Inside Ojukwu’s CasaBianca mansion
Having moved from his former residence, a modest one-storey building at Isi-Uzo Street in the Independence Layout area of Enugu, the Ikemba Nnewi, who was also the Eze Igbo Gburugburu with his beauty Queen-wife, Bianca and children probably found more comfort living inside CasaBianca villa which is more spacious than the former residence where the […]
Having moved from his former residence, a modest one-storey building at Isi-Uzo Street in the Independence Layout area of Enugu, the Ikemba Nnewi, who was also the Eze Igbo Gburugburu with his beauty Queen-wife, Bianca and children probably found more comfort living inside CasaBianca villa which is more spacious than the former residence where the Ojukwus must lived for decades, although it did not provide the space befitting the status of the ex- Biafran war hero.
Occupying approximately six or seven plots, the CasaBianca mansion is a huge one-storey, a pent-house with other adjoining buildings such as bungalows and duplexes mainly situated at the back of the magnificent home.
Cast in a beautiful setting with well-trimmed lawns, masquerade flowers, mango trees and other kinds of beautiful flowers, banana and orange trees, which provide breezy shades and serene atmosphere; the Ojukwu mansion has a ground water tank, two high-powered generating sets, satellite dishes both functional and mal-functional and some “GEE PEE” water tanks.
Painted with a semblance of light yellow and/or milk colour, CasaBianca mansion is reportedly a totally renovated building and no wonder its architecture is rather different from most other buildings around the area. It has such features as an unveiled statue of the Ezeigbo. This is located right in the center of the front view of CasaBianca. There is also at the back of the mansion, on its left flank, a not-very-deep, old swimming pool that has not been filled with water possibly because the chief occupants of the house are absent. Inside the aging swimming pool are the inscriptions “Deep Shallow”, “Deep Shallow”, “Deep”.
Besides, the mansion has a fleet of posh cars such as Mercedes, Toyota Jeeps, among others. It was not confirmed whether all the cars belong to the owners of the mansion but since some visitors are often allowed to drive into the expansive compound, it also could not be ruled out completely that some of the cars belonged to such visitors.
Still on cars, CasaBianca villa also boasts of a very old, navy-blue coloured, longish Mercedes Benz car, apparently used before the civil war. It has on its number plate an inscription, “EZE NDI IGBO” – IGBO 1 – Federal Republic of Nigeria”. It could be safely said that the long car is better reserved as a historical material for those who want to do a study on the Ojukwus. Interpretatively, its number plate states a lot about the owner of the car – he was the King of all Igbo race. Apparently, this is the place where the burial ceremony of the Ikemba will take place before his remains would be taken to his native Nnewi country home for internment on February 2, 2012.