April 13, 2023
Directed By Harry Agina
“CULTURE-WAR” ON “CULTURE-WATCH-AFRICA” CONTINUES ON AFRO-SCOPE
Greetings!
I am Harry Agina, and I welcome you to episode 6 of our AfroCultural Drama series on Cross-Cultural Influences in Africa. It is a “Culture-Watch-Africa” presentation on Afro-Scope.com, where We beam African Ways of Life to the world, through InfoTainment. While here, please check out our other AfroCultural drama series on various topics. They are all truly AfroCultural InfoTaining!
Now, let’s get to today’s show without further ado. It’s time for “AfroCultural Marriage Vs The Western Ways,” episode 6. In the last episode, we saw our “Roneo” and “Juliet” heartbroken. The ‘love-catastrophe’ that brought the heartbreak was especially hard on “Juliet,” Nneka. Papa had just told her, in the presence of her “Romeo” Chimezie, and his uncle, that he forbids the relationship, period!!! No more discussions on the matter. In fact, papa issued a stern warning to Chimezie to stay clear of his daughter. Our key question is whether this can still happen jn contemporary Africa? Nneka was crying when we left them in her father Chief Ekwedike’s living room. Now, the drama continues:
- INTERNAL, IN EKWEDIKE’S SITTING ROOM; IN THE DAY
NNEKA IS STILL SOBBING AS SHE REMOVES CHIMEZIE’S ENGAGEMENT RING AFTER HER FATHER BROKE THE RELATIONSHIP. SHE DROPS THE RING ON THE CENTER TABLE. CHIMEZIE AND EKWEDIKE ARE STARING AT THE RING. MAZI UDOKA IS SHAKING HIS HEAD IN DISAPPOINTMENT.
MAZI UDOKA (Stands): Chief Ekwedike, are you sure that you can’t change your mind on this matter. Have compassion on your own daughter, and spare her the heartbreak, please.
EKWDIIKE (Melodramatically cool): Spare her the heartbreak?
CHIMEZIE (Kneels): And my own heart, too, please, sir. It’s not my fault that my dad died young…
NNEKA’S SOBBING SUBSIDES A LITTLE AS SHE WATCHES…
MAZI UDOKA (Still standing): Besides, I know I’m repeating myself, but this is a new age. We now have improved medical possibilities to correct some ailments that we hitherto called incurable genetic inheritance.
EKWEDIKE (Still cool): Improved medical possibilities, right?
MAZI UDOKA (Hopeful): Yes, chief. Chimezie may well live to be a hundred years, by God’s grace.
EKWEDIKE: Are you through now? Anything else?
MAZI UDOKA: Well, Chief, I hope that…
EKWEDIKE’S MELODRAMATIC COOL ATTITUDE SUDDENLY CHANGES TO ANGER…
EKWEDIKE (Cuts in): Now, get out of my house; and take your nephew with you! You people may toy with our ways of life, our beliefs, and the consequences of violating them, but I don’t. My word is final! Out!!!
NNEKA BURSTS INTO A CRY AGAIN, AND RUNS OUT TOWARDS HER ROOM. CHIMEZIE DEJECTEDLY RISES FROM HIS KNEELING AND FOLLOWS HIS UNCLE WHO IS HEADING TO THE EXIT DOOR.
Crossfade…
- EXTERNAL, IN CHIMEZIE’S CAR ON A ROAD; DAY
CHIMEZIE IS DRIVING. HIS UNCLE SITS BY HIM IN THE FRONT SEAT.
CHIMEZIE (Furious): You see, uncle, when I say that I hate those your cultural stuffs, you say that…
MAZI UDOKA (Cuts in, emphatic): Don’t even go there, Mezie! I can understand your frustration now, because Chief Ekwedike is too archaic. But you can never justify some of your arguments to any true African. Indeed, not to any true huma who understands the meaning of culture…not just the African Culture. I mean all cultures of the world.
CHIMEZIE: But, Uncle, you can’t tell me that I…
MAZI UDOKA: I’ll tell you what I can tell, and that’s the fact that it is wrong to act as if you’re a white man. But you’re not; you’re African, and you must be proud of your Africaness.
MAZI UDOKA SUDDENLY GOES SOLEMN…
MAZI UDOKA (Suddenly solemn): It has never been necessary to tell this before now, but my beloved brother, your father, made me to promise him something that was important to him.
