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THE SEARCH FOR GREEN LAND - Issues with Shola Ola

January 23, 2018, 12:32 am
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The struggle for economic survival by both herdsmen and farmers in various parts of the country, which unfortunately continue to lead to senseless bloodletting, has consistently made headlines. More recently, we have witnessed unforgivable loss of lives in Benue state via activities of these herdsmen. One only hopes that our security agencies would live up to their responsibilities by bringing the perpetrators to book, and take necessary steps to prevent future occurrence.

The herdsmen mostly referred to as Fulani, not minding whether they are from our next door Niger Republic or Chad, move from place to place in search of where the grass is greener (even when unfortunately some of them might be working for influential cattle business men in Nigeria: their quest is to succeed in what they do, it is just rather bad that they care less for human lives compared with the lives of their stock).The low rainfall, coupled with continuous desertification of most parts of far north perhaps, necessitated the need to move to north-central and then southern parts of the country where the grass is greener due to higher rainfall. As these herdsmen move from place to place with their cattle in search for food and water, either deliberately or not, they sometimes encroach on people’s farm which usually results into violent faceoff with farmers, and eventually the disaster we currently have in our hands. 

The herdsmen search for green grass is not different from the quest of many young Nigerians in search of green pastures in other countries. In a similar pattern, many youths see their fatherland as desert that those at the helms of affairs lack the wisdom to turn green. Thus, like the nomadic herdsmen, they migrate from place to place in search for greener pasture. The search begins from a simple migration of rural dwellers who are dissatisfied with life in the village, to major towns where they think better economic opportunities are available. When these towns fail to meet their expectations, they naturally gravitate to big cities like Port-Harcourt, Abuja, Lagos or Kano where healthier economic opportunities abound. In the event these big cities also fail them, they are tempted to move outside the shores of their fatherland in search of greener pastures. This, no doubt, led many of our youths to places like Libya where we have been told of a “disgusting” slave market. The testimony of many of the returnees in the hands of their ‘bugger’ (slave masters) leaves much to be desired. Most of them went through the tortuous experience of traveling through the hot desert of the Sahara alongside other African migrants mostly from the West-African region, where many died of hunger and dehydration. Even the reports of overloaded boats conveying African migrants capsizing on the Mediterranean Sea while attempting to cross to Europe were not enough to change the hearts of these youths. According to United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), more than 10,000 African migrants have died since 2014 while attempting to cross the Mediterranean to Europe.

The revelation of many Libya returnees further attests to leadership failure in this part of the globe. These young men and women cannot be said to be lazy, because they knew that dollars are not picked on the streets of America nor pound sterling on the streets of London. They only lack the necessary platform to exhibit their talents. Many of our youths who made it to where the grasses are greener have proved to us that given the right environment, combined with hard work, everyone’s dream can come true.

The young Nigerians are not the only ones looking for greener pastures, even the best of the best among our professionals are relocating to where the grasses are greener. I wonder what will become of us, if we allow our best hands to relocate because of frustrating work environment and conditions. Today, Nigerian trained professionals in the field of medicine, engineering, and other areas have proved that they have what it takes to stand side by side with their counterparts in the advanced countries, if given the right environment and tools to function. It is up to our leaders to arrest the brain drain…

Our leaders must justify their leadership by ensuring that the system in this part of the world, functions like those of Europe. If the leaders on the other side, where our youths and professionals are constantly running to, can guarantee their citizens 24 hours electricity, nothing should hinder our leaders from doing the same. If the rail can work on the other side, it can also work here. Most importantly, if those on the other side can guarantee basic needs of life which are food, clothing, and shelter, to their populace, we equally have what it takes to ensure same. Until the grasses here are as green as those on the other side, the search for greener pastures by Africans would continue.   

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Shola Olayiwola is a freelance writer. He loves to write and defend the course of his country.
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STARS - a Poem by Enigmatic Olumide

February 6, 2018, 8:49 am
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Stardom is like an addiction to hard drugs
It's the reason for our ailment
Yet the high dose that aids our healing

It's the reason we wake every morning
Craving for attention
The search for relevance

But irrelevances drove us here
Like chasing the wind, we catch nothing
Cheers when we're up there, jeers at the break of dawn

They forget that stars get weak
Stars grow old and die of diseases
Stars are human, like you

We are stars
We look like precious stones when we shine
But when we flop, we look like frogs

21.01.18. 00:00-00:08am
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The Enigmatic, Olumide Bisiriyu, is a multi-gifted fellow who exhibits his creativity with Poetry (spoken and written), Photography, Acting, Cinematography, and writing Fiction, while he works as a Real Estate Consultant. He is the CEO of EGC media.
 

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VICIOUS CIRCLE - a Poem by Ijaiya Tahir

March 8, 2018, 12:01 am
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Hopefully, I will overcome
Shamefully, I never do
Like a song on replay
I expected a familiar stimulus
But my solution was
my problem
It goes on and on

Trapped in endless time
I don’t mean life itself
But the stimuli-response phenomenon
I always come back for rematch
A match I will definitely lose
A familiar defeat
I never cease to embrace
And it goes on and on

A foe I offer shelter
Set the shelter ablaze
But I never mind
The familiar arsonist
Entrusted with a lighter
It’s a vicious circle
But I care less
It goes on and on


 Written by Ijaiya Tahir Adekunle
Edited by EnigmaTic Olumide
 ***

Ijaiya Tahir Adekunle is a political scientist who graduated from University of Ilorin. He’s crazy about songs with poetic and philosophical depths. He’s an obsessed Chelsea FC fan, a video game enthusiast, and he reads to connect with great minds.
 
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WHERE WE MET - a Poem by HighOnWord

March 12, 2018, 4:30 pm
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We met at a place
That was to be a crossroad
Where men meet, greet and wave
hoping to meet again,
Maybe once, maybe twice a lifetime.
We met there and stopped there.
We laughed; we fought, fought and
laughed, but
could not go beyond.
I looked back and returned
She did the same and returned
But the roads met again,
where men meet, greet and say goodbye
But we couldn't do the same.
She smiled, I smiled
I sat, she did
We fought and laughed and laughed again
And laughed and fought and fought again
But none dared go beyond
And none dare return
For experience have taught us
that whether we go beyond or return,
We'll meet again
Where men meet, greet and wave goodbye
But we will be unable to do the same
For we'll hold... and hug,
may fight and shrug
And like a good book,
we'll read again:
Our smiles and tears,
faith and fears,
And always remember where we met,
At the place where two roads crossed
But we could not cross with them.

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Richard Abutu aka HighOnWord likes describing himself as a cool and collected person. He also believes his poems have impacted lives and so much is expected of him. He stands among those who believe that poetry holds the key to Nigeria and Africa's greatness.

 






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BEYOND NEGOTIATION - Issues With Shola Ola

March 20, 2018, 8:07 am
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Negotiation is one of the Alternative Dispute Resolution methods employed when people consider the demerits of traditional method of resolving conflicts, which is through the court. It is a viable tool that could lead to a win-win situation when properly deployed to resolve conflicts. However, should the instrument of negotiation be used when dealing with issues of terrorism?

Although most Western countries have a policy of not negotiating with terrorists, some of them still go through a network of proxies. Remember the prisoners exchange between Hamas and Israel where the former released a soldier, Gilad Shalit, in exchange for 1027 prisoners held by the latter. Some would say that’s a country that values the lives of her citizens. One terrorist organisation that appears to have reaped the fruit of negotiation is Al-Qaeda. Investigation by The New York Times revealed that Al-Qaeda and her affiliates have taken at least $125 million in revenue from kidnappings since 2008. These payments were made almost exclusively by European governments that funnelled the money through network of proxies, sometimes masking them as development aids. Negotiating with terrorists no doubt is similar to giving a dog fresh meat, once it gets used to it, the dog may one day devour the owner when it’s get hungry and fresh meat is not forthcoming.

