Born 3rd Dec 1949 and two weeks after my millionaire father was poisoned and he became mad. The brothers confisticated all his property and sent us away. Our mother took us, myself and my elder brother, to Aguluzigbo. At the age 7 years we went to Osha to start itinerant mama-put business. My mother will carry yam porridge on the head while I will follow with bucket of plates and spoons trespassing the whole ochanja market. I was not going to school.

In 1957 when I was 8 years old we got a shed at ochanja market and our schedule of duty changed to moving to the market by 3am and start cooking for the day sales and coming back by 8 pm. Later in the year our father got some relief and came to live with us. In 1958 my younger sister was born and our father's illness came back in expanded form and was taken away to the village finally. I started going to school with the same schedule of duty. Leave home by 3am to ochanja with my school bag containing my school uniform. Leave ochanja by 7.30 to school. Leave school by 1.45 pm back to ochanja and finally got home by 8pm. This continued till 1964 when I finished standard six.

My result was distinction . We were 4 pupils that got distinction out of six classes. I could not even take any common entrance not to talk of entering into secondary school. In 1965 I started learning printing at Amobi street but enrolled in Rapid Result Corresponding studies for school certificate exam with the apprenticeship allowance of 1 pound I receive monthly. I didn't want to complain but concentrated on how to meet up in my family problems. In 1966 the war broke out.

The war time was the most turbulent era in my life. We all went to the village as the federal forces took over Onitsha in October 1966. Mark Umeh had no home and made us to be a refugee in both at our uncle's house by me and my mother and my sister at Aguluzigbo. Within two weeks my mother moved to Nnewi triangle and started hotel business. After a week at my uncle's house I was denied food. I went for army recruitment but failed as underaged. I joined Biafra militia at Aguata and was posted to Otuocha after one month training. Six months later the militia regiment was drafted for military training. In two months after we passed out and I was commissioned with BA/123100. I was posted to 60th battalion at St Stephens Anglican church Agulu and subsequently deployed at Nibo/Nise war front as mortar assist. Two months later the federal forces overran Agulu and landed at Nwagu and thereby cutting us off. The Biafra 4th Commando were drafted from Umuahia to Agulu to push them back to Awka. I joined the Commando with the help of one Capt Mathias Enechuwu from Agbiligba Nanka who was The commander of 8th strikeforce. After the one month Commando training I became a different human being. It was then I decided to take the problem of Mark Umeh by the bullhorn as a single person. After the first deadly Uzuakokoli attack the Commando Commander, Col. Steiner drafted me to Intelligence Unit. With the Recce training of this unit I discovered that this world needs definite purpose, persistence, enthusiasm, Faith, and most importantly, force for one to succeed especially for those of us with fateful problem. It was at this juncture that I metamorphosed from a quiet and humble person to an aggressive brut. I visited home fully kitted in Commando uniform and what I discussed with my uncle can't be relayed here.

Two weeks towards end of the war the Messonary, Col. Steiner, insisted I would join them to South East Africa as a Messonary but after explaining my family problem he detailed his driver to send me back to Nnewi and the war ended in a week's time in Jan 1970.