One Problem With Some Igbo People Of Nigeria

One evening, I was on a bus returning home from Lekki, and there was this man seated next to me. He was an Igbo man and I knew that from the way he spoke to the woman seated next to him and in the way he talked with someone on the phone.

 At first, we were discussing Nigerian politics and some problems of Nigeria and, we moved to some of the reasons why Lagos was too congested. He told me that since there are Ports in Calabar,  Port Harcourt and Warri, he thought that government should make those ports functional so that people can leave Lagos and carry their business transactions in other cities since a lot of people are in Lagos because of the seaport.  When I learnt that he was from my zone,  Abia state, I switched from English to the Igbo language to make our conversation more homely and enjoyable but he never replied in Igbo, rather he replied with the  English language. When I spoke Igbo to him again, he replied with English. Then I got tired of him replying with the English language then I stopped the conversation.

"In many parts of the world, languages are in danger of going extinct. It might be tempting to believe that English has become the lingua franca of global business and the Internet, but when languages die, the loss has repercussions far beyond simply the loss of a lexicon. Individuals lose out on the ability to contribute to the marketplace of ideas, businesses stand to lose a customer base, and an important connection to culture is lost." -Missi Smith.

Igbo people need to learn the act of being proud of their roots and appreciate their culture just as the Yoruba and the Hausa. If you are Ignorant and you are not proud of where you come from or the language, I think there is something wrong with you somewhere. I wonder why you would not be proud of where you come from.  You didn't choose your tribe yourself,  God did. This happens also when you find yourself in Alaba International market or Idumota market in Lagos to buy things, once you speak Igbo to a fellow Igbo man,  he won't reply with Igbo because he may likely think that once he does that, you will beat down the price of the commodity you intended buying.  Or rather, that he would not sell the goods the way he planned to sell it. And these men are full-fledged Igbo men who ought to be the one to uphold this language and culture that is going into extinction.

In my village Nkporo, once it is Christmas season and you happen to be in the village, you will assume that English and Yoruba language are the official languages there. Those Igbo children born in Ghana, Benin Republic and Lagos can't speak the Igbo language.  Even the majority of Children born in Lagos cannot speak Igbo Language but can speak Yoruba and English Language fluently. It hurts me a lot to see the parents of these young ones commending and appreciating them on how fluent they are in English and Yoruba language against their own language. Hence, we talk about unity amongst our people of Eastern Coast.  We talk about upholding our relationship with one another while those things that bring us together are no more of value to our people.

The most bitter part of this is that our parents also take part in this. I have seen an Igbo father communicating with his son in the Yoruba language while this so-called boy can not even say a word or speak Igbo but the father can,  then why is he communicating in a strange language with his son?. 

Although, there are many reasons why languages die. The reasons are often political, economic or cultural in nature. Speakers of a minority language may, for example, decide that it is better for their children’s future to teach them a language that is tied to economic success. But we shouldn't allow our to die.

I stopped going to my town meeting because of this. I won't be in a meeting where we are supposed to use the Igbo language to deliberate on our issues and someone is communicating with us in a strange language. It is disgusting! Shame on us!  Shame on those parents who prefer English to the Igbo Language?  Shame on you fathers whose children are all grown up but cannot speak Igbo!  I know it means nothing to you,  yes,  some people have said that to me. But I think it is necessary we tackle this issue now before it gets out of hand. It is very annoying, very annoying when you meet a brother speak Igbo to him and he behaves like you are speaking Chinese to him. And sometimes, he won't even reply. Remember, this language is our freedom. It is the only thing that can unite us as one body. A language that can keep us safe from our foes, would you allow this language to go into extinction? Would you not pass it to the next generation? Won't you keep this culture blossoming day in day out?  We now have modern Igbo language, a fusion of 80% of English language and 20% of Igbo language together.

This is not common with the Yoruba people and Hausa people let alone the other minor tribes in Nigeria. In Yoruba land, the first language most Yoruba children learn from their parents is the Yoruba language. It is same as their culture but this is not what we see among those parents living abroad.  An Igbo mother in Lagos State prefers teaching her son how to speak English than the Igbo language. The other one in the USA prefers teaching her daughter the western culture to that of Igbo. It doesn't matter where the children were born or raised. Asa, one of the finest artists I have grown up to know was born in Paris and although she relocated with her parents and grew in her state, Ogun, she went back to France to kickstart her music career in the 2000s. Despite this, she is one of the best Yoruba singers. The likes of Brymo, Beautiful Nubia among others are doing great lifting their cultures home and abroad. Today,  Contemporary writers like Tomi Adeyemi, and the rest are writing adventurous stories with Yoruba myths serving as their materials. All over universities in the US and UK, Yoruba culture and Ifa mythology are being studied. I have once watched a video about eleven years ago of some Cuban guys living in Cuba who practised the Yoruba religion. It is that widespread because the Yoruba value their roots.