Considering the embarrassments the abduction of the Chibok girls brought the nation and trauma the parents had gone through, the whole country felicitated with the government and the girls’ parents when some of them were released from captivity. Aside those rescued by the military, the government through Red Cross ICRC first negotiated the release of 21 girls in October 2016, followed by another set of 82 freed in May 2017. It was evident that government being under pressure had limited choices since it could not secure the release of the girls through military operation and must have danced to the tune of the insurgents. The insurgents had tasted blood and just as the government was assuring the ‘Bring Back Our Girls’ Campaigners and the general public that the remaining 110 girls would be released, the insurgents got thirsty again. Thus, in June and July 2017 respectively, the news of the abduction of some policewomen along Damboa road and some lecturers from UNIMAID made headlines. Again, the government had few options and being under intense pressure had to negotiate their release. Hence, in February 2018, we received the news of their freedom which was made possible by Red Cross, ICRC.

The Chibok abduction was definitely not the first; many women and children had been adopted in the past but did not make headlines. Some of them are probably still in the hands of their captors. However, the public outcry and condemnation that followed the Chibok abduction may have suggested to the insurgents the way to get the government to dance to their tune – kidnap individuals or group that is able to make embarrassing headlines. This, perhaps motivated the kidnapping that took place on Monday, 19 February 2018, at Government Girls Secondary School Dapchi in Yobe State where 110 girls were said to be missing. Not sure of the ability of the military to rescue the girls, the government appears to have to have opened the line of negotiation to secure their release.

Without being insensitive to the plights of the parents and the loved ones of all those who had been abducted in the past, the question is, “can we afford to continue to bend to the wishes of terrorists and criminals?” Should the government be the one seeking for negotiation or should it be the other way round? For me this is a trend that should not be allowed to continue.

The big difference between ours and those of developed countries is that the terrorists do not have their roots on their soil and of course, they have the capacity to respond to acts of terrorism on their soil. In most cases, their intelligence network is able to arrest terrorist intents even before they are carried out. Where terrorists succeed, they are identified and brought to book. This is why it has become extremely expedient to increase the capacity of the military and other security agencies to be able to keep Nigeria and Nigerians safe in other to avoid a situation where criminals would always bring the government and the people to her kneels.

Increasing the capacity of security agencies does not end with increasing their workforce and providing basic equipment to function or respond to Nigerians in distress. Giving them the right training in line with current challenges and access to modern technology would make their job easier. The ease with which these terrorists carry out the dastardly acts shows that our intelligence network is either too weak or not functioning. This is why government must look in the direction of the agencies responsible for intelligence gathering in the country review their operations. Those agencies need to do better than their traditional method of gathering information.

Aside ensuring that our security agencies recruit the right workforce, the government owes them a duty to ensure that our men and women in uniform are highly motivated. Motivation in this instance is not limited to increasing their take home pay and allowances; the families of those of them who paid the supreme price in the course of keeping the country safe should not wait endlessly to collect whatever entitlement they are supposed to get and their children must not drop out of school on the ground of school fees. In short, they must not be seen to be living in penury after the demise of their breadwinner. That is the only way to motivate those alive that they would need not worry about their loved ones should they also fall while defending their country. Likewise, those who became permanently disabled in the course of duty must be assisted to live as normal life as possible.

Like the previous abduction and the current one, the military and the police should get a fair share of the blame for what they did and did not do. But we forgot that they cannot give what they do not have. Until we invest heavily in the security architecture of the country and tackle the associated societal issues that breeds insecurity, these heinous crimes which portray us to the world in bad light would continue: and we would continue to dance to the tune of Boko Haram and other criminal elements in the country.

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Shola Olayiwola is a freelance writer. He loves to write and defend the course of his country.
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WITHERS - a Poem by Philip Peace

March 21, 2018, 4:30 pm
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There is a world in my head, and
from the moving of breath, I know.
the night steals a sigh from my breath
and this blank space crawls in my eye.
these nights house a graveyard, even
an illusion which is real'ty
as dreams are. these nights house the soul
lying b'neath the soil of emptiness.
these nights are happy as a child
who knows nothing about darkness
while staying in it. Innocence
 is a gathered grieving of a
body flow'ng out of its spirit.
these nights are holy with the sins
of darkness; shooting arrows of
lightening and a soul's victim.
these nights are as distant mountain
flutters roses 'n' hidden breath
of whispering spirit. these are
in the night of grieving laughter’s;
in its elation of sadness.
these are nights of my moving breath.
and its mournfulness is gladness;
in its awe is living behind
the breath and breath'ng before the eye.
what darkness is compared 'these nights?









Akinwale Peace Akindayo best known as Philip Peace is an undergraduate of the University of Ilorin. Born in the late nineties, he's the third in a family of five. He is a lover of music, dance, art and other things that breathe uniqueness and originality.
 

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ANOTHER CHANCE - Issues With Shola Ola

April 14, 2018, 4:30 pm
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Dubai has been adjudged the fastest growing city in the world and one of the favourite places for business and leisure in the Middle-East for some years now. Yet this was a place whose first city’s tarmac road was said to be the dowry paid by the Emir of Qatar to marry a Dubai princess. A year later, the emir who probably felt sorry for his backward neighbour, who had just been taken over by his eccentric new father-in-law, Sheikh Rashid bin Saed al-Maktoum paid for a bridge connecting the emirate’s two halves. Juxtaposing the development in Dubai from 1991 under the leadership of Sheik Mohammed, son of Sheik Rashid that has now put the little known city on world map and the events in Nigeria since the end of military rule in 1999, one can brashly say that the successive civil administrations are failures.

Taking a cursory look at these past civilian regimes, the first one no doubt started well, but the debacle of tenure extension made a mess of his good efforts. The second, a good-man they called him, but we all know that it takes more than being a good-man to do the needful. Unfortunately, the creator later called him home. The third one, in my opinion became a president by providence and had the best chance to put the nation on the right part, but he allowed corruption thrive too well under him. His case made me realise that intimidating academic certificates might not be enough to be a leader. To put a stop to the thriving corruption, another one with strong anticorruption antecedent was brought in. Regrettably, he had since been found guilty of nepotism and other “misfortunes” by the court of public opinion.

Certainly, none of them thus far met our expectations. Even the one which in my opinion made effort to better the lots of the people still do not fit into the kind of leader that genuinely has the people’s interest at heart as far as others are concerned. Unfortunately, many do not realize that in our hands lies the power that brought them in; and in our hands lies the power to replace them. Hence, all they do is complain. Others simply would say “Let’s leave them for God” and do nothing. The more religious ones have since gone spiritual, earnestly praying for a miracle; just maybe some of these selfish leaders would fall down and die. While prayer is good, at least it’s better than doing nothing. But then, it is not enough to bring the kind of leadership that will turn around the luck of this nation. As Edmund Burke observed “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing”.

Soon another opportunity would present itself to us – another chance to do something about the hyenas and jackals that have held us to ransom for years and are not ready to let go. They will come again in their usual babariga seeking for another chance. Woe unto you, if you allow their rice and oil determine where you thumbprint on the ballot paper. Perhaps you should say to them, “Hey Mister Politician!” keep your rice and oil, and tell us in concrete terms how you intend to fix our roads which are nothing but death traps. Ask them how they would improve the quality of public education our wards receive so that they too can enjoy what your wards in schools outside the shores of this land are enjoying. Let’s also demand from them, what they intend to do to turn around the public hospitals whose statuses are currently not good for them and their family, which is the reason for their usual medical expedition abroad. Similarly, we should ask them how they intend to deal with the perennial epileptic power situation that has gulped billions of dollars without significant improvement, and how they intend to ensure that murderous individuals and groups don’t invade our homes in the night and snap life out of us. Furthermore, ask how they intend to balance the budget which remained deficit year in year out. Depending on what is peculiar with your community… the list is endless.

