Tag Archives: Africa

issues

MY GREATEST FEAR

A few days ago I had a brief conversation over lunch with a friend from East Africa. It was one of those talks resulting from perceived tardy reasoning when we hoped that our leaders in Africa would have been what we keep dreaming about. But what struck me more was the sudden time travel I was thrown into when thinking about the daunting task of changing the outlook of a continent besieged by many troubles and laden with much burden. I wondered how I would feel on the day that I am to die. Would I be bubbling with excitement that my exit is deserved and my legacy is undoubted? Or would I be crowded by the feeling of wasted opportunities? My feelings were mixed because I have trained myself to believe I will not die an ordinary man, especially being influenced heavily by motivational messages that fill your gut and warrants self confidence from a newly defined self-concept. It was mixed because I saw great chances to make things better and without much cost to me or to my surroundings. But the pot pourri of feelings was not without the the thoughts of ‘what if nothing you do makes any sense and changes anything?’ The rest of that day was filled with random emotions spurned out of the ‘what is’ and the ‘what ought to be’.

Back in school, after sitting under inspiring lectures, particularly those that spin African history into an emotional overtone and overdose, making you feel a spark or a tinge of activism, I entered into endless debates on what role we young men will play in shaping the future we so desire. I met so many like minded folks who confessed exhausted faith in the drama we called nation building. We pressured ourselves into believing we were the gifts of God to our continent, and that we held the ace that will call home the game in our favour. Yet with the fervour, we met peeps who could extinguish your fire with a kind of infectious apathy and unconscionable inanition towards the issue of a progressive society. I will never forget the day, after a hot conversation on disabling executive corruption, that a few guys around simply sneered at all we said and stated clearly why they will grab every opportunity to monetize their virtues. What was more worrisome was their display of cognitive dissonance (the kind I usually ascribe to the Obama era Republican party) in acknowledging the need for honest men and good governance, and yet advising me  “Reggie, stop deceiving yourself. You can’t change anything. Eat your own and go your way.” Well, some things were clear at the least, I certainly knew who not to vote for if that time comes…lol
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issues

THE VALUE OF PEOPLE IN NIGERIA

Would you kindly for a moment glance through the pictures shown below. While doing this think about what kind of facility this is. After that please read through the note below the pictures. I will make it short enough and directly buttress my point to allow more discussions on the matter.

I am carefully reminded of one of the greatest questions of all time: What shall a man give in exchange for his soul? whereas the answer is obvious, the question also points to a greater reality which I want to highlight here and make inferences about my country, thus provoking our thinking on how we can reverse a societal ill that threatens to reduce our future possibilities as a people. I am by no way conclusive on anything but on what we must do to to change a existing wrong that I seem not to know when it made an inroad into our values system.

There is nothing on the face of the earth as precious as a human life and no argument can alter that position. This is why the summation of all human struggles is simply to improve the conditions of human life and living. Whether living or simply existing, there is a constant quest to improve the parameters for which such realities are nurtured. These struggles for a better life can be seen either on the group level like in most African societies, or on the individual level as evident in most western nations. This shows that there is an innate value that every person carries, which is recognizable by we all as we engage each other. We work to ensure our kids have a better life, our parents live well in their old age, we can give ourselves anything we want, and that nothing about us or ours should be devalued.

Although pricelessness of a person is most important to us, we somehow manage to downplay the value of another to create and enhance our own concepts of personal value. The ‘misms’ and ‘isms’ of our personal agendas messes with the value we then place on the next person we see, seeing them as a non-responsibility or over-responsibility in our path to give betterment to our human person. This is so real in Nigeria that people now have a blatant disregard for one another because we have lost the sense of value we each carry. We are primarily blinded by each ones absolute engagement with the race up Maslows’ ladder and seem to display an uppity in our attitude towards each other. Crazy! People don’t even mind packaging powdered chalk into capsules and sell as drugs for others to buy and assuage their ails when it’s not a placebo.

I am so sorry that these has become even the predominant attitude of even the government. When it comes to the point that people groping in darkness is of no concern to the powers that be, we can easily assess the level of value they place on their citizen. Some things are just not discussable because they are tied to the fact that humans must be valued. Electricity, Housing, Water, Food, Health, Transportation, Justice, and Jobs are not to be celebrated when provided. These are a must simply because Nigerians are human beings who must be valued. Public officials in the assembly are busy voting huge budgets to add value to their living conditions and allocating lands in the Capital city for their cronies, while the yawning wastes in our infrastructures lie as an epitome of a broken government and dysfunctional leadeship and you tell me they value Nigerian??? See how much they spend to secure political power. Of course their intentions are not to fight for people but their abdominal desires and debased ambitions.

If you haven’t seen the pictures above before I am sure you would guess wrong as I did after seeing the first few images. Those are pictures of a Prison in Austria. Prison??? Yes I wil say it again PRISON!!!!! If you like slap your face. I reckon that that society must definitely value the lives of its citizens including the social misfits. When will Nigeria start valuing people like this abeg? I am tired of Nigerians looking down on each other and placing no value on the life of others. We insult each other, shout on the streets, have no courtesy towards another, defraud each other, smear ourselves, and worse steal the justice of the poor. CAN SOMEONE PLEASE SHOW US HOW TO VALUE US!!! If we don’t value ourselves, how do we expect someone else to value us?

