Yeye Oge of Lagos, Chief Opral Benson, 79, tells ‘Nonye Ben-Nwankwo how she got married to the late Chief T.O.S. Benson and her life afterwards in Nigeria
Did you expect that you would be made the Honorary Liberian Consular General to Nigeria?
I didn’t expect it at all. I just felt that Liberia wanted to have someone in Lagos that could represent the country. Lagos, as you know, is the nerve centre of Nigeria. When all the embassies moved to Abuja, there was no representation for Liberia in Lagos. Some of the bigger countries established consulates and left them in Lagos. Some of the smaller countries couldn’t do that. But Liberia wanted to have somebody on the ground in case there were Nigerians who would want to interact or have something to do in Liberia and wouldn’t need to go to Abuja because of the distance. I have been in Lagos for so many years and because I was born in Liberia and have all the connections, they thought I would be the type of person the country would need to be able to represent it. It is not what you would call a high flying job. My responsibility is to help Liberia as an honorary consular.
So you are not paid?
No. Honorary means you are not a paid staff of the government but you do what you can to help the government. Our responsibility is to look at the commercial side; particularly, to find out if there are persons who want to do business in Liberia and the other way round. We check if there are Liberians who want to come here for business and we advise them on how to do it. They feel that with my experience on the ground, I could be of help. That was why the President of Liberia spoke to me, I know her quite well, and she said they had decided I should do this and I accepted.
Did you know the Liberian president when you were growing up?
Of course I knew her. We went to the same high school. I know her whole family. Liberia is a small place, so we know one another.
The war destabilised the country but is it not high time the country improved economically?
I think the country has been improving economically. It has been doing quite well. The recent outbreak of Ebola has caused a bit of a setback but before then, I think the country had improved economically. After Ebola is over (and I hope it would be soon), the country would keep improving. We hope the scourge would go away soon as it has done in other countries.
But you are not so young again; didn’t you consider your age before accepting the position?
Actually, I was working despite my age even before the appointment and it didn’t make any difference. It doesn’t mean that because the appointment came, my age should change. If I had retired and resigned and was sitting in my house, that would have been a different thing. But I had been going to my office everyday and I am still doing that. I still have my beauty school. We are 30 years this year. I still have my Chic Afrique and we still do some stuff in the beauty industry and interact with people. I don’t think my age is a problem and I know a lot of people who are my age and are still working. I feel strong enough. I will not say I will not do this because of my age, no.
What gives you the strength, you still look very strong?
I think you have to ask God that question. God has helped me and He has been good to me. I cannot really say what gives me the strength because some people who are less than my age cannot move around. It may also be as a result of how one has carried herself in life. It might also be luck. There are things that may just occur and you wouldn’t know where they are coming from and they would sort of pull you down. So far, I have been lucky and that is why I say God has blessed me.
Over the years, you have been known as a very fashionable woman, is it that you do it effortlessly or you just take your time and go the extra mile to look good?
What is the extra mile?
Maybe looking at yourself in the mirror for hours and making sure everything is in place before you step out…
Why would I do that? The mirror is not my best friend. I have been doing what I am doing for a long time and by the way, I don’t really do much.
You arrived Nigeria and some years later, you were crowned the Iya Oge of Lagos, don’t you think some Nigerian ladies at that time could have been envious of you and wonder why a ‘foreigner’ should be given that title?
I was given the title 11 years after I came, so I wouldn’t say it was an immediate thing. Naturally, some ladies would have been jealous but, majority of people had appreciated what I had tried to do in the beauty industry when I came and they eventually came to accept me with the title the Oba bestowed on me. I was a member of staff of the University of Lagos when I was given that title. I used to go to the Oba’s palace then. I would accompany my husband and I used to do various things in the beauty industry. Even before I left the university, my mind was on setting up a beauty industry and doing something for myself. When the Oba saw my appearance all the time and things I had done by way of contribution, he (Oba) thought I should get that title. In any case, in those days, people were not giving beauty the type of attention that it is getting today. Those who were in the beauty industry were just wasting their time. People would rather their wards went into other professions they deemed ‘noble’ than allowed them to be in our industry. But it has changed. A whole lot of people have gone into the beauty industry. The hair business has escalated to a point that you cannot describe it now. It was a good thing that I went into it at that time. However, many people thought that the title was a well selected title and it was good the Oba gave it to me. After I was given the title, I had to improve on the beauty industry by establishing a beauty school.
Going down memory lane, you schooled in the US, why did you come back home thereafter?
I am an African woman. I never had any intention of staying back in the US. I really wanted to be home. I had my family and friends at home. In those days, many Liberians were travelling abroad to study and come back to help and develop the country. You just don’t travel abroad and stay back because you are just thinking of yourself. Coming back home was something I had looked forward to. I had never had any intention of staying back in the US. I didn’t feel that because I was educated, I would stay back in America. I felt there was a role for me to play in Liberia and that was why I came back home. If I hadn’t come back, I may not have been in Nigeria today, who knows.
But you didn’t stay long in Liberia when you came back because you got married and moved down to Nigeria…
But it is still the same Africa. I could and I am making contributions from here. It is still better than staying in America.
Didn’t you have any form of reservation when you were coming to Nigeria?
I wouldn’t call it ‘reservation’ but I would call it ‘curiosity.’ I was curious about what Nigeria was all about. I had read some things about the country but I didn’t know enough and I thought I would come and see what it was all about.
Was the time you got married the first time you came to Nigeria?
No. Before I got married to a Nigerian, I was invited on a visit and was taken around to see Lagos. I saw it and I felt this is an African country that is bigger than Liberia. One little person like me would not make a difference in respect of whether the country is good or bad. But I said I would contribute whatever I could to move the country forward. My curiosity was settled immediately I got here because I got well accepted and appreciated by Nigerians. They became my friends and I got along quite well. There was no need to have any form of regret.
