Our Freedom Palace

By Victor Ogbonna

This book is intended to be a source of inspiration to mankind to live according to their own initiatives, contribute toward shaping tomorrow, today, and make the world a better and inclusive place for all and sundry irrespective of faith, race, gender, social status, gay, or straight. It encourages people to strive to unlock their full potentials and acquire sound development program capable of empowering them to heal the world from the wounds inflicted on our society due to greed, hostility, and irrational decisions from bad leadership in many global communities.

Our Freedom Palace is a peculiar grassroots message to humanity that change is imperative; therefore, the next generation of our people, specifically the future leaders, ought to be provided with the relevant tools to change the world for good. The tools include, and without any limitation, proper education and truth; they are neither revolution nor agitations but contain elements of both, are interwoven, complement each other, and are inevitable materials vital for creating positive change as per expanding the territories of democracy, respecting legitimate command and control structures, resolving the lingering agonies of slavery with reparations in view, embracing dialogue instead of war, addressing the bitter issues of diseases, poverty, natural and artificial disasters, answering the critical question: Quo Vadis Africa, realizing our unique heritage and championing the courses of literacy, legacy, liberty, law, and most importantly, faithfulness to God Almighty.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Nov 21, 2015
• ISBN: 9781514425084

Victor Ogbonna

His Royalty Eze Victor Okechukwu Ogbonna II, LLB (Hons) BL, is a Nigerian and of Igbo extraction. He acquired his primary education at Okigwe Urban Primary School, Okigwe Local Government Area, Imo State Nigeria, attended and completed his secondary education at Ezinachi Community Secondary School, Okigwe, Imo State Nigeria, gained admission into Abia State University, Uturu, Nigeria, where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in law and thereafter proceeded to Nigerian Law School, Abuja, finished with a Barrister-at-law certificate, was called to Nigerian bar, and enrolled as a solicitor and advocate of the Supreme Court of Federal Republic of Nigeria. Subsequently, he became a private legal practitioner, hence, the Principal Attorney, Law Firm of Victor Ogbonna and Associates. In furtherance to his humanitarian services, he founded and became the chairman, board of trustees of Ogbonna Foundation, a nonprofit organization he established inter alia to advocate for those who have nobody except God Almighty to speak for them, those whose rights have become mere privileges even in our relatively constitutional democratic society and thereby subjected to the whims and caprices of chaotic leadership(s). So long as he lives, the author's ceaseless toil shall be to strive to expand the territories of our good culture and inspire the young generation, including and without any limitation the future leaders to become positive forces for change and represent the voices of the common men, the ordinary women, the students, and all young people who are yet to ventilate what it is that will guarantee their future whereas they posses all the paraphernalia that will make nations grow.

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Copyright © 2015 by Victor Ogbonna.

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Rev. date: 11/20/2015

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CONTENTS

Dedication

Bio

Acknowledgements

Summary

1   Expanding The Territories Of Our Culture

2   Agonies Of Slavery

3   Quo Vadis Africa

4   Nuances Of Democracy

5   The Power Houses

6   Religion Is Politics

7   Dialogue Transcends War

8   The Bourgeosies And The Proletariates

9   Education Is The Key To Success

10   Change Is Imperative

11   The Painful Price Of Freedom

12   Amen

DEDICATION

To the evergreen memories of; His Royalty, Eze M.C. Ogbonna l, my dearly beloved father and friend, who gave me the key to success, His Excellency, President Nelson Mandela, from whom I got my inspiration to succeed and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, whose dream is expanding the territories of freedom still. To the entire Ogbonna’s Royal Family for the love and my good people of Ihitte Amaise Ezinachi Community, for the challenges and for whose freedom I sacrificed my all.

BIO

Victor Okechukwu Ogbonna II, is the Monarch of Ihitte Amaise Ezinachi autonomous community, popularly known as the promised land, a community that used to thrive in burnt bricks industry but when the industry died it killed our rural economy and also where the treasure of culture is hidden still, in Okigwe Local Government Area, Imo State Nigeria, he is the founder and president of Ogbonna Foundation, a nonprofit organization he established as a vehicle with which to champion the causes of integrating the multiple realities of modern day civilization (western culture) with the traditional rural anthropology and expanding the territories of our culture.

Law is both his chosen profession and a means to an end whereas royalty is his inherited career and also an end itself. He took up the legal profession in order to go into royalty as an independent man and thus became empowered and emboldened in expanding the territories of culture and representing the voices of the common man, the market women, the students and young people across the globe who are yet to ventilate what it is that will guarantee their future whereas they posses all of the paraphernalia that will make nations grow. He obtained his primary education at Okigwe Urban Primary School, attended and completed his secondary education at Ezinachi Community Secondary School and holds; a bachelor’s degree in law with second class honors from Abia State University, Uturu, Nigeria, a barrister at law certificate from Nigerian Law School, Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, called to the Nigerian bar and enrolled as solicitor and advocate of the supreme court of Federal Republic of Nigeria and thereafter became the Principal Attorney; Law Firm of Victor Ogbonna and Associates (Thank God Chambers). He is happily married with children.