In Igbo land, we still prohibit our children from speaking Igbo in school, we say it is vernacular and these students graduate without learning how to speak or write the Igbo language. What will happen to this language in the next fifty years to come?  Some Igbo children born and bred in Port Harcourt cannot even speak Igbo how much more know anything about their roots. And the Igbos born and bred in Lagos have made the Yoruba language their language. Over 40% of Agbero in Lagos State are Igbos who have served and nationalized themselves as Yoruba.  Igbo people need to learn and be educated on how to preserve their language and culture from other tribes in Nigeria especially the Yoruba and Hausa People! I don't know why the Igbo language is not made compulsory for all the students in the Eastern zone!  I don't know why a young man who graduated from a college in Enugu, Onitsha, Aba, Ebonyi and Owerri cannot write the Igbo language! Why? Why? Please, can someone explain why? 

By John Chizoba Vincent

chizobavincent@gmail.com

T.Y. Bello's Song "Cold" : A Reflection Of What We Have Become.

I have always admired this particular woman not just because she is a singer, but because of the depth in all her songs. She is an accomplished photographer that sees through the eyes of a lens. She single-handedly changed the story of the bread seller, Olajumoke years ago.

I remember one of her songs which was a celebration of the late Octogenarian, Mama Ekundayo. She went on to showcase the beautiful aspect of motherhood, and how Mama Ekundayo raised hundreds of kids that were not even hers. You can rarely find such noble actions in this society that is fast becoming selfish.

That was the length T.Y. Bello would go to tell the world stories of happenings in our society. Her music and videos are backed up with research and when the lyrics are broken down into lines, you must definitely feel the impact and get lost when trying to find yourself.

From 'The Land Is Green', which took Nigerians by the storm to 'Ekundayo',  'Jesus Jesus' and now 'Cold'. I had downloaded the song 'Cold' months ago before I finished National Youth Service, but I just did not have time to listen to it. So today, while I was looking for a music to listen to that, will ignite my muse and make me write better, I stumbled on 'Cold' by T.Y. Bello. This particular song called on the sleeping Soldiers (not just the Soldiers, but the Citizens also) to wake up to their responsibilities. 

The song shares what is now fast trending in our society. Every man for himself. We are all trying to make money, jostle for power, have fun and make love here and there. So much so that we even forgot that there are wars going on in the North East, the Fulani Herdsmen killing in the Middle-Belt, while hundreds of Indigenous People Of Biafra, IPOB members have been killed and arrested by the Nigerian Army and the Nigerian Police. 

 "Give us heart and flesh O God, a true burning for men O God."

This line will touch anyone who still has a conscience left in him. It is a plea to God to give us heart and flesh to be able to see the sufferings of people around us. Nigeria and Nigerians are increasingly becoming selfish, as long as their immediate family is doing great, the rest can go to hell. How are we going to move forward with this kind of attitude?

Our Politicians grew up with this mentality, that is why I don't blame them. When they get into office, all they do is amass wealth and steal funds that even their unborn generations cannot finish spending.

Do you know that your Politicians, after leaving office, retire with different packages which include; houses, cars, drivers, cooks and so on? Now I can confirm to you that it is true.

Have you ever asked yourself why your present Governors picked up their party tickets to run for the National Assembly? If they succeed, they will collect all the lifetime benefits listed above and they still collect many other benefits as a Senators even after their exit from the National Assembly.

 "Have mercy Lord, we are cold, we've turned away from the crying, we've turned away from the dying. So we run, run after money, we run, run, run after power."

Yes in the West here, and every other part of Nigeria that is free from attacks by these demon blood-sucking terrorists and killers. We have turned away from the sad realities of the inhabitants of those in these precarious situations. Indeed I have listened to many people saying that the Northerners are killing themselves to acquire Power. While this may be true, it may also be false.

What about the innocent ones who were massacred in a Catholic church in Benue?

What about those in the IDP camps scattered across different parts of Nigeria?

What about those kids who did not have the means to go to school in your own locality?

What about those kids that ordinarily should be in School and not in the streets hawking?

What have you done to help the situation?

What about those poor women who toil daily to make a living?

How about those boys and girls of tomorrow who don't know where their next meal will come from?

How about you lending a helping hand to that blind man that needs to cross to the other side of the road?

How about you check on your loved ones that you've never called in a year, months and in days?

How about you give a smile to that little employee working with you?

