CHINUA ACHEBE'S ARROW OF GOD

Chinua Achebe


Achebe's third and most ambitious novel takes us back to the setting of his first novel, "Things Fall Apart". Eweulu, the chief priest of Ulu, the god of the villages, is totally against a war that is brewing between his people, Umuaro, and a neighboring people. 


He respects the white man's power and sends his son to a missionary school so that he may know the secret of the white man's power.

His son, with the zeal of a new Christian convert, shuts a sacred python in a box to kill it. This attempt to kill a sacred snake does not improve relations between Ezeulu and his enemies, who already suspect that he has become the white man's friend. 

Another incident that lowers his public esteem is his detention by the white regional authority. In detention, he is offered the chieftainship, which he declines. 

This enforced stay away from home has meant that Ezeulu has missed eating two of the thirteen yams he had to consume, one at each new moon, before the new yam festival at the end of the year.

Chinua Achebe's book is intended to give the intelligent reader a map of themes and styles of African writing in verse, prose, and proverbs. 

African writers, whether they use metropolitan or indigenous language, have assimilated many of the mannerisms and assumptions of their particular medium, to say nothing of the social, economic, and political systems of the West, which the Africans have absorbed.

Chinua Achebe's books available at Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Chinua-Achebe/e/B0045671ES

LUMUMBA'S ASSASSINATION: Sons not satisfied with Belgium's apology

Patrice LUMUMBA


On January 17, 1961,  Patrice Lumumba, the first elected Prime Minister of Congo, was murdered. The circumstances leading to his death remained a mystery until forty years later, when the secret started unfolding. 


Fresh scrutiny and those around at the time have revealed that Belgium, the Congo's colonial masters, were behind his assassination.

After the election in June 1960, Lumumba's National Congolese Movement won and emerged as the first Prime Minister of Congo. After the independence celebration of June 30th, Belgium's hostility to Lumumba deepened. Lumumba denounced the harshness, brutalities, and indignities suffered by the Congolese under Belgian colonial rule.

A strong friend of Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana, Lumumba, made a similar statement to Nkrumah. "You must have strong and visible powers". Lumumba expelled all the Belgian diplomats and called on the United Nations to defend the newly independent state. 

The action affected Belgians to the extent that the king was very angry with Lumumba. The British Foreign Office requested the elimination of Lumumba. The statement read, "I see only two possible solutions to the problem. The first is a simple one: the removal of Lumumba from the scene and killing him.

Almost fifty years after his assassination, the sons of the Congolese independence hero Patrice Lumumba are seeking war crime charges against twelve Belgians for their involvement in their father's assassination. 

His youngest son, Guy Lumumba, told reporters, "We are targeting the assassins. In Belgium, there are twelve of them still alive, and we want them to answer for their pathetic acts before justice. The twelve Belgians were in the province of Katanga when Lumumba was killed.

As if the spirit of Lumumba were taking revenge, it was reported that one of the twin brothers involved in his killing had gone insane. Lumumba's family lawyer Christophe Marchand said the sons will file a charge against the yet to be named twelve of war crimes in a Brussels criminal court in October. 

Even though Belgium has since apologized to its former colony, no legal action has been taken afterward.

Ng'ang'a Ndeveni: AN ARTIST WITH A MAGIC BRUSH

Artwork by Ng'ang'a Ndeveni

There are many talented artists in Africa. One of them that works have reached far is Ng'ang'a Ndeveni, a member of the Akamba tribe of Kenya. 

With his favorite tools, pen, and paper; he always put on the best sketches which caught the attention of his teacher to introduce him into art galleries in the city of Nairobi.

His combination of some of the highest-quality watercolors is not common within the Kenya art circle. Later on, he started working with alternative mediums as well, like oils. 

However, he says of his own works, "Watercolors give me more satisfaction and joy, and the ability to put onto paper what is in my head. Every so often I visit game parks and my tribal homeland to refresh my memories and revive my inspiration.

His paintings are extremely beautiful He has participated in many exhibitions and now his paintings are in many art galleries on the internet. As one of the admirers of his paintings; I chose one of his works to decorate my blog.