So what that Christie’s, the auction house, just auctioned art works of Nigerian origin!

How can you say a thing like that?

Person neva chop you dey talk of art. You no know say Coronavirus dey for town.

Is there no Coronavirus in Paris? Those persons who paid heavy sums for the art pieces haven’t heard of Coronavirus, abi?

Na where dey pain person dem dey put for near fire? Besides, you never hear of conspiracy?

What conspiracy?

The more you look, the less you see. I don’t bother myself with yeye matters, my friend. Ignorance is bliss.

Not in this case. Ignorance does not create masterpieces. Were those who created those art works ignorant?

I guess so

No, my friend, they were not.

And your point exactly?

Would Christie’s had gone ahead to auction those pieces if they belonged to the Germans, Italians, British or any other western society?

Dem fit?

Why dem no fit?

You don hear that Urhobo proverbs that two goats no dey drink water from the same bucket at the same time?

Why did you mention Urhobo now? You know that when we begin to mention tribes instead of one Nigeria, the texture of the discussion changes.

So make I deny my tribe and no give dem their dues because of texture?

That’s not what I mean. By the way, since your Urhobo curiosity has been piqued, did you know that a single piece, from the collection, of Urhobo origin, was worth over One million Pounds?

Ibabo! What did you say? One million Pounds?

Yes, my friend. Our forefather were not ignoramuses who would hide behind something like Coronavirus and say all that matters, is survival. They were skilled, knowledgeable and intelligent.

And what are we?

You should know. But here is a teaser: Did the Christie’s matter trend in Nigeria? How many features were written on the subject? Compare that with the matter of some statutes, works of art, built to honour dead western heroes, caught in the crosshairs of the Black Lives Matter movement. Did those statue matters trend? Were features written about them? You see, my friend, ignorant people do not create wonder. Only educated people do. Don’t let Coronavirus stop you from getting educated.