How I’d like to be buried – Onyeka Onwenu

In an opinion piece published in PREMIUM TIMES on 27 July 2021, iconic singer Onyeka Onwenu, known as the ‘Elegant Stallion’, discussed her wishes for her remembrance and burial.

Late Onyeka wrote the article after the highly publicised, lavish burial of famous businessman Obi Cubana’s mother, Uche Iyiegbu, held on 16 July 2021.

In the article, the famous singer, who was seven months shy of 70 years old, outlined her preferences for her burial.

Not surprisingly, the article was widely read at the time. She was, after all, the accompanying journalist and producer of BBC/NTA Nigeria’s iconic 1984 documentary on corruption, ‘A Squandering of Riches’.

However, while the younger generation knows her primarily as a musician and actress, the late Onyeka’s career encompassed many fields, including journalism, activism, social commentary, politics, and author.

Late Onyeka’s journalism skills were as impressive as her music career. Sadly, she passed away three years after publishing the article ‘Obi Cubana’s lavish burial of his mother’.

She wrote: “I told a friend just days before the most outrageous burial of Innyom Ezinne Uche Iyiegbu in Oba, Anambra State, in July that I had given my family instructions on how to bury me when my time comes. Do it quickly, quietly and privately. Celebrate me with prayers, lunch or dinner afterwards. Share some jokes about me and laugh. Mourn, yes, but not excessively. Make merriment, and then go about your business. If my friends want to celebrate me, they should do so while I am alive, so that I can enjoy it with them, not when I am gone and have no idea about this. That is me, Onyeka Onwenu.”

The celebrated singer revealed her mother’s desire for a different kind of burial, which she said she pledged to honour.

“On her hospital bed, just three days before she passed away, I reinforced that promise – it was important to her, and she died knowing that I would keep my word. Hope Onwenu’s burial was nothing like what took place in Oba recently but it was elaborate and pretty expensive. Still I had the satisfaction that I kept my promise. The point I make here is that there are different strokes for different folks, even within a family. I do not condemn anyone for how they mourn, with their hard-earned money, but I am very uncomfortable with lavish display of wealth on any occasion, especially in a time of hardship and lack for most others”, she said in the article”.

Onyeka, 72, died on Tuesday night after collapsing following a performance at the 80th birthday party of Stella Okolie, CEO of Emzor Pharmaceuticals.

She was rushed to Reddington Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.

Background

Born in 1952 in Anambra State, she began her recording career in 1981 while working for the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA) and released her debut album ‘Endless Life’ that same year.

Throughout her life, she wrote and sang about various issues, including HIV/AIDS, peace, mutual coexistence, women’s rights, and the plight of children.

She made her acting debut in the film ‘Nightmare’, portraying Joke, a childless woman who adopts an abandoned baby. She went on to appear in numerous movies before her death.

In 2000, Onyeka took a stand against her former employer, NTA, for using her song ‘Iyogogo’ in station idents without permission or royalty payments.

She was a former chairperson of the Imo State Council for Arts and Culture and later became Director-General of the National Centre for Women Development in 2016.

In 2011, she was awarded the National Honour of Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR) by former President Goodluck Jonathan.

As of press time, her family has not announced her burial date. However, politicians, including President Bola Tinubu and other prominent Nigerians, have offered condolences to her family.