Perhaps they have come with promises of sponsorship of holy pilgrimages, free “Ileya” rams, and Christmas cloths. We should simply remind them that these are not the basic function of governance but rather, they should disclose how they intend to ensure that the economy booms again so we can prosper and then we in turn will buy for ourselves Ileya rams and Christmas cloths during the yuletides and embark on holy pilgrimages when we wish.

As things stand today, there appears to be only three choices, to continue with the change, change the change, or join the third force. The choice is ours. But once the campaign for the electioneering starts, seek personality and not party, contents and not container and if need be, consider a new path to the future if you think the one you are on would lead to nowhere. Most importantly, participate either as a candidate or a voter.    

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Shola Olayiwola is a freelance writer. He loves to write and defend the course of his country.






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OF A ROAD I KNOW - a Poem by Ololade Akinlabi

May 22, 2018, 4:50 am
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Of a road I know, 
Where poverty breeds richness,
'Baba rere, baba ke...'
Trample over me and take the right of easement.

Of a road I know,
Where people laugh out their Cries.
Attempt to kill oneself is a suicide,
Having a helping hand is a murder.
Frustration is not by choice
But a factor that simplifies destiny.

Of a road I know,
Where being a lunatic is not by tattered cloth;
The tie man could be one,
He could monologue when the stage isn't set.
That is an initiation to insanity.

Of a road I know,
Stretching out arms to beg for alms;
A lucrative discipline with no tutor.
Coordinated, organized and well planned.
Givers lack, official beggars take over tavern at night.

Of a road I know,
Uniform men are tax collectors,
For every 'zoom-zoom' is a fifty in currency
And every 'horn' is a hundred in currency.
Skillful tax collectors they are, give and it shall be squeezed into pocket.

Who knows of this road?
Coloured by the feet of 'Evening marketers' at night,
"Check me out, I get it all..."
Overnight they shall be ridden by the belly men
At the helm of our poverty.

This road that I know
Is where dreamers shamble; they could walk many miles in search of a pasture that's green.
Behind, at their shoes' heels they are known.
A day-night efforts guarantee no success.

Pulpits walk on this road
Echoing the throat of the bell; 'cla-cla-cla'
"The end is near, HIS coming is nearer, life is vanity..."

This road that I know,
Whose head starts from your frontage
And its tail ends at mine.
Do you know of this road? 

Ololade Akinlabi (Ige)
© 2017

(NB: ‘baba rere baba ke’- a saying commonly used by touts in southwestern Nigeria for rich men they could get money from.)


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Ololade Akinlabi hails from Ibadan. He is a graduate of Obafemi Awolowo University. His spur for using words in a creative way has always prompted him to write poem. He was a nominee for Nigeria Writers Award 2017, a second runner up in Youth shades international poetry contest and a two time winner of PIN’s 10-day poetry challenge.

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WHEN NIGERIAN SECURITY INSTITUTIONS BECOME THE ENEMY - Issues With Shola Ola

July 6, 2018, 12:14 pm
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Not too long ago, a former Chief of Army Staff and later Minister for Defence, Lt Gen T.Y. Danjuma, made a weighty allegation that the military (particularly the army) was conniving with herdsmen to attack innocent civilians in Taraba State. His call for the people to defend themselves against the murderous herdsmen was considered an invitation to anarchy. More recently, Peter Gyendeng, representing Barkin-Ladi Constituency in the Plateau State House of Assembly and Emma Zopmal, President of Middle Belt Youth Council, accused the military of trying to cover-up the murder of innocent citizens (on 24th June 2018) by herdsmen in Barki-Ladi area. As mind boggling as these allegations are, in a society where everything has a price tag, nothing seems impossible. The level of involvement in criminal activities in the past by some of the bad eggs adorning the uniform of security agencies in Nigeria gives credibility to these allegations. The Nigerian Police Force and other security agencies have also at one time or the other been accused of taking sides in conflicts around the country. Though investigation by the army authorities did not find the army wanting with respect to the allegation by Lt Gen Danjuma, biased security institutions is sure inimical to a peaceful Nigeria.   

While it is easy to sit in the comfort of one’s home to criticise these security agencies without considering what they go through to keep the people safe, one must not forget that the reason Nigeria still exist as a unit is because of them. What should bother everyone still interested in one Nigeria is that, when people continuously get murdered in hundreds under the watchful eyes of our security men and no one is held accountable, the call for the people to defend themselves against perceived threat would only get louder. This definitely should get us worried: the present situation does not suggest to the ordinary Nigerians that they have dependable security institutions.   

Definitely, other factors exist that contribute to the inability of our security agencies to protect lives and property of the citizenry. One thing is however clear, the disease that has bugged Nigeria down over the years – “corruption” is also endemic in the various security institutions. Fortunately, fighting corruption is one of the priorities of President Buhari’s led administration. Perhaps, it is high time the government beamed her anticorruption light on the security agencies. Ensuring that they recruit the right personnel is where to start, and refusing to water down allegation of corruption involving security agents would get them on their toes. Government’s effort to improve the socioeconomic status of Nigerians would not yield the expected result in the face of corrupt security institutions.

A corruption free security institution is a corruption free Nigeria. Fight corruption in the Nigeria Police Force and we will be assured of a police that is Nigeria oriented and would in turn ensure corrupt individuals in and out of government face the law. Fight corruption in the Nigeria Custom Service and her personnel would not connive with smugglers to sabotage the nation. Fight corruption in the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency and we will have a drug free society, not a Nation where innocent youths are rumoured to be tortured or exhorted for carrying ordinary pain killers while the highly connected ones carrying hard drugs are allowed to roam the highway unbothered. Fight corruption in the military and they will defend the territorial integrity of Nigeria and her people without favour to, or prejudice against, any group. Fight corruption… Until our security institutions work, Nigeria may not work.

Happy Nigerian Army Day Celebration!


***


Shola Olayiwola is a freelance writer. He loves to write and defend the course of his country.
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GOOD AND BAD ON BOTH SIDES - Issues With Shola Ola

August 28, 2018, 8:38 am
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For those of us who became more politically aware about two decades ago, when a new democratic dispensation was sworn in 1999, parts of the dividend of democracy our political leaders seemed to have bequeathed us are ethnicity and religion. Thanks to politicians who in their bid to win election constantly appeal to ethnic sentiments and wouldn’t mind turning religious houses to campaign grounds. Without minding the consequences of their actions, they deliberately make us think that only those of our primordial groups have our interest at heart and would deliver to us the dividend of democracy we desire.

With the exception of those power prostitutes – “yesmanship” intelligentsia, profiting from every regime in power, during the military era, Muslims, Christians, Traditionalists and the various ethnic groups all had one common enemy – the military dictators in power. And they all seemed to have one common aim – to get the dictators out of power. I believe this was the reason for the public outcry culminating in wide spread violence in the aftermath of the annulment of the 1993 election won by late MKO Abiola. Even in the comfort of my pants, I still recall many of my peers and myself running after the egbons (the big brothers) in the area celebrating the victory. I didn’t even know that both MKO Abiola and his running mate, Baba Gana Kingibe were of same faith.
  
That was then. Today, it’s all about ethnicity and more about religion. The competition between the two dominant religions since the fourth republic is one every Nigeria should be concerned about, so much so that the adherents of one thinks is own is more superior to the other. In this regards, the politicians alone are not the only ones to be blamed. Our religious leaders too cannot be completely exonerated because they have consistently made us believe that those who are not with us are unbelievers and therefore are against us. As a result, we have lost the much needed tolerance required to coexist peacefully in other to build a great nation.

