AN EPITAPH FOR CHIEF COACH LOKOJA SUOYE
BY EKANPOU ENEWARIDIDEKE
LOKOJA SUOYE THE SIXTEEN was Solemnly, somberly and soulfully ‘sirened’ and serenaded home and away from Ndoro on sixteen June 2022. It was the story of a man soulfully sirened and serenaded home away from his Ndoro home – a man whose thoughts centred on the betterment of Ndoro while on earth.
Watch the Ijaw wrestling genius performance before his death: https://youtu.be/PT25Msbehj8
Suoye as the only sixteen, SUOYE sailed to strengthen and give Ndoro the stamina to star in everything on wrestling because he was sixteen who sailed ‘sixteenly’ until he was sirened and serenaded home on the sixteen without a dent on his sixteen status both as a wrestling champion and as a development agent of Ndoro. Back home SUOYE sailed on the sixteenth with his sixteen as a wrestling champion, guitarist, musician and philanthropist whose achievements in Ijaw nation, Ndoro town and beyond will never be forgotten.
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Suoye sailed everywhere on earth as a good man and died as a good man attested to by all in Ndoro town. Suoye’s sail on earth with his sixteen but now sirened away, is an inspiration to this generation and beyond because it tells the story of a man who singlemindedly pursued his vision of wrestling and made a mark for all to see and also went further to study and bag a degree in the university.
Suoye held unto his vision until Suoye sailed solemnly home, sirened and serenaded to another home beyond Ndoro. It is greats like Suoye who should be celebrated – alive or dead – because he is a man of remarkable achievements whose personal achievements outshine the Okonkwo and Amalize the cat of Chinua Achebe’s creation in THINGS FALL APART.
When a great like great Suoye sails home at ebb tide when the ideal home-sail should begin at full tide, greatness in life creates palpitations and questions for lovers of greatness because death does not dignify greatness. Death, is it true that you swooped on Suoye and silenced Suoye with his sixteen styles in wrestling because you death have no dignity for Suoye’s greatness?Even Suoye’s sixteen styles were no match for Death – that death made disgustingly arrogant, rash and indiscriminate in her dance of destruction by King Alfred Izonebi’s praises for death!Death, may you now go away from this earth world as ordered by King Izonebi!
Dear Suoye, wherever you may have sailed to at death, note that the Ijaw nation, Ndoro town,Bayelsa State and Nigeria are proud of your remarkable achievements in wrestling because you debuted with sixteen in wrestling and soulfully sailed home away from your Ndoro home without a stain and dent on your sixteen status.You began your journey of life on earth with a good story and ended with a good story – a good story that has already begun to inspire your generation infectiously. That rash and arrogant man called Death was very unfair to Suoye!
Because Suoye’s sail sounded too incredible, I went to Ndoro town on 16 June 2022 to confirm if it was actually Suoye the sixteen that died whose corpse was brought home for final burial rites. It was Suoye’s corpse that was brought on that sixteenth day and so I merely gave him his last respect because he was my great friend until he died… That great Suoye of Ndoro who promised to grace Mrs Timiebi Maika Ekanpou’s final burial rites in Oyangbene town is no more!What about Chief Mitin T.the Regent and other personalities in Ndoro who prayerfully thought and wished they would outlive Chief coach Lokoja Suoye and be honoured with a remarkable burial by Suoye who is known for giving greats great and befitting burial rites? Suoye the inimitable SIXTEEN, please tell Mrs Timiebi Maika Ekanpou the great storyteller philosopher in the underworld that she will be finally freed to sail to that kingdom of the dead this year even with the forced absence of Chief Coach Suoye who will not be available to keep his promise of storming your burial day celebration with his Ndoro entertainment squad Sixteen…
Alas, Suoye the Sixteen was ‘sixteened’ away on the sixteen of June 2022 and now Suoye’s scintillating sonority in songs sung in achievements in wrestling and music silenced on the sixteen, Suoye’s scintillating sonority sails into immortality in the world of humans with his multicoloured marks of achievements in his canvas of achievements.For Suoye, Suoye’s silenced sonority on the sixteen sails immortally into another sonority beyond silence from any silencer called death.For Suoye it was death who was silenced, not Suoye who was silenced because at silence the sonority of Suoye was more deafening than the premeditated silence of death who thought Suoye could be silenced…Death got it absolutely wrong on Suoye’s silence because even the perpetually compliant silence was able to defile and defy death’s silence on the sixteen of June 2022…
EKANPOU ENEWARIDIDEKE writes from Akparemogbene, Delta State
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