Nigeria is currently ranked the world capital of poverty, but automobiles fill our streets in droves. 

Have you ever visited big eateries like SHOPRITE, KFC, MR BIGGS and so on and see the population that throng their buildings every day?

Where do they get the money?

Are we truly poor as a Nation?

Now do not get me wrong, I am not saying that you should not spend your money, you earn it, so you should spend it. But at the same time, also remember the people in your environment who need help.

There are foreign men and women who would leave their comfort zone to Nigeria to help educate our youths, teach children, give them scholarships, help in cases of disasters. But it saddens my heart these days to see Nigerians who claim to be religious but in the true sense of the word, they are Godless. Some of these whites don't even believe in God, but they are ready to help, even to sell their house to make sure their neighbours, not just their neighbours are alive and well. But look at our very religious Nigerians, look at the Churches, Mosques Pastors and Imams, what do you see?

If we are going to build a sustainable economy, if we are going to have relative peace, we must start investing in the people. If we don't, these forgotten souls will one day raise an army of killers against us.

TY-Bello song 'Cold' is what we all need to listen to, and re-evaluate our lives, change our mindset about Money, about wealth and life in general.

By Adetayo Omotoyosi Adeolu
 omotoyorsiiadeolu@gmail.com

Adetayo Omotoyosi Adeolu is a Writer, Poet, Digital Marketer and a Laptop Specialist based in Lagos, Nigeria.

Writing is a Lifestyle

'We write to taste life twice, in a moment and in retrospect' -  Anais Nin. 

A lifestyle is the typical way of life of an individual, group, or culture.

Wikipedia defines lifestyle as the interests, opinions, behaviours, and behavioural orientations of an individual, group, or culture. 

The ability for you to create things that never existed is the same as you being a god. You give life to none existing things. Although sometimes you are not being paid for these things the passion leads you, the drive makes you want to write more and more without stopping even if your hands ache. People criticize you negatively; make a mockery of what you have written but you keep pushing on because you have made it part of you, a blossoming lifestyle. You don’t really care what they say about; you only want to pass a vital message through this lifestyle called writing. 

You the creator, you make non- living things come to life. You the maker; you establish things from its fragments and give those things hope. You never know the power you have within you. I don’t think you know yourself. You don't know you have the ability to give and take life, you never know you can kill and make alive. You don’t know your worth in the world and that is why you allow people to kick you around.  You never knew what tomorrow has in store for you. Have you forgotten you have a lifestyle to protect? In this pleasurable world, do you know you were made to change some certain things? To give opportunities to those who deserve it?

Have you looked at yourself in the mirror and told yourself sweet words as a writer that tells the end from the beginning and the beginning from the end?  Do you know that this lifestyle chose you, you didn’t choose it? Do you know that many who criticize you want to be like you? Why do you fear?  You were afraid yesterday, you were conquered yesterday, you were abused yesterday, but you never gave up because you created this lifestyle to be a writer. Because you created another YOU from the previous ones they used to see. Why are you shattered? You were cheated, you were battered, but you never gave in yesterday. 

Why are you frustrated? Your works were rejected on several occasions but, you keep pushing on this lifestyle you carved for yourself. Writing is an endless lifestyle that stays on after you have gone into the abyss.  Because you have to write the books that need to be written. And if the book will be too difficult for adults, then you write it for children. I never knew you to be this weak, yes, I know writers are stronger than the foundation of this world. Be strong there!

If writers wrote as carelessly as some people talk, then life will be as careless as it is written.  Ernest Hemingway once wrote that all good books are alike in that they are truer than if they had really happened and after you are finished reading one you will feel that all that happened to you and afterwards it all belongs to you: the good and the bad, the ecstasy, the remorse and sorrow, the people and the places and how the weather was. If you can get so that you can give that to people, then you are a writer.  

And Albert Camus wrote that the purpose of a writer is to keep civilization from destroying itself. As a writer with a lifestyle and purpose, the more you leave out, the more you highlight what you live in. Never you judge but try to understand.

“Great writers are indecent people they live unfairly saving the best part for people. Good human beings of the world so that bastards like me can keep creating art, become immortal if you read this after I am dead it means I made it.” Charles Bukowski

“A good writer possesses not only his own spirit but also the spirit of his friends” Friedrich Nietzsche

“The good writers touch life often. The mediocre ones run a quick hand over her. The bad ones rape her and leave her for the flies” Ray Bradbury.

It’s never been a better time to be a writer or aspire to become one in a country like ours but those of us that have this lifestyle of writing chosen by us will keep pushing. If there is a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it. Create your space, a lifestyle that has never been created. Be deadly to find the right place to do that, either writing something worth reading or do something worth writing that is the lifestyle.
 