One thing I know of every religion, including the traditional religion, is that, they all believe in the existence of a Supreme Being, an Invisible Hand that controls the affairs of men. If this is true of every religion, why is it difficult to allow one another stay on the path each believes would lead them to Him? Why should we discriminate against the other and even despise them because they refuse to tread our trail? Allow me to paraphrase the words of Swami Vivekananda, “The Muslim is not to become a Christian, or a Christian to become a Muslim. But each must assimilate the spirit of the others and yet preserve his individuality and grow according to his own law of growth”.

For many, their religious identity was not a choice they made themselves. They simply continued on the path shown them by those who nurtured them. So if later in life, and for reason(s) best known to them, they decide to tread another path other than the one bequeathed them why should they be persecuted for changing side? I do not think the Heavens celebrate the ignoramus amongst us who go berserk, maiming and liquidating others in the name of religion. These ignoramuses are too shallow minded to know that good and bad men and women are on both sides of the divide. The words of Swami captures this more appropriately: If there is anything the parliament of Religion has shown us: It has proved to the world that holiness, purity and charity are not the exclusive possessions of any church (or mosque) in the world, and that every system has produced men and women of most exalted character. In the face of this evidence, if anybody dreams of the exclusive survival of his own religion and the destruction of the others, I pity him from the bottom of my heart, and point out to him that upon the banner of every religion will soon be written, in spite of resistance: “Help and not fight”, “Assimilation and not Destruction”, “Harmony and Peace and not Dissension”.

The argument here may not align with some people’s preconceived religious beliefs. But knowing the carnages men had committed and are still committing in the name of religion, why not worship and pray your way and allow other too do it their way? Let the Man above whom we all believe exist and are calling upon decide which worship or prayer is more acceptable, while we direct our energy towards the common foes that makes us really look like a shithole nation. 

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Shola Olayiwola is a freelance writer. He loves to write and defend the course of his country.
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CALL FOR NOMINATIONS; TOP 50 CONTEMPORARY POETS WHO ROCKED NIGERIA IN YEAR 2018

November 16, 2018, 11:37 pm
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Few years ago, the pain of Nigerian Poets was more of lack of attention than lack of money. Though it’s not that money flows into the bank account of those who express the art right now, it could be said that some still make money from it, i.e. with organizing shows, literary festivals, stage performances, and maybe book/audio sales. With the recent “shitty-Poem” of Nigerian Comedian known as“Lasisi Elenu”, one could arguably confirm that Nigerian Poets have begun to get the attention they crave.


Though lots of Poets felt insulted with the “rubbish” he spewed, some saw the positive angle and used it to launch few ripples. At EGC, we will look at the positive side, and once again, we call for you to join us to nominate the Poets whom you feel really rocked Nigeria in the outgoing year (2018). Please note that by ‘Rock’, we do not mean the best Poets in Nigeria; we mean those whose impacts were really felt in various categories where Poets/poetry is concerned. The categories we consider are:

a.      Page Poet of the year
B.     Spoken Word Poet of the year
C.     Poetry Promoter of the year
D.     Cross over poet of the year 


   NOTE:

1.      If there is any poet you would like to be in your list but he/she is older than 50 years old, please place them in (E) Honorary mention category.


2.      This is not a ‘Please nominate me’ thing, kindly nominate Poets based on your conviction alone and not because anyone ask you to.


3.      Minimum of 10 and maximum of 15 names are required for nominations in each of these categories. Nominations not made in categories (A-D) above will not be counted.

4.      Number your nominations, your number '1' will be scored higher than number '10'/'15'/etc.


5.      For those who are yet to understand the Cross over category, it is meant for Poets who venture into other arts such as Prose, Drama, Film, Music, Visual arts, etc.  Also note that there will be top 10 Poets in each category and there will be eventual Top 5o (who are poets with highest nominations).

6.      People who are actually not proven to be Poets will be removed from the list (this excludes those in poetry promotion category).

HOW WE GRADE
Points from nominations will be graded 35% (EGC), 35% (Poets focused group i.e. Poets we are sure of their knowledge about other Nigerian Poets. Their identity will not be made public), 30% (General nominations) where anybody can nominate. This is important as we desire near 100% accuracy in this survey (we know nobody can get it right 100% though), let us at least do it together and do it better.

BELOW ARE SIMPLE THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN NOMINATING POETS FOR EACH CATEGORY:
1.       IMPACT: are the works of these Poets felt by a lot of people in Nigeria?
2.       ORIGIN: are these Poets Nigerians?
3.       AGE: are these Poets between 1-50 years old?
4.       REASON: why are we nominating these Poets?
5.       SINCERITY: am I sincere with my nominations or biased?

NOMINATION WINDOW OPENS 18TH NOVEMBER 2018 AND CLOSES 8TH DECEMBER 2018.
Our first call for nominations was made in year 2011, and the first of this annual list was released in first few days of 2012: to view please Click: Top 50 year 2012, 

 TO NOMINATE
Send nominations as body of e-mail to egcmails@gmail.com.  Use ‘#EGCtop50’ as subject line

And please, give reasons why you are nominating the poets for each category.

Thank you.





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IGNORANCE IS FUN - Issues with Oluboyo Kudirat

November 27, 2018, 12:22 am
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As little as you could remember, there was so much life. Everyone greeted you by pulling your cheek. Some uncles would even dip their garlic finger in your mouth while some aunties stained your glowing skin with various shades of lipstick. You wanted to protest but they were all going to freak the hell out if you talked. So you managed to keep mute. There’s indeed little to remember; but it was fun still.

At home, education was not taken so serious, knowing that your mother was going to make your brother or sister solve the math problem for you. You could stain your new dress with chocolate; clothe your hair with mud; and play as much as possible, and no one cared, because you are just a kid!

All you knew was the small world built around you with no knowledge of what it entailed. Life is hard but you’ve got your parent struggling for you. Life is stressful but your siblings are doing your work. The world is bad but you did not know for you are guided by innocence. All you knew was that life was full of toys and play mates.

Then, you grow older and realize how naïve you have been. You wish they’d told you everything but they doubted you will understand. You wish you’d studied more when you played but they didn’t want to stop you from catching fun. Now, you are wise, so you aim better. It’s a lesson of how fast time can be spent without it being redeemed. It’s a story for prime age. It’s called "Childhood."

Here’s a warning. No adult should attempt to split the fun-filled chain; rather it should go on for generations. Let’s not be the reason young ones do not have tales to tell. It’s what makes a person wise; that you’ve done some things you would never do again or can’t do again.

Grown-ups should not prevent a child from wishing to be a Princess Sofia or an Avenger or a Dark Knight or Spider/Batman. It’s fun at the time and no matter how much you regret doing those things later, it would make you smile, reminisce and be fulfilled. What a sweet nostalgic feeling!

What childhood ignorance can do to one is an inexplicable theory so everyone should be allowed to experience the sweet stage. The feeling that there’s zero worries in the world, you’ve missed a great deal if you haven’t once lived it

LOVE FOR CHILDHOOD!


 ***

Oluboyo Kudirat is a young and dynamic writer whose writing skills has endeared her to many readers. Being a passionate and creative writer of all things possible, she has lured herself into script writing, fiction and non-fiction, short stories and motivational articles. She is currently serving her father land with NYSC Oyo State. Her blog, www.oluboyodammy.com, houses all her creative works.




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TERMS & CONDITIONS – a poem by Jide Badmus

November 28, 2018, 3:30 pm
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how do I extract the yolk of glory
from this shell of hell?
this furnace is fiery scary
but if I am gold as I was told
I must burn & be born
again — refined by flames.

life is a sinusoidal song,
a rhythm of seasons!
these waves make masts tremble
but my soul is submarine;
I dive in the storm & negotiate
the terms of the tides.