Very frankly my friends, there is a veracity in this claim: SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH THE NIGERIAN MENTALITY!!!

I ANGRILY REST MY CASE.

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Naija

A COMPENDIUM OF SOME UNIQUE NIGERIAN LINGO

Of late, I have become more naijacentric in my thinking. Someone once asked me if I was not guilty of “stinking thinking”—a term (I hate to admit) sometimes associated with Nigerians. I boldly refuse! I am tired of clinging to the apron strings of a deep subservience to mental imperialism, which still lingers even in my generation. This mindset often leaves us unable to be uniquely identified by certain words we have contributed—or could contribute—to international conversations.

The French have jealously guarded their language and successfully imputed some of their words into English conversations. A word like précis is French, yet it is fully acceptable in English writing. The Spanish word loco has also entered common use. Several other languages, including Japanese and Chinese, have contributed words that have been borrowed into global vocabulary. I ask myself: what is Africa’s own contribution to this global conversation? In Nigeria, we have created local words that are uniquely ours. I make it a point to use them, even when speaking with non-Nigerians, to impress upon others that we too have some colour to add to the global palaver.

This note is an attempt to celebrate some of those Nigerian words which enjoy common understanding across our diverse cultures. I believe that if we learn to celebrate our own, then over time—given the vast influence Nigerians have globally—our locally invented lexis will also gain global recognition. This list is by no means exhaustive, but simply outlines those that I can recall. I hope you too will contribute the words you know. So, let’s begin! I trust you’ll find this interesting—and please feel free to correct me wherever I may have gone off point. Ha ha ha.

1. Naija: a local variation for Nigeria
2. Obodo: an local word for village which has become widely used such as Obodo Oyinbo.
3. Oyinbo: A youruba word for Caucasians
4. Kpafuka: to spoil something. I heard a friend of mine coin another word from this – ‘Kpafucate’, used when a person dies. Eg. The old man don kpafucate.
5. Owambe: used to refer to partying.
6. Wahala: used to refer to much troubles.
7. Tufiakwa: used to exclaim a spitting action. Can also mean ‘God forbid’.
8. Isho: a sort of subtle deception.
9. Chilax: a concactenation of ‘Chill’ and ‘Relax’.
10. Bam: used to refer to something in a good state.
11. Kampe: similar to the word above, but usually used when referring to a persons’ wellbeing
12. Gbosa!: an exclamation of some action such as Hurray!
13. Egunje: a bribe.
14. Fisi or Jara: an extra portion added to a purchase.
15. Efizzy: used to refer to some form of special effects.
16. Jand: a local word for England.
17. Konk: used to refer to the hardness of a thing. Also used to refer to a hard knock on the head.
16. Chook: to pierce with a sharp object.
18. Jam: to meet someone.
19. Nack. A local word for knock. Also has a very obscene usage( don’t ask me).
20. Shakara or Yanga: meaning to pose or make a showoff.
21. Lepa: a very slim person. Another word could be ‘Lenge’.
22. Orobo: a fat person. Some even say ‘Orobolicious’.
23. Gorimakpa: a well shaven head, without any hair left.
24. Mess: to release fowl air from the outlet behnd a person.
25. Bomful: a local word for Buffoon.
26. Ogo: the projection back head.
27. Akpola: a heavy shoe with a massive sole.
28. Sisi: a young woman very current in fashion.
29. Timedify: a word widely used among the Efiks referring to scattering something.
30. 404: used in reference to Dog meat.
31. Wack: to eat. ‘Wackis’ also means food.
32. Kabu Kabu: means a Taxi.
33. Danfo: a commercial mini bus.
34. Okada: a commercial motorcycle.
35. Akanawan Baby: An Efik word for an old woman still trying to be sexy.
36. Aje-Butter: a spoilt child or one raised in affluence.
37. Aje-Kpako: one raised in hard circumstances.
38. How far: What’s up.
39. Kolomental: an insane person.
40. Magomago: a form of cheating.
41. Expo: any form of leakage or aid for exam malpractice.
42. Fashi or Bone: to forget about somethng, or treat as insignificant.
43. Orijo: a local term for original.
44. Sawdust: a secondary school term for Garri. Some call it Garrium-Sulphide.
45. Tie-fling: a word used for a wrap of shit in a nylon bag in the absence of toilet facilities. Usually in some remote secondary school.
46. Jabo: to abandon a person.
47. Badoski: a person really skilled at his profession; good or bad.
48. Paddy or Pally: a pal or close friend or associate.
49. Pepper: used in reference to money.
50. Shaks: referring to hard drinks.
51. Lailai: never.
52. yarn: to talk aimlessly.
53. Okpas: a nonsensical talk.

Oya, make una write una own…me I don tire before I yarn okpas… ha ha ha!

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