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• Seeks reunion between late nephew’s twin sons and their Nigerian roots
By Damiete Braide
Pa Rock Arcoven, 84, resident of Festac Town, Lagos, is in great pain. He is emotional and determined to ensure the twin sons of his late nephew, Tedd Bello Arcoven, grow up knowing their Nigerian heritage and paternal family, despite living abroad with their Maltese mother, Yolanda.
For him, the mission is deeply personal. He fears time is running out and that the children, now believed to be about five years old, may grow up completely disconnected from their father’s people, history, and culture in Nigeria. His quest has taken him through phone calls, international searches, family networks abroad, and even a newspaper publication. All in the hope of reaching Yolanda and reopening a line of communication.
He poured out his heart: “I don’t want these children to grow up believing their father had no family. They have roots here. They have people who remember and love them.
His efforts briefly yielded hope about three weeks ago when he was able to reach Yolanda on phone. She answered, exchanged greetings, but cut the call short when he attempted to introduce himself fully. Since then, she has refused to pick his calls.
Phone codes later indicated that she may now be residing in Spain. Attempts by a relative in the United Kingdom to reach her have also failed. She reportedly ended calls once the subject of the children’s paternal family was raised.
Pa Arcoven lamented: “The situation is complicated by diplomatic gaps. Malta does not have an embassy in Nigeria, and I am unsure of the appropriate authorities to contact regarding the welfare and identity rights of the children. If Nigeria had an ambassador to Spain that I could reach, maybe I would know what to do.”
The story dates back several decades and is rooted in family bonds and shared history. Tedd Bello Arcoven, Pa Arcoven’s nephew, came to live with him in Lagos as a young boy after losing his parents. Under his uncle’s care, Tedd attended Festac Grammar School before completing his secondary education in Okpella, Etsako East Local Government, Edo State. He later returned to Lagos, where he built his adult life.
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Tedd secured employment as a driver to a prominent oil executive in Ikoyi, Lagos. A job that provided him accommodation within his employer’s residence. Unknown to his extended family at the time, this phase of his life marked the beginning of a second, hidden chapter. During this period, he met Yolanda, a woman of Maltese descent who worked with the Maltese Embassy or Consulate in Lagos.
At the same time, Tedd was married to a Nigerian woman, Helen, who worked with a federal ministry. Their marriage produced six children, including two sets of twins. Every New Year’s Day, Tedd, Helen and the children visited Pa Arcoven, turning his home into a place of laughter and reunion. These visits continued even when Tedd’s presence became inconsistent, until his prolonged absence raised questions.
Eventually, the family learned that Tedd had fathered twin boys with Yolanda. The revelation shocked Pa Arcoven, who had raised his nephew and believed he knew him completely.
In 2022, Tedd called his uncle to announce plans for the twins’ naming ceremony in Surulere, Lagos, promising to send the address. The message never arrived. Shortly after, Tedd’s health deteriorated. He was admitted to Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) and later discharged. Family efforts to secure further treatment were disrupted by domestic conflict. Tedd eventually relocated to Ikorodu to stay with his younger brother.
Before he could travel to Edo State for further medical care, he collapsed and was rushed to Ikorodu General Hospital. He died after slipping into a coma. After his death, crucial personal items, including his diary, which Pa Arcoven believes contained Yolanda’s full details, were never recovered. With only a few photographs of Yolanda and the twin boys left behind, tracing them became increasingly difficult.
Today, Pa Arcoven’s concern is not about conflict or custody, but identity and legacy. He fears that the children may one day be told a distorted story about their father or grow up unaware that they belong to a large Nigerian family: “She cannot deny where they come from. Their father was Nigerian. Their colour alone tells part of that story.”
Pa Arcoven is appealing directly to Yolanda to allow the children to know their roots and to the wider public for help in reaching her: “If this story ever reaches those boys, I want them to know they are not forgotten. Their father’s people are waiting, with open arms.”
For the ageing patriarch, the hope remains that truth, time and goodwill will eventually bridge the silence separating two young boys from half of their identity.