Jide Badmus is an Electrical Engineer who hails from Ilorin, Kwara State. He doesn’t perform poetry but likes to write because the art condenses all other creative genres. He hopes to establish national poetry institute and organize an international poetry festival someday soon.
 



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NIGERIA WILL ALWAYS EXIST - Issues with Shola Ola

December 3, 2018, 3:30 pm
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Nigeria, an amalgam of about 300 ethnic tribes has faced and still faces many challenges. Chief among the challenges are corruption, internal strife, worsening economy, administrative inefficiency and over dependence on oil. Incessant internal strife is however one the challenge that has continued to threaten the existence of her geographical space. The challenge of poverty, injustices, ignorance and the inability of leaders and individuals seeking cheap publicity to resist the ethnicity and religious cards as further exacerbate this challenge in recent times. Somehow, the country has been able weather this difficult storm strangulating the unity of the country. First, it was the civil of war of 1967, and in recent times, terrorism in the North East. In truth, Boko Haram Terrorists succeeded in retarding and reversing the development in most affected communities, but it failed in its core objective – to break away from Nigeria to create a caliphate of its own. Perhaps, the frequent internal strife and other issues of concern were the basis of the United States of America prediction that Nigeria was likely to be no more by year 2015. Thank God she has since proved them to be prophet of doom. Maybe for now, lest we deceive ourselves; if the issues that continue to trigger internal strife remain unresolved, then the storm is yet to be over.


Unfortunately, the failure of successive regime to address the core issues that leads to internal strife have made it impossible to shut the voices clamouring for the dissolution of the union of 1914. This is why Biafra has refused to die even after 48 years. Many had thought that after the military operation code named “Operation Python Dance” in 2017  and poverty ...our s=. e the basis  the US prediction that the coto suppress and counter the threat by Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the disappearance of the self-acclaimed leader of IPOB, Mazi Nnamdi Kalu the group was dead and buried. However, Nnamdi Kalu recently reappeared in Israel and in his broadcast to his followers and admirers; he called for the boycott of 2019 election in South East. He concluded the broadcast by saying, “I have returned full time, I am coming back and I will bring hell with me.” What he has in the coffin is what we don’t know but the security institutions had better be on their toes.

The growing followers of IPOB are a further indictment on the political class. The IPOB followers, mostly youths are those who have lost faith in the Nigerian state to give them good life while the political class and their cronies live in affluence at people’s detriment. They are those who despite having the highest qualification obtainable in their chosen field but still can’t find a suitable employment while being governed by less educated leaders receiving bogus salaries and allowances. They are who brought their ingenuity to bear but became frustrated due to lack of necessary support from the government and the society. They are those who laboured to start businesses of their own but it died due to the harsh operating environment. They are those who don’t understand why public amenities don’t function in this part of the world. They are those who are aggrieved because of the failure of the Nigerian state to guarantee their security. They are those who felt they have endured the inequality and injustices being meted to them by the Nigerian state and therefore, seeking egalitarian society. They are those who…

Even though the Easterners’ voice is the loudest, there are others who wish for an Independent Arewa or Oduduwa States. They have argued that going our different ways would guarantee peace and economic prosperity. But come to think of it, even if the country is divided into the current states of the federation, it is very unlikely that things will change because the same set of leaders are most likely to take charge of the new countries. More so, one shouldn’t forget that we are Nigerians and we don’t delay gratification. The people will most likely still sell their vote cum future to politicians with the deepest pocket. In other words, same old politicians plus same old people equal same old country. The situation in South Sudan is something to think about.

Judging by her resiliency, to say the truth, those who desire an end of the Nigerian State may have to wait a long time. But until then, they should channel their energy towards seeing the end of misrule that has made the geographical space called Nigeria the poverty capital of the world. Political power they say belong to the people, but it is given to politicians for their benefit. Unfortunately, the people have not been able to make those given the power to give account. This is where to start. As the 2019 general elections approach us, aside voting out bad leaders when the opportunity presents itself, they must also be made to give account of their stewardship after they leave office. 

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Shola Olayiwola is a freelance writer. He loves to write and defend the course of his country.
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TOP 50 CONTEMPORARY POETS WHO ROCKED NIGERIA IN YEAR 2018

January 8, 2019, 8:06 am
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It may well be called “year of the men” since only one of five ladies among Top 50 contemporary Poets who rocked Nigeria in year 2018 was close to making top 20; yet she was hitherto relatively unknown to many, considering the fact that she was never nominated for #EGCtop50 until year 2018. It could also be said to be a year that many boys became men, because many budding Poets made raves and reviews in the year and some of the older Poets who used to dominate (probably) retired to the background or took nap.

HONOURARY MENTION: 

We have just 3 honorary mentions this year. One is Eriata Orhibabor, for his works with Poets in Nigeria (PIN); he could have been among the Top 50 Poets but his age is above 50.Another is Amu Nnadi, though nominations might not take him to the Top 50 list, his mention numerous times is worthy of note. Last is EnigmaTic Olumide, who was nominated into the Top 50 list, especially for his works in Cinematography and poetry promotion, but he was removed from the list because he was behind collation of EGC Top 50 list.

AWARD CATEGORIES:
 

A. PAGE POET OF THE YEAR



ROMEO ORIOGUN clinches this for the second year running. He could probably be described as the rose that grew on concrete; after surviving unwarranted attacks for his Brunel winning poem a year ago, he grew to become a Harvard University study Poet. The other Poets who made Top 5 in this category are:
(2) Logan February,
(3) Rasaq Malik Gbolahan,
(4) Kukogho Iruesiri Samson,
(5) Graciano Enwerem.

 B. SPOKEN WORD POET OF THE YEAR



TOBY ABIODUN wins this. He is no doubt one of the hottest spoken word artists in Nigeria right now. Beyond winning Slams, he could stand his own on any spoken word poetry platform. Other Poets inTop 5 here are:
(2) Graciano Enwerem,
(3) Dike Chuckwumerije,
(4)Efe Paul Azino,
(5) Wayne Samuel.

C. POETRY PROMOTER OF THE YEAR
 
OLULU aka The King Not from Zulu probably deserve this, not because he is the “loudest” poetry promoter in Nigeria, but for his tenacity and doing all he could to promote the art, when it pays and when it doesn’t. Other Top 5 Poetry promoters in Nigeria for year 2018 are:
(2) Efe Paul Azino,
(3) Kukogho Iruesiri Samson,
(4) Graciano Enwerem,
(5) Dike Chukwumerije.


D. CROSS OVER POET OF THE YEAR

 

KUKOGHO IRUESIRI SAMSONwins this. Remembering he won GTBank’s Dusty manuscript prose competition should make all to see he deserves it. Aside literature, which he is now known for, KIS also, has potential in media.Other Cross Over Poets in Top 5 are:
(2) Sage Has.son,
(3) Dike Chukwumerije,
(4) John Chizoba Vincent,
(5) Edaoto Agbeniyi.


