged particularly amongst students and teachers. The mission and vision are growing as the desire to create a local market for cultural works of Art is now well included.
Now, Didi Museum offers services which include rentals of a multipurpose hall and Boardroom for special events, particularly for training, poetry and jazz night. I had the privilege to accompany Omo N’Oba N’Edo, Uku Akpolokpolo, Oba Erediauwa, Oba of Benin to Didi Museum two times. I am aware that His Majesty, Olubuse II, the Oni of Ife, visited Didi Museum. Many Traditional Rulers and some political figures visit Didi Museum in a welcoming spirit to encourage its creation. I attended the event when Mrs. Maryam Babangida also visited.
In the last few years, Dr. Newton Jibunoh has been well involved in Nelson Mandela Foundation and the establishment of Nelson Mandela Gardens. In his typical excellence, the garden shows a high-class hotel and suites in Asaba. These are developing very fast with a good land space left for expansion. The land area has a zoo which houses rare birds and other animals. The figure of Nelson Mandela is well represented by a life-size Statute. In these hotels and gardens many young Nigerians are employed and some are being trained to keep the flag of mission and vision flying. Chief (Dr.) Newton Chuka Jibunoh gets involved in issues or projects when public benefits and excellence are identifiable. He is thoughtful and fair-minded and
he believes that community service is above all other responsibilities. People sometimes call him a desert warrior because of the unique travels he made across the Sahara desert, from Nigeria to Europe. He has been involved in many exciting projects. In all, he acts with integrity, modesty and excellence.
Chief (Dr.) Newton Chuka Jibunoh is a citizen of the World. He is an adherent of certain universal values such as God’s given dignity of every human being. Easily evident in all his actions are diligence and compassion. In every way, Chief (Dr.) Newton Jibunoh is a man of genuine courtesy and respect for others. It is not surprising, therefore, that all those who have been privileged to come close to him not only respect him, but they like him. Nigeria needs more men like him for good nation building.
Now, as I approach this new chapter of age and reflection, that question returns with renewed force. Because even with everything I have seen and done, I know that I’m still, still looking for myself.
The question isn’t unique to me. It belongs to all of us. Because the truth is: most people live without ever truly knowing who they are. They know their jobs, their responsibilities, their families. But when all those labels are stripped away, when they are alone, in silence many struggle to articulate what remains.
This matters more now than ever before. The Earth, the land we walk on is starting
to ask its own questions. It’s showing signs of stress, of imbalance, of exhaustion. Climate events grow more unpredictable. Rivers dry. Forests vanish. The animals are quieter. The seasons are confused. It is as if nature itself is turning to us and saying: “Do you know what you’re doing here? Do you know who you are to me?”
We often treat the planet as a backdrop to our lives, a stage built for our convenience. But we forget the deeper truth: the Earth is the stage, and we are actors with
temporary roles. We have come into existence with purpose, with timing, with interconnectedness that most of us have never paused to consider.
The creatures that came before us, those that roamed the land, soared through the skies, and swam in the oceans played their parts instinctively. They gave more than they took. They moved with the rhythm of nature. But we, the self-declared rulers of the planet, have lost that rhythm. We have taken, and taken, and taken with little thought of return.
So, this search for myself is not just personal. It is planetary. Because to know oneself is to know one’s place in the web of creation. It is to understand that we are not above nature; we are of it. We are woven into it, responsible to it, and ultimately accountable to it. In all my years, I have come to understand this: the journey inward is the most important journey a person can make. It is not always comfortable. Often, it will demand that we strip away ego, illusion, and noise. But only then can we begin to see clearly. Only then can we learn to walk the Earth gently, humbly, and wisely.
So, at eighty-eight, I am still looking. I look not for perfection, but for understanding.
I look not for answers, but for alignment with nature, with purpose, and with my truest self. I look in the whispers of the wind, in the echo of rivers, in the wisdom of trees, in the silences of the desert and in the stories written in the stars. This, for me, is what it means to live.
And if you are reading this and wondering where to begin, I leave you with the question that has followed me faithfully through the years:
Do you know who you are? Because life truly begins not when we are born, and not even when we succeed but when we begin the lifelong, humbling, and sacred journey of looking for ourselves.
