Ugo Anna Ude: The person I go like be
BlankPaperz Short Piece Contest longlist The person I go like be tie many gele—remember Boy Alinko for Papa Ajasco and im many specs? Na so I wan make my eyes see the world and make people for world take see me. Multidimensional but all the colours align for one person head; one centre. The person wey I go like be na woman wey hold ground for many places. Professor, advocate for people with disabilities and education for children in educationally-disadvantaged communities, woman wey dey criticize African and Nigerian literature make people for obodoyibo take know the true story for wetin happen for we country as we take write am. The person wey I go like be don dey knock for my head since. The professor na since grandmama call me ogomodiri, “human being wey dem born to read book” (my head kuku dey inside there every time). Everything: my dreams,…
Kelechi Alpheaus: The person I go love be
BlankPaperz Short Piece Contest longlist “He don smile” Mama shouted. “Sophy, Junior don finally smile”. The excitement in her voice faded into choking stutters with each repetition of those words until she was wailing. I could see why she broke down into tears. It was only 4 months since Pa died, and 3 months since the baby came. Junior never cried or smiled. It was like he understood the situation of the family. But today he smiled and the brightness of his smile resonated with the beauty that was my father. Mama tried to stop him that day. “No go dat place Ade, you no dey hear word” were her last words to him. He smiled, his dimples deeper than ever, like they knew they would never have another chance, “I no be coward, I dey do dis tin for Sophy and our unborn children, you wan make I dey…
Mantuie Emenyi: The person I go love be…
BlankPaperz Short Piece Contest longlist I go love be artist or photographer. E get some kind things wey people no dey see because dem dey distracted. With my paint and brush or camera, people fit see beauty in ordinary things. I go love be accountant. I want to chill with the big boys, follow dey in charge of the money wey dey flow for their account. I go love be politician as per Madam President. I like the idea of having legitimate power and being in charge of people. I go love be actor. I dey like entertain people, make them just dey happy forget their wahala. I go love be Mathematics teacher. I wan make my students dey see topics like circle theorem as if e be simple addition. “It makes me laugh now. It’s as if I wanted to be everything.” When I bin pikin, I dey talk…
Precious Dada: Wonder Woman
Precious is a creative writer and narrative illustrator with over 3 years of experience. She is skilled with words and painting mental imagery through narration.
Toyosi Falese: The person I go love be
BlankPaperz Short Piece Contest longlist The kind world wey I dey, nobody wants to be true to anybody. Imagine my roommate wey be confirm Christian for house come school come become runs girl and she still dey post church programmes for WhatsApp. The world just full with fake people. Person wey soak garri yesterday go dey talk say na shawarma hin chop. Person wey no get shishi for account go dey talk say hin get millions. Person wey borrow clothes wear go dey shakara for the person wey wear hin poor clothes. Even the person wey never make any dime from copywriting sef go dey gather people, collect their money say hin wan teach them how to make billions as copywriters. Make person tell me, where we dey go sef? The person I go love be na the person wey true. The person wey no dey ashame of hin present…
Thelma Ideozu: How the Nigerian educational system doesn’t breed confident graduates
He had smiled at me, as one might smile at a toddler, and said quite frankly, “A is for God and B is for me” ⏤ which was his witty way of saying that I’d be lucky to even get a C in the exam.
THE FUTURE OF THE AFRICAN CONTINENT — LIGHTENING UP AFRICA
“Always remember that great people are built from what they do and how they react to things within themselves and around them.”
My First Scholarship - by Glorious Wilberforce
When we learn to do the things we fear, we achieve our desired results, when we refuse to see limits to the heights we can attain, we get so high.
What must African youths do differently
Martin Luther King said, “Not everyone can be famous but everyone can be great because greatness is determined by service.” Leaders are born to serve.
Dead Men Walking On the Streets of Nigeria
The sad reality is that members of the masses that get to lead forget their source even if they trekked to school without shoes.
Blind Youths are falling into a ditch, cries History
The youths are too proud to submit themselves to mentorship, they believe they can “blow” overnight. History repeats itself, first as tragedy, second as farce.
Halidu Abdulai and Others Wonder: “Where Did We Go Wrong” As Africans In Africa?
Many a time, people travel out of their home countries due to a wide range of reasons. But for some, the process of acquiring a visa and other travel documents can be a harrowing experience…
Tackling Inequities Can Reduce The Burdens of Oral Health Diseases
Inequity is a disease that creates a crazy circle if not tackled. It is like a malignant growth that gets under the skin and spreads until the next generation is crippled. The evil plague of oral health challenges, most especially in under-served communities is a mighty ocean formed from the tiny drops of inequity. There is an everyday collision of inequity, its children and oral health diseases. As a dentist, I am faced with the challenge of tackling the diseases of inequities’ most obvious portals while constantly forced to face the pain of watching the people who seemingly cannot afford to buy a toothbrush drown themselves in the hopelessness of anxiety and depression, among the other stings that come from inequity. No doubt that oral health problems weigh down heavily on the economically disadvantaged population and inequity is a causative factor. There is another disturbing wrinkle to this: the most…