EGC TOP 50 LIST 2018
Firstly, if you have not seen the list for year 2017, please click. Now to the annual Top 50 ranking: we congratulate everyone who made it this year; if you could get to Top 50 list after numerous nominations we received from various categories were collated altogether, it means you are doing something right. We also want to appreciate everyone who sent in nominations; you are the real people who rock Nigeria! It is important to note that description given to every Poet who made Top 20 on the list is mostly words written by some of those who sent in nominations. Lastly, before going to the list, remember we are all part of a global puzzle when it comes to development of our art; whatever your hand finds to do, do it well:

TOP 50:
50. Foursyte Bogani
49. Kolade Olanrewaju Freedom
48. Lawal Kafayat Gold (LKG)
47. Phillip Peace
46. Su’eddie Vershima Agema
45. Iquo Diana-Abasi Eke
44. Bash’ Amuneni
43. Cephas
42. Ibukun PENAWD
41. Soul E' Rhymez 
40. LDXXL
39. Dami Ajayi
38. Balogun Gemini
37. Titi Matthews
36. Victor Adewale
35. Hillaryoux
34. D-Ray
33. Poethick Samurai
32. Rudolf Ruddapoet Adidi
31. Ayokunle “Komsons”  Komolafe
30. Obii
29. Falade Kolawole Oluwaseun (Pariolodo)
28. Otatane-oso "2'WYTH" Andrew
27. Adigun Olusola Clinton
26. Andrew Patience
25. Fragile Dogubo
24. Servio Gbadamosi
23. Adedayo Adeyemi Agarau
22. Adegoke Adeola
21. Stephanie Bawo


TOP 20:
 
 20. AJIJOLA DA BELOVED
 Taking a leap from being rated 33rd last year to 20th this year, Da Beloved may well become “the greatest spoken word artist of all time” that he declared to becoming soon. He was listed as 7th spoken word poet that rocked Nigeria in nominations for year 2018. The CEO of BOOM Poetry was among standout Poets on stage in the year and promoted Poetry in his own little way.


 19. SADDIQ DZUKOGI
He was rated 12th Poet that rocked Nigeria last year. He was listed as 6th page Poet for this year. The Othmer fellow and doctoral student at University of Nebraska-Lincoln used to reside in Niger state before relocating to USA. He has been published by numerous international journals. His journey to America was in itself was connected to his dexterity in poetry.


18. WAYNE SAMUEL
He was not rated last year, but for someone who won “WoW” Slam back to back in about a year, he no doubt deserves a place here. He was listed as 4th spoken word Poet that rocked Nigeria this year. His Spoken word mixtape “Sunday Service at the club” was released in 2018. He also made shortlist at some poetry competitions and is expected to release couple of works ranging from spoken word to fiction in 2019.


17. SAGE HAS.SON

Nigeria’s premiere spoken word Poet, as he is fondly called, was rated number 10 Poet that rocked Nigeria in year 2017. Though he likes to call himself a learning Cinematographer, he was listed as number 2 Cross over Poet in Nigeria for year 2018, obviously for his works in that line and his fiction. He rocks more as a teacher and mentor nowadays.





16. JIDE BADMUS

 
Jide was rated 34th poet that rocked Nigeria and was listed as 10th page Poet in year 2017. He leaped to 7th page Poet and 16th poet that rocked Nigeria this year. The author of “There is a Storm in My Head” published “Scripture” in the outgone year and it was applauded by many. He was a guest at various poetry platforms across the country all through the year.





15. REZ DA POET

He was rated 25th Poet that rocked Nigeria in year 2017. This year he was regarded as the 10th top poetry promoter in Nigeria amidst other nominations. Rez is not new to Nigerian Poetry circles, but based on nominations his works probably got more recognition outside his immediate poetry clique in the year. His high point in the year was probably being a guest at Lipton and Literature party, couple of shows on TV, his book, and his own monthly poetry event.






14. AYEYEMI TAOFEEK AKA ASWAGAWWY

 
He was rated number 21 Poet that rocked Nigeria in year 2017. This year he was listed as number 8 page Poet that rocked Nigeria while taking leaps up. The Law graduate is rumored to be dexterous in page as well as teaching Poetry. Though he looks a bit reserved, he has his way of connecting to other Poets.





 13. EDAOTO ADENIYI
 
He was rated number 26 Poet that rocked Nigeria in year 2017. He leaped up this year after being listed as number 5 cross over Poet in Nigeria for year 2018. His ROWE event is main reason for nominations as well as musical exploits both within and outside Nigeria. Eda is often seen as a carefree, social, Poet who turned into a musician.





12. JOHN CHIZOBA VINCENT


He was rated number 28 Poet that rocked Nigeria for year 2017. This year he was listed as number 4 cross over Poet that rocked Nigeria as well as 12th Poet in the annual ranking. JCV as he is often called was rumored to write about two poems a day all through the year and he shared most of them. But his main exploit is crossing into cinematography, though often times working with some more experienced cinematographers.




 11. BANKOLE KOLAWOLE (aka BankHALL)

He was rated number 19 in #EGCtop50 for year 2017. This year he leaped to number 11 while being listed as number 7 poetry promoter that rocked Nigeria. BankHALL was helpful to other Poets especially in South West Nigeria in promoting their shows through the year, and he held his own SOS Slam too. He also performed at various events, most of the time adorning his Yoruba traditional “agbada”, and, often times playfully dancing offbeat to songs.


TOP 10:

10. LOGAN FEBRUARY
He was not rated in #EGCtop50 for year 2017. He crashed in this year narrowly beaten to number 2 page poet in Nigeria by Romeo oriogun. This young man was relatively unknown by most people in Nigerian Poetry community until later part of the outgone year, yet he has been doing exploits long before then. Like many said in their nominations, “It will be difficult to believe this guy is 19 years old.” His work has appeared in The Adroit Journal, Vinyl, BRITTLE PAPER, Kabaka Magazine, The Raleigh Review, etc. His book “Mannequin in the Nude” will be released by PANK Books in year 2019.

9. RASAQ MALIK GBOLAHAN (RMG)
He was rated number 29 Poet that rocked Nigeria in year 2017. This year he took big leaps up while being listed as number 3 page Poet in Nigeria. The Iseyin Poet’s exploits are basically submission to international journals and editing works of various Poets. He is not the everyday Poet you meet at events, but those who really want their poems edited know how to reach him. He was said to have made finalist for 2018 Pushcart Prize.


8. PAUL WORD
He was rated number 6 top Poet in Nigeria for year 2017. This year he took two steps down but was listed as number 6 in both poetry promotion and spoken word category. The Uniben Poet held poetry shows of his own tagged “AWKWARD” while he continued to promote poetry with his kulikuli.com with additional exploit in kulikuli radio on WhatsApp. He also retains his prowess as a dexterous spoken word artist and a slam champion. Paul was a guest at many spoken word events in the outgone year.


7. ROMEO ORIOGUN

Romeo was rated as number 8 Poet that rocked Nigeria in year 2017. This year he retained being listed as number 1 page Poet in Nigeria while taking a step up in the annual #EGCtop50 ranking to number 7. Romeo is that tall dude who used to grace Nigerian spoken word poetry platforms to read long “tiring” poems in gathering of spoken word artists who often frown at his ‘non-conventionality.” This is one Poet you could say his people are divided on loving him or hating him because most Nigerians are not fans of gay rights and the LGBT poetry that won him Brunel University poetry prize about a year ago. Now that he has become a study poet at Harvard University more because of the LGBT matters, one hopes his new lovers will surpass his haters.




6. TOBY ABIODUN
He was rated 11th top Poet in Nigeria for year 2017. This year he leaped to 6th position while being listed as number 1 spoken word Poet in Nigeria, narrowly beaten Graciano to that award. Toby may well be called the king of pun in Nigerian Spoken word poetry community, but he is fast becoming a dreaded slam poet (a title that used to belong to Kemistree who was MIA in the year probably because of NYSC). With multiple slams to his belt, it will not be a surprise if he lasts “too long” atop the spoken words circle. He won a Poetry slam in the year and was rumoured to have been offered a contract to perform spoken word poetry for Heritage Bank afterwards. He was also active online and real time dishing out inspiring and entertaining poems.