“No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writer, no surprise in the reader “Robert Frost.

Read, read, and read. Read everything--- trash, classic, good and bad, and see how they do it.  Just like a carpenter who works as an apprentice and studies the master. Read! You’ll absorb it. Then write. 

If it’s good, you’ll find out. If it is not, throw it out of the window “William Falkner.

How vain it is to sit down to write when you have not stood up to live. You can shake off everything as you write, your pains, sorrow, agony, loss of loved ones, abuse; and disappointment and then, rebirth your courage and wit. Yes, that is what the lifestyle entails. 

Don’t get discouraged with how you live this lifestyle as people will always talk. Don’t look at the dumb side of it but the positive aspect of you living as an immortal after death welcomes you home.

Live your life to the fullest and write those things that needed to be written to satisfy the curiosity of those that will come after us.

Writing is a lifestyle and not a game of trial.

By John Chizoba Vincent

chizobavincent@gmail.com

I Am Bigger Than Papers

“It makes little difference how many university courses and degrees a person may own. If he cannot use words to move an idea from one point to another, his education is incomplete" - Norman Cousins

"Economists who have studied the relationship between education and economic growth confirm what common sense suggests: the number of college degrees is not nearly as important as how well students develop cognitive skills, such as critical thinking and problems solving ability." - Derek Bok.

"What I have learnt is that a whole lot of people with degrees don’t know a damn thing and a lot of people with no degrees are brilliant " - John Henrik Clarke   

I have met many great men of great repute who weren’t defined by what they or by the certificates and degrees they acquired from school. Some of them opted out from school to become who they are now while some of them dropped out from school for one reason or the other.  

Melancholy and sadness give room to doubt… doubt is the beginning of despair; despair is the cruel beginning of the differing degrees of wickedness. It has become a norm in our country, Nigeria, for people to be acknowledged or get acquainted with other people based on the number of certificates or degrees they acquired from higher institutions, without having any clue of what those who acquired those degrees stand to offer to the society.

I am not saying that degrees are not good to acquire or not important, we know that to compete for the jobs of the 21 century and thrive in a global economy, we need a growing, skilled and educated workforce, particularly in the area of science, technology, engineering and math. Nigerians with bachelor’s degrees have half the unemployment rate of those with high school degree but, I am of the opinion that degrees should not be a criterion to judge people base on what they can do or cannot do.  Everyone should be giving a chance in the industry. Don’t judge anybody on his/her educational background. One can be better than those things being taught inside the classroom. One may even end up better than those people that went to school to acquire thousands of certificates and degrees. We have great men who became great today not because of what they studied in school but because they discovered themselves; they discovered their lives beyond what men conditioned on papers with ink.

"Leadership consists not in degrees of techniques but in traits of character, it requires moral rather than athletic or intellectual effort, and it imposes on both leader and follower alike the burdens of self-restraint" - Lewis Lapham. 

We should all feel confident in our intelligence. By the way, intelligence to me isn’t being book-smart or having degrees here and there; it’s trusting your gut instincts, being intuitive, thinking outside the box, and sometimes just realizing that things need to change and being smart enough to change it. You can be all you want to be without degrees littered on your shelf.  

Don’t allow anyone to put you down because you don’t have a PhD or HND or Bachelor's Degree, no! Your dog only bears the name you call it every day.  

Shakuntala Devi once said that Education is not just about going to school and getting a degree. It’s about widening your knowledge and absorbing the truth about life. 

Although Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who are prepared not in degrees but in what can be beneficial to the world. Stop judging people based on the degrees before their names, judge them base on what they can offer to help make the world a better place. We are all bigger and greater than those papers on our shelves.

Truth be told, many people nowadays don’t work with their degrees or certificates. A lot of people don't work based on what they studied in school. Many who studied Sociology ended up working as presenters and some who studied Psychology ended up working in the banking sector.  

So, it is not all about what you studied or the degree you were awarded in the university, it is all about what you can do yourself. I am bigger than those papers likewise you; don’t be defined by it.

 by John Chizoba Vincent
chizobavincent@gmail.com

For Those Humans And Writers Who Feel Lost In The World Of Social Media.

 

The effect the social media has on us as humans and writers cannot be quantified, it is like an umbrella that shields us from the rain, and when your data is exhausted, the umbrella is stolen by your network providers. Gone into the ashes of lost memories not to be seen nor found no more until you subscribe again.

During those moments, it can be the most boring time ever, as you are shut out of this world, alone and alone with no one to hear your voice especially if you weave words into life like me.

Technology has given us everything that we need but at the same time, it has also robbed us of everything we once cherished. The things we hold dear, memories, priceless friendships, family, love and togetherness.

