A revolutionary departs, By Kayode Komolafe

From whichever perspective you mirror on the revolutionary profession of Comrade Bene, what you’d discover unmistakable was her immense humanity. Ideologically, she was distinguished by her readability of function, braveness of conviction, notable consistency and unyielding dedication. She was by no means a pretender on issues of precept. A properly organised human being, Bene might be brutally trustworthy in making her level. I used to tease her that if we had a socialist authorities, I may by no means suggest her for the job of a diplomat as a result of she was frank to a fault.

The burial of Comrade Bene Madunagu on Friday in Calabar can be a becoming farewell to a socialist revolutionary, scholar, feminist and patriot, whose life and occasions might be summed up because the battle for human progress.

Tomorrow, members of the family, comrades, associates, colleagues and properly wishers are anticipated to assemble to have fun her in a potpourri of funeral actions, together with a feminist discussion board, lecture, tributes, cultural performances and renditions by mentees.

She was 77.

Comrade Bene, who died on 26 November final 12 months, retired from the College of Calabar (UniCal) as a professor of Botany, after a few years of educating and influencing generations of scholars and mentees. Earlier than then, she was an assistant lecturer on the College of Lagos. Bene and her partner, comrade and life-long collaborator, Comrade Eddie Madunagu, moved to Calabar in 1976.

She earned levels from the Universities of Lagos and Ibadan. Not a number of members of the technology of college college students of the late Seventies would, maybe, have it etched of their recollections, the momentous occasions now traditionally dubbed “Ali Should Go.” The ‘Ali’ within the slogan was Colonel Ahmadu Ali, the federal commissioner for training within the army authorities of Common Olusegun Obasanjo. Whereas tuition was free, college students had staged a nationwide protest towards will increase in the price of lodging and feeding. Issues turned bloody and lives have been misplaced. Within the aftermath of this battle for socio-economic justice, the army authorities responded with some repressive measures. Two Vice Chancellors, some lecturers, non-academic employees and a journalist have been sacked. Scholar leaders have been rusticated.Among the many victims was a UniCal couple – Bene and Eddie Madunagu. The army authorities received Bene deported from the UK, the place she was pursuing an instructional programme. They have been ejected from the employees quarters.

This was simply one of many higher recognized sacrifices that Bene made gallantly in the midst of the battle.

In her youthful days of revolutionary vitality, she had even elected in firm of different comrades to make the battle for a socialist Nigeria a full-time profession.

Considerably, a lot of Bene’s comrades have been paying tributes to her revolutionary reminiscence. These embody the recall of occasions at completely different intervals within the final 50 years of Bene’s life by Comrades Najeem Jimoh, Owei Lakemfa and Chido Onumah in sweeping opinions of her actions and ideas in numerous organisations to which she belonged. A few of these organisations have been the Nigerian Youth Motion Committee (NYAC), Anti-Poverty Motion of Nigeria (APMON), the Calabar Group of Socialists, the Motion of Peoples Democracy, and the Democratic Motion Committee (DACOM).

Hopefully, after the funeral there would nonetheless be conferences and publications on the varied facets of her versatile life outlined by exceptional brilliance and untiring exhausting work.

From whichever perspective you mirror on the revolutionary profession of Comrade Bene, what you’d discover unmistakable was her immense humanity. Ideologically, she was distinguished by her readability of function, braveness of conviction, notable consistency and unyielding dedication. She was by no means a pretender on issues of precept. A properly organised human being, Bene might be brutally trustworthy in making her level. I used to tease her that if we had a socialist authorities, I may by no means suggest her for the job of a diplomat as a result of she was frank to a fault. She would retort that I used to be reasonably fitted to that function as a result of the character of the motion was such that comrades had attributes for various functions. Therefore she nominated me to be the exterior relations officer in our our Calabar group, DACOM. My process was to liaise with different comrades and teams in several components of the nation.

To her youthful comrades, Bene was initially an inspirer. She by no means doubted that popular-democratic struggles might be the premise for the transformation of Nigeria right into a humane social order. She was all the time fast so as to add that this might solely be the results of a discipled organisation. Quite than agonise, she would reasonably name for correct organisation. In her praxis, she demonstrated mastery of the dialectics of techniques and technique.

After the autumn of the Berlin Wall in 1989, many socialists on the planet turned disillusioned and started to doubt the efficacy of socialism as a system that might be effectively productive, in addition to guarantee distributive justice. The Nigerian Left was not spared of this environment of despair that began enveloping many socialist events and teams globally.

In some ways, Comrade Bene’s ideological character was an exemplar of her technology of the Nigerian Left and the technology previous it. The virtues of those generations embody deep comprehension of the concepts of the battle and the aware efforts to breed cadres. As an example, Comrade Eskor Toyo, who additionally operated from Calabar throughout the identical interval, was within the technology earlier than that of Comrade Bene. He was additionally an enormous inspirer and an incredible mobiliser. Sadly, and that is on a self-critical be aware, succeeding generations haven’t been in a position to make enough development of this legacy.

As a Marxist, Bene was additionally a self-professed feminist. In a 2008 piece she wrote for a world publication entitled, “Voice, Energy and Soul: Portraits of African Feminism,” Bene put the matter squarely like this: “I’m a fully confirmed feminist, with no “ifs or buts.” I’m a feminist by alternative and conviction… I’m keen about combating gender discrimination and insensitivity in no matter types. I’m a dedicated human rights defender and I work in defence of victims of sexual abuse and all types of violence towards girls and ladies.” She was neither summary nor vulgar in her feminism. The feat she achieved with the Calabar department of Ladies Energy Initiative (GPI) stays a testomony to her feminist observe. Here’s a strong institution on floor for the empowerment and orientation of ladies about their rights and duties within the society.