5. OLULU
He was rated number 24 on this list for year 2017. But he returned to the league of top 10 poets while being listed as number 1 poetry promoter in Nigeria for year 2018. His “War of Words” poetry slam that holds in Lagos usually gets entry from across the country. Though he didn’t organize his usual WordUp poetry event in the year, he was able to rock the country with the slam and invitations to some other events to either perform or talk. Olulu is seen as striving too hard to make poetry pay by some, but he is not deterred and often express his belief that it may well pay him soon. He changed his stage name to “King Olulu” sometime ago more to state what he actually wants to be when it comes to spoken word poetry promotion in Nigeria.


4. EFE PAUL AZINO
He was rated number 9 on this list last year. This year he moved back up and was listed as number 5 spoken word Poet and number 2 poetry promoter that rocked Nigeria. Described as a Poet who is doing everything right in some quarters, Efe remains one of the most influential spoken word artists that Nigeria has at the moment; a “kingly” title he shares with Dike Chukwumerije, little wonder the first is often called king in the south and the latter called king in the north. This year, his Lagos International Poetry Festival (LIPFEST) gathered more follower-ship. He remained one of the highest earning Spoken word Poets in Nigeria, if he is not the highest.




3. DIKE CHUKWUMERIJE


He was rated number 1 Poet that rocked Nigeria for year 2017. This year he was listed as number 3 spoken word Poet, number 5 poetry promoter, and number 3 cross over Poet. Dike has edged his name in Nigeria’s sands of time as one of the hottest spoken word artists with his “Made in Nigeria” shows and “simply poetry”. As suggested by those who sent in nominations, Dike is arguably the hottest poet on stage right now in Nigeria. Aside performances at the highest stage a poet can dream of, beside the vice president of Nigeria and other high profile dignitaries, heheld his own at his base in Abuja with occasional shows at selected cities. While the saying that “what is not broken does not need fixing” may well work for Dike since what he has been doing well for about two years now are still working very fine, his fans yearn for something new from him. Perhaps an addition to the 3 dexterous spoken word videos he has on YouTube or a DVD collection.

2. GRACIANO ENWEREM




He was rated number 3 on this list for year 2017. But he jumped to number 2 position this year with nominations as number 5 page Poet, number 2 spoken words Poet, and number 4 poetry promoter that rocked Nigeria for year 2018. With performances at 46 events within a year, and most of them being outstanding poetry shows, one could say he definitely deserves a top spot. Sir Grrrr, like his protégées often call him, prefers sound devices to depth in spoken word poetry performances. He may well be right judging from the invitations to events that he receives yearly. He continued to impact budding Poets as he has been doing since he came into limelight with trainings, editing manuscripts, even calling for people to vote people he knew in competitions. At the end of the year he launched his long awaited book, “Spoken Word Poetry 101”. The book is still selling and has been gathering good reviews. His flop in the year however may be the flop of his own FOS Rendezvous held at The Polytechnic Ibadan later in the year; the attendance was not commensurate with the hype. Being someone who attracts audience to other events, one would hope his own event would be the largest.


1. KUKHOGO IRUESIRI SAMSON



He was rated number 2 position last year in #EGCtop50. This year, he jumped back into number 1 position he occupied some years ago while being listed as number 4 page Poet, number 3 poetry promoter, and number 1 cross over Poet that rocked Nigeria. Aside beating about two thousand writers to win Farafina and GTBank’s Dusty Manuscript competition in year 2018, with the book “Devil’s Pawn” expected to be published by their imprint in year 2019, he is fast becoming owner of a publishing firm that stands shoulder to shoulder with the older influential ones in Nigeria. His WRR published more books than previous year, which made him admit he made more profits at the end of the year. He held his annual Feast of Words at International School Ibadan, with the one day event gathering a large attendance and he fed everyone at the event with Yoruba traditional amala and gbegiri. He also gave out free books to all attendees. KIS, as he fondly called is also a philanthropist based in Abuja; but as much as he is loved by the people he gives to, some still complain about him being proud and saying his thoughts without minding who he may hurt.

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BLAME NOT THE COLONIAL MASTERS – Issues with Shola Ola

February 23, 2019, 2:37 am
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The book “Boko Haram and Its Suicide Squad (The Confession of a Jihadist)” by Adrian Davison, though, a fictional work, shed some light on the grudge of Boko Haram. According to the book, one of the things Boko Haram wanted to achieve was to fully implement their own interpretation of the Sharia Law and do away with the negative influences of the West on Africa (and Nigeria in particular). It further revealed that the sect believed that Western influence was responsible for underdevelopment and diseases ravaging Africa. The West or the colonial masters were alleged to be the genesis of corruption and other atrocities being committed in Africa. In other words, they planted their seed of greed and bad ways of life in Africans.

Their culture of sleeping with animals was what brought about HIV and AIDS that has continued to ravage the African continent. The negative fashion of the West in dressing in such a manner that exposes parts of the body meant to be covered has spread across the continent with its attendant consequences. Furthermore, homosexuality is gradually becoming part of African society with some countries now recognising the rights of homosexuals. When God created man, He saw that he was lonely and decided to create woman. Today, man is telling the Creator that he made a mistake and that there is nothing wrong if a man goes after another man and likewise a woman going after another woman for sexual satisfaction. Black Africans are now telling God that He made mistakes by making their skin colour black instead of white, therefore they are correcting Him by bleaching the colour of their skin.

While it is true that the culture of the colonial masters that many of our young and old continue to copy is affecting us negatively, it would be wrong to wholly blame them for our underdevelopment. Surprisingly, even many of our intellectuals also partly blame the colonial masters. According to Dare Arowolo of the Department of Political Science and Public Administration, Adekunle Ajasin University, in his paper titled “The Effects of Western Civilisation and Culture on Africa,” he said Western civilisation and culture precariously contaminated the traditional values of Africa and that Africa had established well before the advent of colonialism. Also, that Africa had a pattern of home-grown political systems, governance process and generally acceptable institutional rule-making arrangement, such that there was progression in the pace of civilisation of Africa and self-styled tempo of technology development”. It further submitted that “The dynamism and significance of Africa on the global continuum tends to support the argument that Africa would have evolved and sustained level of development and civilization without the retrogressive contact with imperial forces.” It may be unnecessary to contest the argument put forward in the paper, but it would be logical to ask why Africa still cannot find its bearing many years after the colonial masters left? It is still ravaged by various forms of crises that no doubt are the root of hunger and underdevelopment in the land. Rather than shift the blame to outside influence, we should blame ourselves for copying the negative culture of the West instead of positive ones, and blame our visionless leaders for their inability to reverse the negativities of the Western world and come up with suitable solution to the various challenges confronting the continent.

In the case of Nigeria, these challenges could be traced to the era of our great nationalists: Sir Ahmadu Bello, Nnamdi Azikwe and Obafemi Awolowo. Though people of my generation were not around during the era of these great men, and our knowledge about them is limited to only what history told us, they were men who loved their people - no doubt. In the regions where they reigned, they laid the foundation of whatever development being enjoyed in those places. But then, history also recorded that there was love lost between these great men. Their politics was along ethnic lines and the constant bickering and suspicion between them could be said to be the foundation of ethnic strife in Nigeria. They will always take the credit for independence but soon after it was granted, our nationalists could not maintain the “interethnic peace” which had been enforced by the colonial overlord. The elites who had commanded popular support before independence had to demonstrate their continuing legitimacy, and in competing against other parties, they could not resist the temptation of appealing to ethnic, linguistic and religious loyalties.


Many years after independence, most African leaders including those in Nigeria, run to the West, the same people blamed for our underdevelopment, for solutions to our problems. Our leaders try to apply the prescription given by the West, which probably was based on the experience of their own nation, to our national challenges without considering the differences in societies. Most Western nations have a highly educated population, a sizeable middle class, and life in those nations is not about fighting for basic needs of life for survival. This is not the case with most African countries, where literacy level is still low, you are either rich or poor and the less privileged among us still live on less than a dollar per day. Certainly, their prescriptions are bound to fail under these circumstances.

