by Azuka Onwuka
I have noticed that very few people know that EKO Hospital stands for Eneli, Kuku, Obiora (the surnames of the three founders). How would people know when I listened to Ik of Rhythm FM today asking people about the Statue of Liberty on an Arik Air quiz?
Arik is not owned by the US; Rhythm FM is not owned by the US; Ik is not an American but an Edo man. So why ask about the colour, material and donor of Statue of Liberty in Nigeria to Nigerians when George Bush Jnr does not know where Nigeria is located?
Anyway, the coming together of two Igbos and one Yoruba to found EKO Hospital is remarkable. Nigerians don’t like to found companies jointly, least of all across ethnic lines. We prefer to form companies alone using our spouses and children as directors.
That is why any time I see EKO Hospital or step into it, I wonder how the three guys were able to do it. And it has continued to exist for decades.
Azuka Onwuka is a veteran journalist, author, and columnist with The Punch. He is on Facebook.
The opinions expressed in this piece are solely those of the author.