CHIMEZIE: Which was?
TEARS START TRICKLING DOWN HIS FACE
MAZI UDOKA: To look after you like my own son.
CHIMEZIE: O come on, Uncle, you’ve been doing just that. And I love you for it, like my own father. So, what’s all the tears about?
UDOKA: Never mind, you won’t understand…our conversations on his sick bed.
CHIMEZIE: Okay then, Uncle, you stop the tears, or you’re gonna have to tell me the reason. You know I don’t like to see you hurting.
UDOKA: Well, anyway, he was only a year my senior, and my own first son is your senior by one year, too. You were in faraway USA. And I made him the promise, of course. For all practical purposes, you’re my son.
CHIMEZIE: I know, Uncle, and I truly love you for it.
UDOKA: All that, to insist that you must stop sounding as if you hate your own heritage, your culture. That’s one of the reasons…the main reason, in fact, why Chief Ekwedike denied you his daughter.
CHIMEZIE: But what did I do so wrong, Uncle?!
UDOKA (Sarcastic): You mean, beyond your violation of our traditional approach to marriage?
CHIMEZIE: Just that? He denies two people our happiness just for that one little…
THE CAR MOMENTARILY SWERVES OFF THE LANE A LITTLE AS CHIMEZIE LOOKS AT UDOKA’S FACE IN DISAPPOINTMENT.
UDOKA (A little shaken up): Wooo! Time to stop and park if you want to continue talking. Or you wait until we get home.
Cut to…
- INTERNAL, IN NNEKA’S BEDROOM; SAME DAY & TIME
NNEKA IS LYING IN BED WEEPING, AND TALKING TO HER FATHER IN ABSENTIA…
NNEKA (Sobbing): You’re a wicked man. You don’t care about my happiness…only interested in those your stupid traditions…ancient stupid traditions!
HER PHONE ON THE BED BESIDE HER STARTS RINGING. SHE IGNORES IT FOR A MOMENT, THEN LOOKS AT IT. CALLER ID SAYS EBY BABY CALLING. SHE PICKS IT STILL CRYING…
NNEKA: My father has killed me o!
EBERE’S VOICE COMING THROUGH THE PHONE IS PANICKY…
EBERE: What?! What did he do, baby? You want me to call the police?
NNEKA CONTINUES CRYING…SPLIT SCREEN SHOWS EBERE IN HER CAR, DRIVING…
EBERE: Babe, talk to me. What’s going on?! Is it about Chimezie?
NNEKA BREAKS SILENCE…
NNEKA: Yes. My wicked father says that I must not marry him.
EBERE: But why? Will he marry you, his own daughter?
NNEKA: I don’t know o! I want to kill myself o. I want to die and meet my mom in heaven.
EBERE: No no no, don’t even joke with that…you’re not meeting mama in heaven yet. ‘Tell you what, babe; I’m on my way to you now.
SHE IS TURNING THE CAR AROUND…
Cut…
Scene 4. INSIDE CHIMEZIE’S PARKED CAR BY THE ROADSIDE; SAME DAY
CHIMEZIE’S CAR IS NOW PARCKED BY THE ROADSIDE. HIS TALK ABOUT CULTURE CONTINUES WITH HIS UNCLE UDOKA…
UDOKA: Look, Mezie, I want you to consider me as a bridge between the extremist traditionalists such as Chief Ekwedike, and youths like you who are at the opposite extreme, those who are not proud of our African Culture.
CHIMEZIE: But, Uncle, it’s not that I’m not proud of my culture. It’s things like what Ekwedike did today, that drive me crazy.
UDOKA: As I said, there are archaic people like him who go too far, refusing to amend certain traditions with time. He forgets, for instance, that he doesn’t possess such control in contemporary times without violating his daughter’s human rights.
CHIMEZIE (A little excited): I know, that’s my point. They cannot continue to marry youngsters away to people that we don’t love…breaking up true love in the process…all in the name of culture and customs…
UDOKA: That notwithstanding, Mezie, you have no business acting as if you hate your culture. You cannot do it.
HE SUDDENLY GOES QUIET. IT IS OBVIOUS THAT A THOUGHT JUST DROPPED IN HIS HEAD. UDOKA THROWS HIM A LOOK OF INQUIRY…
CHIMEZIE: I know what to do.
Cut…
END
Written by Harry Agina