For Trump, It’s From White House To Florida Or Africa

He Needs To (Re)Watch ‘Thrilla In Manila’

President Trump leaves the White House on or before Jan 20, 2021. It’s true, he doesn’t like the idea but he has to. The American constitution has no provision for a president emeritus in the White House. And for a man who has lots of hotels and apartments, he cannot possibly be homeless.

Florida where he might be heading to has warm weather, but just in case he does not feel it will be that welcoming he should consider countries in Africa. That is not because Africa has had Presidents who wanted to continue to serve in that position at the end of their tenure, but more because it has warm weather all year round in most parts of the Continent and accords very warm reception to guests even if they are Internally Displaced Persons.

Again Africans are not as brash as Americans when handling a tricky situation such as asking an ex-President and Commander in Chief to leave his official residence. Africans will tell you stories and proverbs to help you work out your own answers, what they call ‘using your tongue to count your teeth.’

Chinua Achebe wrote in Things Fall Apart that proverbs are the palm-oil with which words are eaten. (The book is selected by Time Magazine as one of 100 best novels in the English Language for 1925–2003, and BBC in 2019 tagged it one of 100 Most Influential Novels and Encyclopædia Britannica has it as one of “12 Novels Considered the ‘Greatest Book Ever Written’”).

Achebe was right. Some words may be dry or hard, the palm oil does not only soften them but also lubricates the palate. In the wit and wisdom of proverbs lurk great lessons.

Here are a few such proverbs and if Mr. Trump gets their import he will quickly do the right thing. *It is easy to give a monkey a drink with a cup, the tough part is retrieving the cup. (Hint: It may choose to climb up a nearby tree with the cup). Aha, that reminds us of another one – *It is better to come down the tree the way you went up, other options may leave you in the dirt or with broken limbs (Hint: You consider consequences when you climb too high up to the tender branches. They may break off with your weight and if you jump down, the outcome may not leave your dignity intact). This also warns you not to stay too long up in the tree eating its fruits as those holding the ladder below may get impatient and choose to abandon their post. And because most African idols are carved of wood, there is this one: * No matter how small in size the Deity is, it is borne with two hands. (Hint: Respect, Honour, Awe, Due Process). There’s the flip side of that one that says: * When a Deity gets too swollen-headed, it is told of the wood from which it was made. And because no man is bigger than the Community, Achebe’s people say: * If the village cooks for one man, he will overfeed and there will still be plenty of unconsumed food but when a man cooks for the village the food will all be eaten up. * A war long foretold does not consume the cripple. (Hint: He sets off early to relocate once he gets the hints). They also say you don’t tell the blind man he’s in a gathering — he will hear the noise. *You can tell the blind man of oil in the sauce, not the saltiness of the dish — that he can taste.

These sayings are indigenous to Africa and Mr. Trump will hear a lot more if he decides to relocate to the warmth of the Continent but just in case he’s not sure if immigration policies of African countries will be tough for him given his own records and he chooses to the stay in the US, he should quickly go to Youtube and watch or rewatch Joe Frazier Versus Muhammad Ali 111, one of the most thrilling tournaments in boxing.

Here’s some background he, probably already, knows.

Muhammed Ali was stripped of his Heavyweight Boxing Title and sent to jail for refusing to join the Army and fight in Vietnam. When he returned from prison he tried to regain his title and Smokin’ Joe Frazier beat him in Madison Square, New York on March 8, 1971. George Foreman will beat Frazier for the title. On 28 Jan 1974, Ali and Frazier, both ex-champs, fought a 12 rounder which Ali won by unanimous decision. Ali went ahead to beat George Foreman in the ‘Rumble in Jungle’ in Zaire. That set the stage for Ali — Frazier 111, which was tagged ‘Thrilla in Manila’ — culled from Ali’s taunting verse to mentally upset Frazier:

It’s gonna be a thrilla a chilla, a killa when I get the gorrila in Manila. -Muhammad Ali

On 1 October 1975, in the steaming heat and humidity of Manila, Philippines both men who had lost to each other once before battled themselves with everything they had.

Ali later claimed the fight was the closest he came to dying.

By the 11th round Smokin’ Joe, who had been throwing smoking bombs all day had his left eye cut and swollen(the same eye affected by a car accident years earlier) and couldn’t see well. In the 13th round, Eddie Futch his Manager and Head Trainer almost stopped the fight when Ali knocked the mouthguard off Frazier but waited. In the14th Frazier boxed on relentlessly relying on instincts and a lifetime of discipline and dedication to his craft but was getting hit much more easily by Ali. Just before the bell rang for the 15th, Eddie Futch asked Carlos Padilla the referee to stop the fight. Frazier protested, “No, no, no come on Eddie!…I want him, Boss”. Eddie Futch held Frazier back with these immortal words:

“Sit down, son. It’s all over. No one will forget what you did here today”.

And none did.

Ali had a record of 61 fights (56 -5, 37 KOs). Joe Frazier’s was 37 fights ( 32 wins, 27 KOs, 4 defeats, and 1 draw). Yet the Thrilla in Manila was regarded as the best fight for each of them.

The two men met three times in the ring, the first and third fights earned Ring Magazine’s Fight Of The Year Award for 1971 and 1975.

And in 1996 (21years after the 3rd fight) Futch’s word echoed again as The Ring Magazine named that fight The Fight Of The Century. Eddie was later to be named the Magazine’s Greatest Trainer in 75 years.

It would be appropriate to talk a little bit here about Edward Futch. Why? Because while Angelo Dundee has been credited with Muhammad Ali’s biggest successes we tend to forget the man who provided the hurdles Ali had to jump to attain greatness. He trained and stayed in the corners of the boxers who handed Ali his first and last losses in the ring. He was in Frazier’s corner in the three fights with Ali and in the corners of boxers who gave Ali the biggest trouble in the ring and three of the four other men to defeat him namely Ken Norton, Larry Holmes, and Trevor Berbick.

Eddie Futch trained 21 champions including 6 heavyweight champions and was inducted into Boxing International Hall of Fame in 1994. Futch sparred with Joe Brown Bomber Louis learning by observation the skills he would later use as a trainer and trained Freddie Roach ( who would later train 25 champions including Manny Pacquiao, Sugar Leonard, Michael Tyson, Oscar De Loya, Floyd Mayweather Jnr, etc). Futch was a real master of the game and was called ‘Professor of Pugilism’. So he knew his game well enough and knew when fighting on was no longer worth it.

So, Mr. President, I know you may be understandably irritated at this time by the name Smokin’ Joe but watch the fight to the end listen well to Eddie Futch’s words.

It’s all over. No one will forget what you did in America this November. Over 73 million votes!

And all (the good and the bad) you did in the last 4 years.

And Finally, Mr. President The election fraud cases, the lawyers filed on your instructions, and on your behalf, are getting easily dismissed. Remember you are the conductor facing a grand orchestra. When it is playing a lousy tune, it is likely its soul is no longer in it. It may be time too to turn around to see what the players are looking at — the empty seats long left by the audience.

It is still not too late to take that bow.

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