While the slay queens and slay mama's who seek relevance and validation by the likes and

comments of their followers are doing theirs, the SMALL GIRLS with BIG GOD are also catching the flight of social media paparazzo. 

Some of these girls feel alive when the likes and comments breathe life into them and make beauty out of their ashes, but when the likes and comments go into oblivion, they panic jump into the river of inferiority complex, hiding their faces just like "Small Doctor" said.

What about the boys?
Those ones especially the Yahoo Boys are the kings that sit on no throne, they were crowned by their ability to play on the intelligence of gullible people, but they have a makeshift throne, which is surrounded by the Slay Queens and Slay Mamas.

Some writers also count their worth by the likes and comments on their social media handles, for those writers, I say they have impaired intellects. The purpose of writing is to live an indelible mark on this earth, that even when you leave to suck the breasts of your ancestors, your leftover milk will still serve as a refuge to thousands and millions, if not billions of generations years after your exit.

Everybody is a celebrity in a day according to social media, that day is the day you were born, your birthday, the likes and comments gulp your timeline.
You are celebrated far and wide. But as the day comes to a dead end, you will realise it was just an illusion.

This is also to those ghost friends that the only time they resurrect is when you post the news and pictures of the death of your loved ones. They will be the first to comment with their usual condolence messages. I hope you will just go back into your grave and get cemented by the gravel of history?

And to those humans who have found a new way of committing suicide, the ones that do live videos and shut themselves out of this world, I hope you can begin to see the need to still give life another chance and use this platform as a means of dialogue and conversation with your followers. Your lives mean more than this world to us.

You know how you feel when your data vanishes into the pit of hell or when your gadget is struck by a lightning or thunder. The whole world comes crashing on you. The new world welcomes you with open arms, suddenly you feel like hugging the sun, but the ray of the sun is too much for you to bear because you are not so hot to give the sun a 10.

What a world!
The social media world, where we all allow the likes and comments be the muse that keeps our ink bleeding and flowing. In your confused memory and assisted by your village people, you feel you are really doing something, well done, Oh my god ! "won ti get tie."

This goes to those humans and writers that pretend that likes and comments do not matter, they forgot that no one fetches the ocean empty, neither has anyone ever filled a tanker carrying a basket.

As much as you all pretend, it is evident in your daily life, most of you cannot do without your social media for a day, depression becomes your guardian angel whenever you propose to the likes and comments and they both turn you down.
The earth refuses you an accommodation and your accomplishments 

are now standing trial in the court of social media, with "likes as the prosecuting counsel" and "Comments as the trial Judge."
There you are as the defendants manned by your lawyers -your Pen and Muse.

After back and forth arguments, the Social Media courts give his judgement as follows ;

Do not let the likes and comments be your muse, if they come, accept them with a warm reception, if they don't come, keep working and never stop working.

Never you compare your timeline with another.

We are not judged by our likes and comments, but by the quality of the contents we push out.

There will be comments that will break you and even pierce your hearts, but rise above them and keep churning out quality content.

After the judgement, the chains of likes and comments are gunned down and you are free to attain your full potential in life.

My thoughts and ink that flow through the South, East, West and North into my bleeding pen are always with you all.

 by Adetayo Omotoyosi Adeolu

 omotoyorsiiadeolu@gmail.com

Why I killed The Nigerian god

It is clear that in Nigeria when a child is given birth to, he or she is either born into a Christian, Muslim or traditional family. As for me I was birth into a Christian family and christened ''Emmanuel'' which till today I don't use as my name. I make use of my native name (ADETAYO OMOTOYOSI ADEOLU). 

I deliberately don't use my Christian name because I don't want to be identified with any religion. God is in my mind and he is without faith that is what I tell myself.

The way and manner Nigerians worship God is such that encourages laziness and breeds poverty. The type that keeps both young and old in church during work-hours. The pastors tell them to pray and expect miracles, they preach to them not to go after the things of this world but to be focused on making heaven. The pastors, on the contrary, are cruising around with sound bullet-proof cars and living in palatial mansions(Are these not the things of the world ?). 

It gives me a serious headache to see people in church 'casting and binding' this so-called devil and evil spirit on Monday morning, these people should be at work and not the church on Monday morning.

I am not disputing the place of prayer in such a wicked environment like ours but there should be a limit to this attitude. Recently, an elder in a church told a group of students that they can engage in examination malpractice and later ask for forgiveness from(THE NIGERIAN GOD). In my silent but observing manner, I overheard recently an examiner gather students for prayer and after that marathon prayer, expo and malpractice started flying around. What do you have to say about this ???

