This is a throwback!
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1925-2018
He almost made it into 2019. I wonder what stopped him.
The last of the soft kleptomaniacs and kleptocrats?
In his days, politicians stole in hundreds of thousands of naira. Or a few couples of million naira.
They were soft kleptomaniacs and kleptocrats.
Now we have hardcore kleptomaniacs and kleptocrats.
TRADE BY BARTER
TRADE BY BARTER
Our ancestors did not have money, but they traded across the vast continent of Africa, through Europe and as far away as China.
Goods from Africa traveled across thousands of miles throughout the world, even at a time when we did not use money in Africa.
Say My Name
Say My Name
My middle name is Benjamin.
Says a lot about me, right,
since I’m not from the Middle East.
I wasn’t born Benjamin.
ENGLISHMAN IN BENIN CITY, 1981, (Part Three)
They took Obaseki to a native doctor in Benin, straight from the police cell.
I ran into him about six months later when he was released.
His condition had deteriorated remarkably. He looked gaunt and shrunk. He must have lost about fifty pounds, (and he weighed not less than 175lbs and stood at 6’ tall when he assaulted Steve). His face had dark blotches and rashes all over it, and he moved with a stoop that made him look much shorter, as he gingerly carried his tray of food from the counter to a table.
I knew that he saw me as I entered the Ekewan campus cafeteria. But he quickly averted his face, pretending that he didn’t notice me. I went to the food counter to place my order. I decided I would surprise him by joining him at his table once I got my food.
ENGLISHMAN IN BENIN CITY, 1981 (Part Twenty)
Josephine came out of Rufus’s room and sat next to him.
“I didn’t know you were around,” I told her.
“I came out when I heard your voice,” she said.
“You must have been pretty scared when the guys who took Papa Ru’s things came,” I said to her.
“No,” Josephine responded. “I came in about thirty minutes ago. I missed everything. My friend at the school of nursing didn’t come to class today, so I went to find out what happened to her. Turns out she is sick.”
ENGLISHMAN IN BENIN CITY, 1981 (Part Seven)
Rufus froze when he saw Obaseki moving towards our table. His jawline tightened. The grotesque was unmasking. I understood the meaning of that facial reaction. When a cobra flattens its head and its neck while lifting up its body off the ground to the torso level, even a baby knows what that means. We had crossed the red zone. I immediately got up and picked up the tumbler in front of him before it became a scud missile. My movement also distracted him for a moment. This was the climactic moment that had been building up for a year.