The atmosphere in Ogo Ubam, Ugwuegu-Elu, Afikpo North local government area of Ebonyi State was that of gloom, sadness and mourning at the weekend.
A mammoth crowd, many of them adorning black on black apparel, had descended on the community to witness the burial of a couple who hails from the community who were cut down in their prime by men of the underworld rendering their three young children orphans.
The couple, Late Mr Uzonwa Darlington Basil, 57 years, and his wife Chinyere, 48 years were killed by armed robbers in Umuahia, Abia State Capital on January 25 where they were based in the presence of their three children, Priscilla, Solomon and Judith.
Their deaths were said to have shaken the capital city of Abia State to its foundations as the couple who ran a poultry business were popular and respected in the city for their honesty, humility, and peaceful disposition.
The sight of the three children dressed in all white and carrying pictures of their late parents made the community members to burst intermittently into tears.
In a homily during the funeral mass, Rev Fr. Nelson Ezeala regretted that the couple was cut down in their prime.
He also warned against victimisation of the children and denial of their rights.
The Catholic Priest urged relatives and friends of the deceased couple to rally round the children to ensure that they get the best education and upbringing which was what the parents always wanted for them.
‘His killers drank his beer after killing him’ – Daughter
The Couple’s daughter, Priscilla Favour Uzonwa while reading the biography of her father described him as a hardworking and selfless man who faced so much hardship from childhood but always found a way to surmount them all.
She said: “Daddy stayed back to nurse his mother when she had stroke so as to enable his younger siblings go to school. But after the mother died in 1989 he decided to join business because he had the family interest and wanted to help his father take care of the siblings.
“After his father fell sick he vowed never to go to university. He had a problem in his car business which robbed him of all his income. He left the business and got a job at Nigerian Breweries Limited. He worked with NBL until he was transferred to Kaduna State but due to the Sharia law, he resigned from NBL and started his poultry farm and the Lord blessed him.
She described her father as a very generous man who would deny himself the good things of life in other to make others comfortable.
“Daddy prefers to starve himself for the common man to have something to eat. He so much believed in sharing. Even his killers drank his beer the same day they killed him. He built a legacy that is worthy of emulation,” she said.
Miss Priscilla described her mother, Chinyere as a very hardworking woman who worked side by side with her husband to build their egg supply business from nothing to an empire with numerous customers spread all over the city of Umuahia and beyond.
“Today you are no more but the legacy you left behind will remain evergreen in the minds of your children, brothers, sisters, friends and associates,” she added.
