Help! Expensive funeral rites are pauperizing Tiv society

The Tiv people have made funerals such a huge display of ostentation that families who have lost their loved one mourn not only due to the loss of loved ones but the high cost of burials.For the rich, money is not the issue; they a kick for the display of flamboyance.  I am however bothered […]

The Tiv people have made funerals such a huge display of ostentation that families who have lost their loved one mourn not only due to the loss of loved ones but the high cost of burials.
For the rich, money is not the issue; they a kick for the display of flamboyance.  I am however bothered about the many poor families who are forced to do the same even when they can’t afford the expenditure. Sometimes, the person might have died due to lack of money to secure prompt and effective medical care, yet at death so much more money is spent to ‘celebrate a life well-spent”!
It is not fiction; families would sell choice properties, empty life savings and even take out credit facilities with all its attendant consequences. The paraphernalia for a funeral are simply endless in Tiv land. First and foremost, the corpse is placed in the public or private mortuary at mind boggling costs until all other arrangements are finalized or at such a time all the concerned parties which may include all the deceased’s children ‘both at home and abroad’, his/her other siblings and close relations or the entire extended family, are able to, based on their individual conveniences, agree on a date for the funeral.
Before the funeral proper, the religious institution the deceased belonged to, either Christian or traditional is suitably motivated to anchor the funeral like they should. In case of the church, all the deceased’s unpaid dues have to be paid before the priest or pastor would show up to perform the funeral rites no matter how active a member he/she had been.
The family house has to undergo rehabilitation. In fact, in some cases, an entirely new structure or the long uncompleted one has to be raised to satisfy the aesthetic appeals of the expected guests, who are expected to burial venue with a good impression; so the onus is on the family to impress. As to be expected too, some of the funeral guests would be there not because they find it necessary to be and commiserate with the bereaved, to assess the occasion and gossip about it later.
Then coloured posters are printed and flooded every nook and cranny with them, to show the world that ‘a rare gem’ has departed. There is also a paid radio and television announcement. Then again, there is always the inevitable uniform-the mourning cloth which every member of the family or any one with certain degree of relationship with the deceased must wear.
There is often wake keep preceding the funeral during which the most obscene things happen, especially among young men and ladies. A whole lot of unwanted pregnancies have arisen from such nights with people who came supposedly to mourn.  The coffin has to be costliest, preferably imported, though they ignore the fact that it would end up being feasted on by termites. There are so many costly aspects of such funerals, even the very old are afraid because of the burden it could bring on their families.
What justification is there for this extreme show of excitement and happiness at the death of someone? 

John Akevi Gboko, Benue State <[email protected]>