Segun Ozique

This anthology is a collection of 93 poems by 32 poets and edited by Eriata Oribhabor - himself, a poet, who has been a frontline campaigner for an integrated Nigerian lingua-franca. To the best of my knowledge, the poems in this collection are fresh and original. The language, like the styles of presentation, are light, conversational and unconventional, all of which give the poems deceptive simplicity. The subjects range from the engagement with Nigeria as motherland, her past history to representational or fictive version of current occurrences in the country; to reminiscence of childhood memories; of love; longing; students life and urban life  to the portrayal of underprivileged Nigerians’ existentialist struggles – interpreted as allegories of struggles against domineering ruling class, the oil companies, the  government and its unfavorable policies etc - just about all, often culminating in hints of optimism about the chances for salvation. Some of the poems seem a l...

Nature, which in its simplest definition means everything created in the world is perfect, that is, until through the insatiable need to improve upon it, the human is leaving in its wake, environmental destruction, social upheaval, economic woes, spiritual emptiness, injustice, fraud; the list goes on, endless. In this important book, “Inside My Head,” by Umary Ayim shows by a compelling exposition that though it seems everyone in this century has lost it, there are actually only a few senseless drunkards who happen to be occupying the driving leadership seats, and steering the human race in the wrong course and unless the many good but powerless others awake from their apathy, take back control of the wheel, and applying sensible break at the many man-made dangerous curves, the human race is racing heading on towards a final fatality. The book is a stunning and illuminating collection of poems. Her writing shows her grasp of contemporary social issues, presented in expres...

By Patricia Tuaweri  This is a book for all tastes. A book with a title that tells a story about art,…literary art that is imaginatively inspiring. ‘Why the Prostitute Live’ sustains in a very literal sense, a show-casing that every sentence in the bible comes from the best literary tome…there was and is. The book tells the story of the Israelite, essentially, of the taking of the city of Jericho and the people that live in the city, including a prostitute called Rahab. Though times have changed, the many struggles people faced at the time, including clashes between neighbors over land acquisition and religion, are just as critical today as it was at the time of the historical setting in the book. Patricia’s book paints an intimate portrait of a people and communities dealing with each other’s differences and their relationship with God. Rahab is a struggling woman who makes ends meet by selling her body. But despite the trade she is involved in which everyone is seen in terms of ...

BY WALE OKEDIRAN The historical real-life tale in the ‘Tenants of the House’ will come alive for all those who were fortunate to witness the shenanigans that went with similar attempt few years back; as in the ‘Tenants of the House,’ there was an impeachment procedure instituted against the Speaker of the House of Representative, spear headed by the president, then there was a successful fight back, but then, this was followed immediately by an attempt to institute constitutional amendment for tenure prolongation through the back door which caused an uproar and,...finally, a counter impeachment procedure instituted by the the two houses against the president. The book’s uncontested star is ofcourse, the president; a Chief Ambrose Oneya, a caricature; sloppy, foul-mouthed chief executive whose only ways to do things was to stampede everyone into doing whatever he wanted done, done his way and who never believed, until he was humiliatingly humbled, that Nigerian and Nigeria as a c...

Actors: Dimi; the tired woman. Massy; her inquisitor. A woman arrived a group gathering early before the meeting started, very tired and just starting to doze. Massy: Dimi hi. What are you doing? (ASKED SMILING). Dimi: Massy, boo, don’t mind me o. I’m so tired. Massy: Why are you tired? Dimi: We had some visitors last night and they stayed on drinking and partying till late. Massy: Wow! You really must have had a good time... Dimi: Oh, no, do not misunderstand me. I was not part of it. I mean, I was there, but it is my place to prepare and serve the food and drinks. They were my husband’s friends and they all stayed up very late and then when they were done and went to bed, I had to still stay up tidying up after them. Plus of course, since they were so noisy, they kept the children awake and I also had to stay up till they, the kids, particularly the last one that is only a year old, slept. Massy: Oh, don’t I know how those gathering can be. Just rest a while more before others come. ...

I am sitting in front of the head psychologist waiting to begin what he had called me to his office for. He rubbed one hand against the other, and smiling gleefully, said ‘hey Al, how are you feeling today? Good?’ I shrugged but said nothing. ‘Good?’ he said, ‘you should be because it’s good news, really good news - trust me, it won’t be long now before we’ll be talking about the last session. I’d hate to let a client like you go, particularly because over these past,’ he looked down the papers in front of him, up again and then asked, ‘two years?’ then answered, ‘yeah, two years it is. In two years, you’ve become my most interesting client and a friend.’ He then went on to inform me of how through personal observations and reading through the transcripts of all the other doctors, he has noticed remarkable progress. I want to believe him, I really do. Because that would spell the beginning, a new start to my freedom; to reclaiming all that I have lost through one night of drunken mi...