The Belief in the Nigerian God is such that frowns at girls that get pregnant out of wedlock but encourages fornication as long as you don't get pregnant and you are using pills and condoms. A young girl that gets pregnant could be castigated and expelled in our places of worship, especially the churches. But the church will not take action on those that refuse to birth their own child but put them in toilets and those that engage in abortion.

The Nigerian God is among the chief-proponent of corruption among its Citizens and politicians, It propels them to steal and embezzle government funds and pay their tithes, in return, these rogues are given special recognition and status in our various religious houses. Segregation also reigns supreme in our places of worship, there is a sharp distinction between the rich and the poor.


The Men Of God(Sorry the gods-of-man) you celebrate cruise around in fine and expensive cars, they buy private jets and sends their children to the most expensive schools money can afford. They go with armed security guards -  D.S.S, Army, in some cases, the police, to guard them closely and scare the hell out of you.  If they truly carry anointing, have you ever asked yourself why they move with so much security ?? 

Here you are, struggling to eat three times a day, not even sure where the next meal will come from or what the future holds for you. How many of your religious leaders(Pastors, Bishops,Rev.Fr and Imams, Alhajis) during the recession last year ever shared foodstuffs to you?? How many of them organized lectures on how to create multiple sources of income for you? 

How many of them offered you skills acquisition, empowerment, scholarships for youths ?? Do they provide for the weak and Aged ones ?? 

The average Nigerian is very religious but Godless in nature, Christians and Muslim are the worst set of people you can ever come across. Look around you, your leaders either claim to be Muslims or Christians but look at the way our country is today. Muslims are killing Christians and Muslims are also doing the same. There is tension in the land due to unguided statements of our religious leaders.

If we have to make this country right, if we are really sincere in our fight against corruption, it should start with our religious houses, religious leaders. We must change our attitude towards each other.  I foresee a situation in the future where the fight will not be between one tribe against another but the worshippers against the church and religious leaders.

The new Nigerian God I want to believe in is the one that stresses hard work and prayer side by side. The one that cautions his followers against wrongdoings and evil acts and directs their mind to positive acts.

Do you agree or disagree??
Let me know what you think.
Until we meet next time.

I AM JUST A FREETHINKER AND A LOVER OF MY CREATOR, MY GOD 

by Adetayo Omotoyosi Adeolu

omotoyorsiiadeolu@gmail.com

Political Transfer Window In A MONEY-Pulated Economy.

The months to elections, in Nigeria, is usually marred by different antics and shenanigans by politicians, with a desperate move not to loose out in the elections.

In the past few weeks, the Nigerian Political Space has witnessed alignments and realignments, with Politicians jumping out of the sinking A.P.C (All Progressives Congress) ship and shielding from the rain using the umbrella of P.D.P(Peoples Democratic Party).  All these drama are geared towards the 2019 Elections.

Nigeria is a country blessed with natural resources, instead of developing it's human capacity to meet up with the emerging world trends and challenges, the leaders are busy looting the economy of the country dry. 

In 2014, the A.P.C  re-opened the Political transfer window, as it is similar to what we have in the football world. Then, different politicians and Bigwig's of the then ruling party - PDP left for the A.P.C and eventuality chased the largest party in Africa out of power.
The dimension the political transfer has taken is a source of worry, the once adored politicians who decamped to the P.D.P were labeled instantly with different unprintable names by those who felt betrayed.

As it is customary with politicians, especially in a country like Nigeria, their followers have taken over the fight, abusing themselves over the defections. But what they failed to know is that, they are tool in the hands of these politicians, who only fight for self-preservation.

When politicians make move in a transfer window, they are either moving because they are not sure of getting the party tickets or they have fallen out with the leadership of the party.

The recent political transfer move opened up the debate and questioned the ideology of these crop of politicians we have in the country. One politician joins a political party today, he is singing their praises and they are also singing his praises. The moment he moves out of the party, he suddenly realizes that the party is a confused party with no vision for the country. This can be related to what Governor Aminu Tambuwal said when he was addressed his followers, he said all the party promised in its manifesto, it failed to fulfill. He also accused the A.P.C of massive corruption and deepening poverty in the land. This was the party he once cherished and held in high esteem, and at the same time the party he defected to. The same party he joined hands to bury in 2015 election.

You may want to ask why the same party - the P.D.P ?
The excuse some of the defectors was that the P.D.P has rebranded and it has put its house in order.
But has the P.D.P really put its house in order ?
That is another question for another day.