In partnership with Grace Osakue, the GPI was established in Nigeria in 1993 with the nationwide headquarters in Nigeria. Scores of ladies have been educated within the establishment and its group actions have prolonged to different South-South states. Bene was additionally a founding member of Girls in Nigeria (WIN), a feminist motion that emerged in 1982 to reframe the gender debates in Nigeria.

Bene was a pacesetter within the Educational Employees Union of Universities (ASUU). She was a two-term chairperson of the UniCal department of ASUU, with a nationwide prominence.

It was Comrade Sonni Anyang who launched me to Bene and Eddie in 1978 and since then I turned a comrade member of the household. I typically stayed of their home throughout holidays. Anyang, now a member of the Income Mobilisation and Fiscal Commision (RMAC), was then the chief of the UniCal department of the Motion for a Progressive Nigeria (MPN), a Marxist college students’ group, with branches and allied teams on campuses. MPN was such a fertile floor for breeding cadres with ideological readability. As an example, President Umaru Yar’Adua as soon as stated in an interview that he was a product of the Ahmadu Bello College (ABU) department of MPN.

Comrade Bene typically referred to me as her ideological son and I known as her my ideological mom. In a 2017 publication of tributes to mark her seventieth birthday, Eddie expressly acknowledged this relationship between me and Bene. In that piece, Eddie additionally stated the identical factor of Comrade Biodun Jeyifo (BJ), who’s the Chairman of the Advisory Board of the magnificent Socialist Library and Archives (SOLAR), the nucleus of which is constituted by the books, papers and different paperwork. The digitalisation of SOLAR is in earnest. By the way in which, at one other stage Eddie and BJ represent an ideological duo.

Comrade Bene may generally be sharply crucial of me; but she was typically my unyieding defender. Whaterver involved me was taken as her enterprise.

Perhaps it will suffice to recall a number of touching moments for example this mother-son relationship.

Within the mild of the temper within the household throughout Bene’s seventieth birthday, she and Eddie opted to have a quiet second at a resort in Uyo. I used to be invited to make a trio for the event to mirror on a lot of points.

Some years in the past, Bene known as to tell me of an assault on her by robbers, who dispossessed her of some valuables. From her voice it was evident that she was critically traumatised. Within the night of the next day I known as to ask after her situation and learn how to exchange a number of the misplaced objects, particularly the handsets. Her response was: “KK, I had anticipated you’d be in Calabar by now given what occurred to me.” I used to be speechless and moved to tears. I arrived Calabar two days later within the true sense of solidarity.

The day I launched my spouse, Funmi, to Bene as my fiancee, Bene informed her that I used to be her son and she or he ought to take heed to the implication of getting married to a Marxist socialist. From that day on, she additionally adopted Funmi as a daughter. When she died, the unhappy information was damaged to our youngsters because the dying of the grandma in Calabar.

Very early within the relationship, Bene and Eddie left me in little question about my integration into their household, aside from the truth that all of us belonged to the identical motion as comrades. There was a difficulty on which each of them not solely agreed to hunt my view, however to consent to no matter verdict I handed on the matter. With Bene behind the steering of their blue Volswagen Beetle, the comrades got here from Calabar to see me, a 22-year previous youth corps member, in Takum, Taraba State (it was then a part of the previous Gongola State). I shared a humble three-bed room flat with two different corps members. To the amazement of my co-tenants, who knew my guests by popularity as radical lecturers, we didn’t search for a lodge room. Eddie and Bene spent the evening within the little home, the place we had frank and comradely discussions until the early hours of the next day. The problems have been resolved and the guests returned to Calabar within the morning. Until I left Takum, different youth corps members saved speaking in regards to the comradeship displayed by Bene and Eddie.

Invariably, a tribute to the reminiscence of Bene would compel a salute to Eddie, specifically, for one purpose. The final seven years of Comrade Bene battling with Alzheimer’s have certainly been attempting occasions for Eddie. His motion has been restricted to Calabar (with none court docket order!) because the chief carer for Bene. I typically informed those that requested after Eddie that he had been nearly a detainee, as he took care of Bene day-after-day. The situation of Bene had additionally progressively drained Eddie bodily, mentally, emotionally and, in fact, materially. However he has soldiered on with a uncommon dedication to his spouse and comrade.

In a tribute paid to Bene on her seventieth birthday, Eddie dwelt on “the which means and attributes of affection.” Eddie, who professes no faith, wrote inter alia: “I refer my readers – revolutionaries and non- revolutionaries, Christians and non-Christians – to what Saint Paul stated within the thirteenth Chapter of the First Letter to the Folks of Corinth…” My comrade was referring to this passage within the Bible: “So now religion, hope, and love abide, these three; however the biggest of those is love.” (1 Corinthians 13:13).

Eddie discovered himself later in a psychological laboratory for testing this Biblical doctrine for seven years. I dare say that he did extremely properly by demonstrating to Bene the real love, whereas she won’t even have been aware of his presence.

But, this tribute wouldn’t be full with out expressing gratitude to comrades, associates, colleagues and well-wishers who’ve proven love and solidarity to each Bene and Eddie within the final seven years. The assist obtained to date has been nothing however nice.

With the dying of Comrade Bene, a real revolutionary has certainly departed from our midst. Might her tribe enhance.

Kayode Komolafe is a famend columnist and media supervisor.