Nawa oh, I was thinking a man of his age would probably be praying to God to die peacefully…you are probably wondering what I am wondering!
Well, in this interview with Chief Daniel Ukeredi, aka Ogbolomo, a retired staff of the
Nigeria Railway Corporation, NRC who was born in 1898 (would clock 114 years on September 16), and
is the oldest living person in Okpe Kingdom, Urhobo ethnic nationality
of Delta State...You will be surprised to find that sometimes old people do not want to die too.
NB: He is now sightless, perhaps due to age and partly deaf (one has
to shout into his ears for him to hear what one is saying).
“My elder brother died recently, that was in 2010, two years ago, at the
age of 121 years. He was senior to me by seven years. Before he died, he
was the oldest person in Ugbokodo.
The secret of my long life is that I do not tell lies and I do not take what does not belong to me. As I am sitting here now talking to you, I see many things, which
people around me do not see. Therefore, I take them most times as dream.
Sometimes, I close my eyes, I, indeed, see spirits; I drink with them
and chat with them. When asked Can you still perform; I mean can you still carry out your marital role of sex? he said….
“About sex! Hmmm…! Even if you throw the most beautiful woman to me as a gift now, I will throw her back at you…I am begging God to extend my days so that I will drink and drink my beer.
Turning point in my life
Life is full of difficulties. My turning point in my life was at my old age. It is at this stage of my life I have come to realize the essence of life. Before now, I did not know or understand certain things, but I now know what life is all about.
What is the hardest decision you have taken in your life?
The hardest decision I had taken in my life was my resolution not to fight anymore.
What is the strangest thing that has ever happened to you?
I will like to say that I have seen so many strange things in life and I will tell you about some of them. One was when I saw two snakes making love. I saw them with my naked eyes in the mangrove swamp. I was going for fishing then and, to tell you the truth, I was shocked.
Another strange thing that I have witnessed in life was the day I saw two spirit beings – each with one hand and one leg, male and female in the bush. The female spirit was removing lice from the head of the male; when I saw them, I took to my heels. They burst out laughing at me as I ran the race of my life.
How many more years would you want God to give you to enjoy life and drink more beer?
(Moves and sits back more relaxed on his chair in a reflective mood) I will want God to give me 20 more years. That means I want to live up to 134 years and enjoy more beer.
Ukeredi is our Methuselah – Col. Edemenaha (rtd), Scribe, Okpe kingdom
COLONEL (Chief) Charles Edemenaha (rtd) is the Secretary to the Orodje of Okpe, Orue I, and the scribe of Okpe Traditional Council. He affirms in this interview that Chief Ukeredi is the oldest man in Okpe kingdom. Excerpts:
As the secretary of Okpe kingdom, I want to find if it is true, that Chief Ukeredi is the oldest man in the kingdom and how old is he?
There is no falsification about what he has told you regarding his age. Oral history at our disposal confirmed by our elders, some of who had passed on and others alive, show that he is actually 114 years old.
Honesty is his virtue
I also had the honour of living in his house as a young man and I can attest to his integrity. He is my in-law. Actually, he is married to my auntie. He is an honest man, hardworking and truthful. He hates lies.
He worked in the Nigeria Railway Corporation, where he retired and returned home. He contributed to the formation of Okpe Union in 1931 while he was in Lagos.
Peacemaker
Ogbolomo is a known bridge-builder. Many years ago, there was an Okpe chief residing in Ghana. He had problem with Okpe Union and was to be ostracized. He intervened by leading a delegation to Ghana and, to his credit, the matter was amicably resolved.
This is his kind of life. He was made a chief as far back as 1973. Indeed, he is in the third set of our old chiefs. He is the oldest person in Orerokpe, as each community in Okpe kingdom has its oldest person, but we know he is the oldest man presently in the entire kingdom.
Traditionally, meetings are held in his house and, as the oldest man, he usually settles local issues. He has many grand children, great grand children. He enrolled in CMS, Adesa, Ugbokodo in 1927 and worked in the Nigeria Railway between 1933-1961.