In the aftermath of the 2015 elections, the A.P.C became the majority in the senate, the party leadership wanted it's own chosen candidates to become the leaders of the National Assembly. The man from Kwara went against the party's directives and thus became the Senate President. Saraki's emergence didn't go down well with the leadership of the party. He has since been labeled a villain, he has also seen his own part of prosecution or persecution if you like. He has been a regular visitor to the Code Of Conduct Tribunal (CBT), he won the case. He was also linked to the Offa robbery case. So when Saraki decided to join his colleagues who dumped the ruling A.P.C for his former party - P.D.P, he got more than he bargained for, with A.P.C members and leadership calling on him to resign as the senate President. There has been plot to remove him by the A.P.C senators but since it will take 2/3 of the senate which is 73 to remove him as the senate  President, of which presently, the A.P.C don't have, he remains the senate President.

The Nigerian Political space also witnessed the blockage of both the residence of the senate President and his deputy by the Police on the day leading to the announcement of the defections. In a bid to prevent the defections, the government quickly mobilized the Police to mount the residence of the leaders of the senate.

But in what looks like a coup last week, the D.S.S seized control of the National Assembly, preventing Lawmakers and staffs from gaining entrance into the National Assembly.
But in a U-turn move, the Acting-President, Prof. Yemi  Osinbajo sacked the man at the helm of affairs at the D.S.S, Lawal Daura and appointed another director, claiming the directives to block the National Assembly did not emanate from the government. While the government can keep on denying, it is a truism, that Nigerians knows the brain behind the actions of the D.S.S.
While the action of the D.S.S was condemned by lovers of democracy and freedom home and abroad, it is important that the government of the day, fish out those responsible for that dastardly act in our modern day history.

As I bring this article to an end, I will like to see a country where her Citizens are not moved by the actions and inactions of these politicians and leaders. Where our Politicians cum leaders would allow the interest and development of their people override their own selfish interest.

As we countdown towards the 2019 General elections, Nigerian citizens should keep in mind that politicians whether from the south or not, when it comes to the issues of money and self interest are all the same. And should they be called to kill or spill the blood of their fellow countrymen, they should gladly turn it down.

In this MONEY-PULATED ECONOMY, only love can set us free. When we refuse to become the tool Politicians use to fulfill their own selfish interest and agenda, we create the future that will want.

By Adetayo Omotoyosi Adeolu

omotoyorsiiadeolu@gmail.com

Boys Are Not Stones

When I saw this picture, I remembered how boyhood hurts. How we were planted in the hands of abuse; lost sisters and uncles. How our parents thought we were old enough to man ourselves, to find our way; so they gave us a weak freedom. They gave us the freedom to our doom. The freedom that would kill us later in life. Those pains still remain part of me. The pains of those boy children endangered in the hands of Auntie. Those boy children tampered like broken glasses, strong enough to hold their shattered bodies, thoughts, feelings and emotions together without breaking them; without telling their parents because society stereotyped them. Society foisted heroic names on them.

I wonder why parents always thought we were stronger when the other parts of us seek help and support. I wonder why they take so much consideration in keeping the girl child together. Teaching them how to sit properly. Teaching them how to rebuke a man that touches their body, especially their private parts. Teaching them how to avoid premarital sex. Teaching them how not to go to that boy’s house alone, but the boy child is neglected under the deceptive shroud of self-confidence, the false belief that he has full control of himself. We forget that those boys also have feelings and weaknesses.

We sing more of those girls from paradise than the boys from the ghetto school of hard knocks. Remember, we are all part of the struggle too. We face the same thing that girls face in that lonely room. Auntie and Uncle still stroke us in the dark blind room. They still ask us to plant a kiss on their lips and make us spend hours touching them here and there and watch them groan in an unknown tone. We didn’t tell anyone because if we did, they wouldn’t buy us those Christmas shoes they promised us.

We should be careful whom we send our boys to, whom our boys go visit alone. We should

be careful with home teachers, pastors in the church, Sunday school teachers and those we leave our boys with. The boy child is also prey to Sisters of Christ, the priests and those people we trusted with our lives. They are not stones. 
Boys are not stones, why neglect them to be abused by those lost sisters?

Boys are being raped and brutalized too. They get abused by women old enough to be their mothers but they keep quiet because no one would believe their stories. Because we believe more in the abuse of the girl child than the boy child, why?

Why does the society cry only in defence of the girl child? Lest we forget, the boy child is not a stone. Parents should look into our matters too. Let’s relate this with a family that has a boy and a girl. In the family diagram, the girl is considered more vulnerable in so many more ways than the boy, even though the girl may be older than him. They believe the boy is a man and can take good care of himself. They do not know that as much as he is a boy, he has his own weaknesses weighing him down, but he won’t talk because society taught him that talking makes him a weak man. He is not allowed to cry either because crying reduces him as a man. So, he has learnt to swallow more assaulted bones than his spit.

