Many countries like Germany which do not have oil usually depend on monies from tourism to increase revenue. They do this by developing certain historical and cultural institutions, to attract visitors and provide employment, i.e. to taxi drivers, tour guides, etc., for their people. On one occasion, a tour guide took me to a tree in Germany, and in presenting that tree to me, said, ‘These are the Linden trees’, with excellent phonetics, an outstretched hand and the voice of an orator. I later discovered on coming back home that Linden trees are plentiful on the Airport Road in Benin City. Therefore, the difference between theirs and ours is basically the value we attach or do not attach to what we have.
One such institution that the Edo State government seemingly does not attach value, and would need to take care of would be the Benin Museum premises. I recall some years ago a certain governor built a massive water fountain and a giant billboard there, apparently to improve on the face of the city.
But today, the place is overgrown with weeds, and is home to dangerous reptiles. The fountain is a veritable breeding ground for mosquito, and a refuse dump (painfully so). Recently, certain people turned the place into a burial ground for dead street lights removed from the airport road.
All of this is a shame; shame because such dirt and such disorder are at the very centre of the ancient city of Benin – the land of culture and of great kings. Our history tells us that the Portuguese saw Benin as a city because they met it as clean as their own cities – Lagos, Villa Nova de Milfontes, and Porto and Sintra.
I suggest to the Edo government to get a consultant to manage the historical and colonial buildings, the fountain, the bats and the trees at the museum grounds. They value that can translate to income for the government.
Bob MajiriOghene Etemiku
WADONOR, cultural voice of the Niger Delta