As Nigeria navigates another general election, our leaders must show their creativity, and prove that they are not only mentally and intellectually strong like the colonial masters, but also have the political will to do the needful to move our nation forward. They must prove to the world that we are a sovereign nation and not sell us to the West in a manner that made us inferior like a former Nigerian leader did when he visited the then president of United States, President George Bush in White House, and said “I count myself lucky to be here, it is a day I would never forget in my life.” 

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Shola Olayiwola is a freelance writer. He loves to write and defend the course of his country.

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BLAME NOT THE COLONIAL MASTERS (part 2) – Issues with Shola Ola

March 1, 2019, 8:00 pm
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The selfish ambition of African leaders, insatiable thirst for power, and their love for materialism has made it almost impossible for Africa to develop. Right after many African countries gained independence from their various colonial masters, they had to go through the horrible experience of avoidable civil war as a result of the selfish interests of the few. Nigeria too had to go through the same bitter experience of the Biafra civil war, and the blame cannot be put on the doorstep of the colonial masters.

The colonial masters have also been unfairly accused of tethering us economically thereby making us perpetually dependent on their aids for survival. We forgot that the colonial masters didn’t force us to abandon agriculture that used to be the mainstay of our economy for white collar jobs. According to World Food Programme, Sub-Sahara Africa region accounts for the highest prevalence of hunger, with one in four person undernourished and poor nutrition causing nearly half (45%) of death in children under five estimated at 3.1 million children each year. It is unfortunate that Nigeria is one of the African countries that cannot feed her population despite abundant land resources. We put the blame on the colonial masters instead of our leaders who lacked the initiative to plan and manage our agriculture because of cheap oil money. For instance, with abundant arable land in Borno and Yobe States suitable for farming groundnut and beans among other agricultural products, there is no doubt that the states can generate enough revenue to meet their developmental needs.   
 

What about those corrupt leaders who embezzle resources meant for public infrastructures? Should the colonial masters be blamed for that as well? It has been argued that money stolen by African leaders are kept or invested in the colonial masters’ land, so we blame them for not alerting their countries. In all sincerity, could we have done the same? As parts of efforts to create wealth and employment for our youths, our leaders travel abroad to woo foreign investors to invest in our country, but careless about the source of fund of investors who agreed to come. Even if it were confirmed that an investor had accumulated wealth through questionable means, I doubt if the government would be willing to investigate, as long as his investment is legitimate in the country.   
 
At a time Nigeria was experiencing serious economic recession in 2015 with most state governments owing their workers backlog of salaries, most Nigerians were astonished that our senators had ordered for 109 SUVs for themselves at a cost of N36m each. Although, the chairman senate committee on senate service, Senator Ibrahim Gobir later debunked it and said that only thirty-six SUVs were ordered at a cost of N36.5m each, and this still cost the nation a whooping sum of N1,314 billion. If their coming into politics was to serve the people as they claimed during their campaigns, would it have been too much to let go of certain benefits for the time being until the economy is buoyant to accommodate their luxurious lifestyle? After all, they all claimed to be doing well in their various fields of endeavour before coming into partisan politics. The most annoying part of it was that the cars were imported while we have local car-assembling plants in Nigeria begging for patronage. If the leaders do not lead by example by patronizing indigenous companies, what moral justification do they have to tell Nigerians to patronize them. The public criticism that followed the senate’s choice compelled the leadership of the House of Representative to contract Peugeot Automobile Nigeria to supply own cars.

Once again, the bulk of the blame of Africa’s underdevelopment goes to the leaders for their shortsightedness in always putting their personal interest ahead of their nations’ interest. A new tenure of government will soon run affairs of Nigeria, some may retain their seats and some may lose it, but responsibility lies on we citizens to be on their neck to do the right thing and stop them from blaming who they shouldn’t for the woes of Nigeria.
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Shola Olayiwola is a freelance writer. He loves to write and defend the course of his country.

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BLAME NOT THE COLONIAL MASTERS (part 3) – Issues with Shola Ola

March 8, 2019, 8:00 pm
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Nigerian leaders are not alone in steering wheels that ruin her; ordinary Nigerians are also as guilty as their leaders. Like they say, the people get the kind of leader they deserve. “How,” you may ask? Today in Nigeria, only those with the deepest pockets get political power. If a politician does not distribute money, rice and other souvenirs, he may not get elected. Often times the ignorant ones in our midst would even gladly collect the souvenirs and say it is the only time they can receive from government. The story was told about a gubernatorial candidate in one of the states in Nigeria. As part of his campaign strategies, he went to the rural areas lacking potable water (as is the case in most rural areas) with water tankers to give water. When the incumbent governor learnt of what his opponent was doing, he also decided to tow the same line with the promise that when he is re-elected, he would give them boreholes. Something he didn’t remember for nearly four years. When the politician heard that the incumbent has started taking waters to rural communities, he changed tactics by going to the communities with trucks loaded with kerosene to distribute free of charge. Those trucks of kerosene and other things he was giving out must have cost him a fortune. He may probably have taken a bank loan to meet those unsolicited obligations, so when he gets to power he must look for means to pay back. Even the position of a local government chairman, ward counsellor comes at a great cost in Nigeria.

My experience in the organisation I work with has thought me that anyone who always want to play by the book may end up being tagged as wicked and unreasonable by subordinates who are used to doing the wrong things. This is similar to what is happening in the larger society. If a leader try to enforce the law, those that it does not favour bring ethno-religious sentiments into it. Sometime, they say it is witch-hunt on a particular tribe or he does not want them to profess their faith. Those religious bigots forget that in professing your faith, you must put people of other faith into consideration. It is the same thing we say, whenever any administration is trying to make those who had siphoned our common wealth to face justice: “It is a witch-hunt on our party”, the opposition party would say. While, most of their allegations could be true, one only wish that they allow the witch-hunting to succeed for now so when other parties take over power they can witch-hunt bad eggs from other parties too; the process may be long but it may eventually clean up all corrupt people in Nigeria.


I came across a headline in the Nation newspaper online of 22 December 2016, with the caption “Delta in festive mood”. I was surprised to read that the people were celebrating the release of the former governor of the state from a London prison. This was a man found guilty of embezzling the state’s money (about 18 million pound sterling). A man Nigerian court discharged from corruption allegations but was found guilty in a country where he laundered the money to. Yet the people went about putting up banners celebrating his release. According to the paper, some of the banners read: “Welcome back home, our national leader,” “The political messiah and his kinsmen,” and “The resource control living legend.” Like the great novelist, Chinua Achebe said, people like the former governor is a man of the People.  Well no matter how bad a person is, he is good to some people. No doubt many of those celebrating him were his political benefactors. I’m still wondering how we would make progress as a nation, if the people continue to celebrate corruption.     

Finally, I must say that the West has never forced her way of life on us; we are the ones who chose to embrace them. When the administration of President Barak Obama of the United States attempted to force gay and lesbianism on us under the guise of human rights, our lawmakers rejected the idea out rightly and went further to criminalize it, not minding the incentives to be granted to developing countries who accept it; and nothing happened. Therefore, the West cannot be held responsible for our failure. On the other hand, we should be grateful to the West for always coming to our aid every time we embark on senseless killings on the altar of religion and ethnicity. On several occasions through organisations such as United Nations, USAID and others, the West have donated generously to developing countries as they have done in the Northeast and other crisis ravaged countries in Africa. It behoves on Nigeria to do the needful and start saving self, instead of waiting for the west to help her out of almost every problem she gets self into.
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Shola Olayiwola is a freelance writer. He loves to write and defend the course of his country.

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