No one would respect him if he spoke his mind. This is where society also offends the boy child. Society stereotyped him to think he is a superhero, a superman who can take care of himself. Many crazy things happen to boys. We go through severe pains. The government will hear of this and nothing will be done. No imprisonment, no suspension. The priests hurt them. The pastors abuse them, their mothers hit them and their sisters hurt them morally as well as the house help using them also, but no one is saying anything about this. Is there no hope for the boy child in these matters? People don’t really care about what happens to these innocent boys.
We say words like “If anything happens to my daughter;” “Please take care of your sister;” “Protect your sister;” Then, what about the boys? Who takes care of the boys? They are like pastors who pray for others but hope unto God for our every success.

I think that the boy child should be given a voice to speak among his peers, a voice of expression. I think they should be given the chance to explain themselves; the right to see themselves in themselves. They shouldn’t be stereotyped, they should be taught how weak they are and not superhumans.

Boys you are not super humans! Take note, let no one deceive you into believing that.

In as much as they invade our territories and want to have us by all means, we should also defend ourselves. You know when the tale is told, the world will doubt us by saying ‘Women cannot rape or sexually assault a boy;” “How can a boy be raped by a woman?” so, you have to defend your territories. This game is changing every day, and society can’t see it. We talk about the Chibok girls, Dapchi girls and those girls brutalized in the street, yet the boys are not talked about.

I actually observe that parents, especially mothers are just concerned about the girl child losing her virginity and getting pregnant and not worried about the issues of the boy child. They are not worried about the tale that the boy told them about Uncle Ricky removing his pants. They are not moved by the stories they told them about the pastor touching them here and there. Maybe they believed he was praying for them or maybe that Sunday school teacher that took Benny to the toilet and told him he had a big manhood was right saying such things to a boy. These people held in such high esteem are abusing boys, so why do we shy away from them?

Lots of little boys are suffering in silence in the street. They can’t say a thing about the

dangers they face every day. Even if they speak out, who will believe them? How many people believe boys can be raped too or sexually abused on any occasion? Maybe you will understand better when an adult male opens up to you about the horrors of their childhood. This has been my thought and will also be my message and the consciousness I exude. We should try not to keep fostering society’s mistake by raising one and neglecting another in the name of manhood. Don’t raise only a girl and not the boy because you think he is bold enough to stand alone.

I will now relate to my own childhood experience. I grew up in the ghetto town of Aba where survival was by who you are, how brave you are to defend your sister’s body from being defiled by men and boys. Mother always told us to protect our sisters. That was the ultimate role of a boy at that age. There were boys around. Boys that could take advantage of her. Boys that could harm her. Boys that could teach her bad things. So, she taught us how to defend our sisters, not ourselves, because she believed that our sisters were weaker emotionally and therefore could not protect themselves; but we boys can. We planted those beliefs in our mind. We fought harder so that we would not disappoint the mother and father. We have to make them proud. I fought too even though I was not that strong. But I needed to prove to my parents that I could protect my sister even though I was so weak to defend myself at that time.

There was one day when a friend of mine was beaten by a girl in school. He came back home and told his parents what happened. The whole house broke into elegies. It was torn into pieces and its fragments shattered into dust. The spiders went into hiding, the lizards were afraid too. Everywhere was calm and silence ruled our mind.

His father got angry. He shouted, danced here and there to his ability. He asked my friend where his hands were when the girl beat him up. I was there. I was afraid to explain what really happened to them. My friend was too afraid to speak. The father went into his room, got a rope, tied his hands and legs and began to beat him. His mother did not help the matter. She was supportive of his father. They beat the hell out of him. I helped him escape.

As I grew older, I tried to relate this issue with being inhuman and the things that have to do with boys and girls but failed. I tried to relate it to me as a man but I could not get a reasonable answer to all the questions bothering my mind. They were not abstract things. They were things we see day after day. A wife beating her husband and people laugh it away, a man beating his wife, it becomes violence against women, it makes the headlines in the dailies. Then, what is the name given to the former 

Is it a sin for a girl to beat up a boy of her age or one she is older than? Are we that strong emotionally and physically that nothing can defeat us? Or is it culture or tradition that made it so? Why do boys have to suffer this much and society doesn’t care about them?

The majority of these things happen everywhere. We think there is no way a boy can show his weakness to the world. They look up to the boy child as the firstborn of the family so he is expected to bury his father upon his death.

Boys are not stones, they are flesh and blood just like their counterpart.

by John Chizoba Vincent 

chizobavincent@gmail.com