He is often interviewed in the media and resides in his dual homes in Freedom Palace, Ajanumuna, Imo State Nigeria and Bowie, Maryland, United States of America, The Land of the Free and home of the brave, a society where the beauty of family values deserves commendation and worthy of emulation, pursuit of happiness is lawful and every person can freely say or do what he or she chooses to inasmuch as such acts and/or utterances are within the purview of law of the land in operation.

He has been humbled by failures, strengthened by trials, became more humane by sorrows and thankful to God Almighty for successes because growing up partly in a poor rural community he got to a point where he had no one else to depend on than the Most High God and that was what by and large defined his victory and testimony that life is not all about how fast you start your race, it is indeed how well you finish it.

His Royalty, Eze Victor Okechukwu Ogbonna II’s message; to all that have watered the soil of freedom with their tears and blood, is that they did not shed in vain, they rose to the greatest heights of sacrifice…aluta continua Victoria ascerta, to all the descendants of ex-slaves across the globe, on behalf of himself, his ancestors and willing African Monarchs please accept the apologies of his deepest regards and to freedom fighters and mankind, peace be with you, Amen.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

A book project of this nature cannot be complete without the assistance of people directly and indirectly. To this end my appreciation first goes to my wife, Ugoeze, Josephine Uchenna Ogbonna and my daughter, TryGod Adanna Ogbonna for all the encouragements and support including St Matthew’s United Methodist Church, Bowie Maryland without whom my sojourn in America would have been a disaster as well as my dear friends Mrs Elizabeth Buchner who made my love for environment and humanity very blissful, Mrs Linda Cooper and Reverend Richard Stetler for boosting my confidence in this very world of black and white.

Worthy of recognition is the cooperation extended to me by my various respondents at the time of this work. Thanks are due to my friends who helped in a way or the other to make this book a reality, particularly, Deacon Iyke Kanu aka Otekebe and my siblings Nze Murphy Ogbonna, Nze Udo ll, Royal Prince Prince Kelechukwu Ogbonna, Princesses; Joy Ijeoma Okengwu, Victoria Okechi Otugo, Jane Ngozi Nwankanma, Linda Obianuju Agada and Hope Onyekachi Nwaeze.

Finally, I deem it unavoidably vital to put across my overriding debt to my God in heaven who provides me with wisdom, life and support l need to get on in my endeavors and particularly in this book project.

SUMMARY

This unique book is the Author’s personal perspective of conveying a cultural message to our children, grand children, great grand children, the future generations including and without any limitation all and sundry, if not for less to harness the freedom to live according to their very good initiatives, unlock their full potentials and contribute in shaping our tomorrow today and make the world a better and inclusive place for all irrespective of race, gender, social status, straight, gay, colour, faith and what have you. In his mind, the nexus between our freedom palace and expanding the territories of our culture is like revolution and evolution and there are no boundaries to the movement.

Our Freedom Palace weaves cultural values on a corroborative epic and yet human scale, it is a narration of the wealth of culture, security of freedom and mobility of literacy in healing the global communities from the wounds inflicted on them due to greed, hostile and irrational decisions from bad leaderships in many societies. It is indeed, a peculiar grassroots message to mankind that change is imperative, therefore, the next generation of leaders ought to be empowered with the necessary tool (literacy) to effect that global change because freedom is the greatest endowment to humanity and in so doing to remain law abiding and faithful to God Almighty.

CHAPTER ONE

EXPANDING THE TERRITORIES OF OUR CULTURE

Culture is universal; therefore, it should be shared beyond each particular community across the global communities and the benefits that follow such practice shall continue to illuminate every page of our lives, because no community can outlive its culture, it helps us to explore our roots, a lamp to our feet and a light to our path and it is indeed the heir of our past as well as the testators of our future. Reference is hereinafter made of CNN’s Anthony Bourdain’s parts unknown, where I have dedicatedly been particularly enriched and more particularly touched by a worthwhile reflective journey around the world. These trips are not just interesting but they also provide the necessary mirror we all require in shaping our tomorrow today especially with respect to food culture vis a viz their cultural, historical, nutritional, medicinal, traditional and other values.

The exploration, without any limitation includes the knowledge of cultural backgrounds of various global villages and communities as well as impacts of natural and artificial disasters. The implication is that we are severally and collectively challenged with the mission to make the world a better and inclusive place for every one irrespective of background, race, colour, faith, straight, gay, transgender, gender and what have you. Make no mistakes about this; nobody is an island.

The real value of culture is immeasurable, it is widely perceived as a way of life of a people portrayed in so many ways such as food, family, faith, relationships, art, science, environment, brotherhood, neighborhood, values and ceremonies. Culture maintains a steady path of change from the darkness of barbarism to the new life via civilization. In this regard, the western culture, popularly known and referred to as the civilization occupies vital position, therefore, we hold western culture to a very high standard and value as a result of the fact that education provides a comprehensive and direct path with which we shall continue to shape the global communities and rebuild our societies block by block, brick by brick, colour by colour, faith by faith, have by have, have not by have not, man by man, woman by woman, child by child,