On October 24, 2021, Mazi Uba Acho, a black African man from Igbo Naton in West Africa, made a significant discovery. He found a lake in Leicester, East Midlands of England. This newfound lake will be known as Iyi Ojemba.

On October 24, 2021, Mazi Uba Acho, a black African man from Igbo Naton in West Africa, made a significant discovery. He found a lake in Leicester, East Midlands of England. This newfound lake will be known as Iyi Ojemba.

And in another discovery, made by another Igbo man living in Ireland,
Laz Ude Exe, Makes Historic Discovery on March 30th, 2024, discovered a river in Port Stewart, Ulster, which he proudly named IYI OKWUTE!

It’s interesting to note that just like Mungo Park’s discovery of the Niger River in Nigeria, the people of Ogbaru, Anam, and Onitsha had been fishing and swimming in their own rivers long before Mungo Park’s time. Yet, his expedition from Scotland in 1795 is celebrated as the discovery.

Similarly, David Livingstone traveled thousands of miles in 1855 to discover the Zambezi River in Zambia and Zimbabwe, including the famous Victoria Falls. Despite the generations of people living in those areas who were well aware of these natural wonders, it was Livingstone’s discovery that was recognized.

Even today, these stories are taught to our African children in school, contributing to a lack of pride in being African among some of our adults and leaders. If we don’t take pride in something, we can’t fully understand its value. And if we don’t value it, we can’t cherish or protect it.

Therefore, Mazi Uba Acho, and Laz Ude Exe, proudly declare the discovery of these lake and river name it Iyi Ojemba and Iyi Okwute. Let it be documented and passed down to future generations.

Ndewonu