Citizen Leah Sharibu – The Girl They Forgot

Citizen Leah Sharibu – The Girl They Forgot

Imagine being Leah Sharibu’s father or mother and it’s the day after you hear an audio recording of your daughter who has been in captivity since February 2018. Her abductors, the dreaded Boko Haram fundamentalists, for the first time since the kidnap (and subsequent release of the other abductees) offer to the federal government and to her heartbroken parents proof that citizen Leah—the one child who refuses to denounce her religion in exchange for her freedom—is still alive. Imagine that these ferocious and…

Incomplete By Tombra Emmanuel

Incomplete by Tombra Emmanuel

What's a stand without a feet?   What's victory without defeat?   What's a bed without a sheet?   What's the heart without a beat?   What's complete without you?

POEM: Hope Still Lingers By Wilfred Deigh

POEM: Hope Still Lingers by Wilfred Deigh

As the world we used to know Has now become what we don't Hope still lingers. As global warming befalls us Amidst threats of nuclear wars Hope still lingers. Even as our national peace and unity Is threatened by ethnic and tribal wars Hope still lingers. Though moral ethics molders on the daily And duplicity and lewdness have become life's nomalcies Hope still lingers. As political wars and factional brawls Take our lives more than normal death would Hope still…

SHORT STORY: The Hooves That Bring Chaos, By Uzezi Ologe

SHORT STORY: The Hooves that Bring Chaos, by Uzezi Ologe

It was afternoon when they came in a large cloud of dust swirling to the rumbling of unfeeling engines. In frenzied disarray, the market was left bereft of business and in haste women herded their children to safety like grazing animals. The men with their machetes and hunting guns confronted the settling cloud of dust and wailing went up like a tidal wave. As we hurdled deep in the bushes, Mother clutched me to her bosom. I could hear her…

First, They Tell You What Not To Wear – By Michael Afenfia

First, They Tell You What Not To Wear – by Michael Afenfia

As an undergraduate studying law in the university back then, I hated attending classes. Now, I didn’t say I hated school or that I hated lectures. Far from it, in fact I was the kind of student of whom they say: ‘he came, he saw and he conquered – the library.’ Not the whole school, just the library and a bit of the refectory area. So it wasn’t the learning I hated, it was the rules about what I could…

Read & Win N20k This August

Read & Win N20k this August

With episode 20, I will be wrapping Season 1 of#MechanicsOfYenagoa on 2 September, 2018. You won’t believe the final twist – does it end with a bang or a whimper? Meanwhile, one lucky fan would win N20k. That person could be you! For Season 2, I’d like to introduce an entirely new character suggested by a fan. To win the prize money of N20,000, get in the comment section of Episode 1 and leave your name, email address, the name of…

SHORT STORY: Three Is Company By Hannah Onoguwe

SHORT STORY: Three is Company by Hannah Onoguwe

The sudden roar that erupted from the living room made Dumebi jump. Then she rolled her eyes. Now, why didn’t I shut the door? She tucked her feet under her as the voices lashed out. “The guy nor get sense o.” “Is he blind? What the f—” “Please, Mafo.” Obi’s voice. “Language. Or I might have to reconsider our friendship.” Mafo hooted. “Chei, see forming.” “No, madame is nearby.” The first guy’s voice. What was his name again? Goodhead? Largeheart?…

Michael Afenfia: The Year Of The Cervical Collar

Michael Afenfia: The Year of the Cervical Collar

Cervical collars, also known as neck braces, are now a must-have, if you are a Nigerian politician. My first encounter with these lifesavers was as a youth corps member in Marina Lagos, posted to the head office of one of Nigeria’s commercial banks. Before then, I only saw them on TV and on rich people every now and then. Foolish, I know, but for some inexplicable reason, I associated them with some form of bourgeois. And for the life of…

Michael Afenfia: Open Letter To Femi Adesina’s Friend

Michael Afenfia: Open Letter to Femi Adesina’s Friend

Dear Femi Adesina’s friend, I trust this letter meets you well. Sorry I can’t ask about your family because I do not know if you’re married or still single, but I believe I can ask about your job. So, how is that going? I’ll take a wild guess and say you’re a civil servant; your friend Femi strikes me as the kind of person who’d have lots of them as friends because he’s likely to have had a humble beginning…

The Lone Carpenter By Wilfred Deigh

The Lone Carpenter by Wilfred Deigh

Today, I drove past the Hills along the high way, the sleepy skies yawned in my rear-view as the morning sluggishly woke from slumber. I beheld the lone carpenter in his workshop making the 100th coffin with passion reeling in his eyes. He'd wipe the sweat off his face with a smile Like he knew the world was going to end today and as death's superhero that he is, He'd be the last and lone survivor cleaning up death's mess…