So you didn’t think twice when your husband proposed to you?
I thought about it. That was actually why he invited me to come and see Nigeria. I came visited and made many friends and met the then president, Dr. (Nnamdi) Azikiwe who was also my husband’s good friend because they were in politics together. I thought it was a good thing and it would be a good experience for me.
But did your family think the same way?
Of course, my family left me to decide how I wanted to live my life. They didn’t need to decide for me. After all, at that time, I was a grown up person. If I said I wanted to go to Nigeria, all they would need to tell me was to be careful. The then president of Liberia invited me, he advised me and told me to pay attention to whatever I was doing and try to make Liberia proud. So, marrying a Nigerian wasn’t a problem for me and the members of my family. It was a challenge in terms of what you could do and that is why I stuck with it and did all I could do to move the country forward. It wasn’t as if I was afraid or anything before I came.
Didn’t you have Liberian suitors?
I didn’t have any suitor as of the time I met my husband. I hadn’t been back from the US that long before I met him. I was busy with my work. I had a lot of friends but there was no suitor as of that time. I wasn’t even looking for a suitor. My husband came sort of unexpectedly. I hadn’t got to that point of thinking of settling down. I wanted to make an impact first on the job I was doing.
Did you make the impact?
I did. I worked with the Monrovia Conference and thought that was a good place to be. I got to meet different people from different parts of Africa. As a matter of fact, it was requested that I should come and work in that department. Before then, I was working in the Ministry of Agriculture and Labour and my boss was very impressed with how I was working and it was through my work that I was recommended to go to the foreign ministry to work with that conference. Maybe it was just God that did it because it was at the conference that I met my husband. It was the conference that laid the foundation for the Organisation of African Unity now African Union.
So in all the 46 years you were married, there was no regret at all?
No. There was no regret at all. You would have your good days and your bad days and there would be issues which you would discuss. But to say regret, no. I never regretted marrying my late husband. You cannot marry somebody and stay with him for that long and regret it. If you regret, you pack and go and since I didn’t go, that means I didn’t regret it.
You have mingled with the high and mighty even when you were in Liberia and now in Nigeria and you are known to be very humble, why?
I don’t think you should put yourself in a special category because you know people. If you are humble, you should remain that way. I just see people as people. I have never had an impression about myself that I should carry on airs because I am influential. Oh yes, people tell me that I am humble but I ask them what ‘humble’ means. You do what you are set out to do. You have respect for yourself, so you should have respect for others. You don’t have to put on a show. I don’t believe in such, I am just another human being created by God.
What was your dream when you were young?
I didn’t have a dream then. All I wanted to do was to pass my studies and I decided that when I got to a certain point, I would know what I would want to be. Before you know what you want to be, you must know what it entails. What does a doctor do? What does a lawyer do? What is it out there that I think I can do? So when I was young, I wasn’t planning I was going to be this or that. I was just going forward and taking life as I found it and being a young girl and interacting with my associates.
Why did you decide to study Education?
I chose it at the point I was going to the US. I knew the education system in Liberia needed to have some uplift and I had met a few people in that department and I could see there were vacancies and opportunities to help people and spread it towards the rural areas near Monrovia. I thought I could be of some assistance and help. I felt education was the way forward and I wanted to be in education.
Since you are in education, you must feel saddened by the incessant strikes we experience in schools in Nigeria…
I think strike is not the best way forward in any organisation. I think it is a two-sided activity. Those who go on strike have their grievances and those who allow them to go on strike have their reasons. Maybe it is something they can or cannot help. But I think there should be an open door discussion between the two groups to know the way forward.
Do you still remember your growing up days?
It was fine. We grew up together as good family. I love my family. In those days, you didn’t have some problems as some people are experiencing now. I was the sixth of seven children. You respected your elders and your parents. You did the things you were asked to do. We were just one happy family.
Were you pampered?
I wasn’t pampered at all. I did the work I was asked to do and I even did it on time. If I didn’t do it well, I would be called back and made to do it all over again. Because I wasn’t pampered, that has been part of my success today. I was able to stand on my feet.
Have you always wanted to be independent?
Yes. I have never wanted to lean on anybody; I have always wanted to do my own thing. Independence is something I have always treasured.
How did you feel when your husband died?
How does anybody feel when she loses a husband? I was sad. I felt as though my prop had fallen and I now stand on my own. But I also felt he had lived a good life and he had put me firmly on my feet. He was a pillar to his family. He had no regrets because before he died, he kept saying he had done his bit. He was 90. He felt he had done all that he could. I felt he had done what he could do for his family and we were appreciative of his life. If you have that kind of feeling, you would also feel that God has not been unfair to you.
What do you hope to achieve in the nearest future?
I don’t really have anything set aside and say I am going to achieve it. I just hope to continue doing what I am doing and continue to be of assistance in whatever assignment I am given. I want to say that during my stay at this consulate or at my school, I made contributions and I don’t have any regrets in my mind.
When you look at the laurels and awards you have received, how do you feel?
I feel accomplished. I feel I have done the best I could and that people have appreciated me and God has been good to me. One way people show appreciation is to give you an award and call you to speak with them. I have been recognised for the bit I have done.
Would you remember how you felt when you were given a national honour?
Oh! I felt God has been good to me. So many people want national award and they are yet to be given and I have two. I am just happy about it.
Your husband was a politician, why didn’t you join him?
No. I never thought of getting into politics. I was helping him as we went along during campaigns and I would be saying, ‘vote for Benson’, with the microphone. But no, I wasn’t ready to get into politics other than that. I felt one person in politics was enough. I encouraged him all the way. It was what he wanted to do and we worked with him but I wasn’t going to going into it, no.
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