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Free things in Freetown! People, especially Nigerians like free things or 'awoof'. The rich, poor as well as the middleclass are all engulfed in this. Everyone no matter how wealthy avails oneself of every slightest opportunity to enjoy goods and services without paying a dime. People attend occasions merely to dine and wine, no necessarily to honour their hosts. That is why people would easily attend festivities, even when uninvited (with their retinue of friends and dependants), 'liquidating' their host, but would abscond when invited for a book launch! The era of carting away food and drinks in 'nylon' bags and 'shopping cart'-sized handbags by women, and sadly these days men, is still with us. It is important to note that nothing is free in this world, 'even in Freetown.' That food is ready does not mean it is for free, to the extent that even in God's Own restaurant, you must pay after eating! A lot of people have met their waterlo

Give this piece a suitable title My childhood was all about domestic chores ,farm work and what have you. It was therefore an intriguing experience when I visited a distant relation during my National youth service, to find out the exact opposite of the type of background I had. My aunt practically did the house chores, including washing of his children's clothes and dishes. In addition to that, she made sure she took them to and from school, not minding their already mature age! In the olden days, children served their parents, but today the reverse seems to be the case. Then, fathers did practically nothing. They were served meals and their laundry was handled by their children and wife/wives as the case may be. The children equally did the tedious farming works, supervised by their parents. In fact, one of the reasons for poligamy was for numerical purposes; the more the children, the less work parents do. Today in many rural and semi-urban areas, many children still do 

Think inwards! Part 2 A friend of mine once said cynically in between bottles of beer that men of God in Nigeria are powerful only in the Nollywood movies! As an ardent Christian, I had refused to be drawn into unproductive arguments about men of God and their possession of 'spiritual powers' or otherwise. I had known him as a 'free thinker' who saw church as a mere social gathering.  He was one of those who preached the idea that 'church is in the mind'. Hmm.  That's by the way, I am not here to discuss such issues. But the question that keeps begging for answers is, has the 'proliferation' of churches led to a better society?  Are we better off with it? The answer is a resounding No One of the problems we have among Africans is that we attribute every single misfortune we have to the handiwork of the enemy. We are so scared of the unknown to the extent that when an ordinary bird flies past one's home, screams of 'holy Ghost fi

Why the wait? This topic is one that generates understandable controversy among people. As with several other topical issues, people's opinions are diverse. When is the right time for a male or a female to get married? Everyone frowns at 'early marriage'.  In fact, many 'reasonable' parents would chase you out of their homes if you ever attempt to come for their 'under-aged' daughters' hand in marriage. Legally, a female less than sixteen is considered not ready for marriage while a boy should be at least eighteen before mooting marriage. Even at that, many still are not at home with the 'sixteen' and 'eighteen' years maturity age for females and males respectively. Due to the increasing  demand for western  education, the popular opinion is that a person is only ready and mature for marriage when the fellow is through with tertiary education, and perhaps in the case of men, secure gainful employment. In the case of men, this is un

A CALL FOR SOBER REFLECTION By Umeh victor kenechukwu I just came across this from my bossom friend and brother Engr Umeh Victor Kc and decided to share... You smoke cigaratte and weed, you drink all types of alchohol. You are sent to university, you go there, you join cult groups, you go after every girl, you sleep with them & abandon them, you carry gun, you go out with your gang, you go to rob people, you rape your female victims, impregnate some in the process. You murder the 'stubborn' ones, you collect money, you go and assassinate people.You get initiated in every bad guys group on campus, they give you ranks like "Ibaka", "capo",etc. You dont attend lectures, you threaten your lecturers & they pass you in the exams you did not write. Your parents are at home, rejoicing 'my son is in school.' Your gang tells you that you are safe with them, no shaking. You take all sorts of oaths in the name of "Blending". They flog you