I grew up in the ‘wrong’ city.
(still ur boy prince of the seas)
I was born aba and raised in Aba, a commercial city in
southeastern Nigeria where I grew up with my
parents and five siblings. Aba usually makes the
headlines of newspapers due to unthinkable
crimes
widespread in the city, like kidnapping, fraud and
murder. I live in this city which the media
portrays as
‘a city that breeds hoodlums’ and this in a huge
way
has affected me.
Many times, I feel the cruelty of being an Aba
inhabitant. At the peak of a conversation with
people
in other Nigerian cities, they would often ask me
where I stay and I would mutter in the most
embarrassed tone ‘I stay at Aba’. I got used to
their
reaction: that change of countenance, sudden
coldness in speech, and stare of contempt,
because
the fact that I was an ‘Aba boy’ painted a
repulsive
picture of me in their minds. They easily assumed
that the ugly stories about Aba were peculiar to
me. I
felt insecure, diffident and unsure of myself, as
though I was being punished for growing up in a
city
that I did not choose, as though, by being born in
Aba, I was already guilty of some crime.
Growing up, I realized the reason for such unfair
stigmatization. Those people had insufficient
knowledge of Aba. They seemed unaware of the
good
people, lively markets and great schools. These
facts
are easily washed away by the single story of
violence
carried by the media. They also never imagined
that a
family like mine, decent and dignified, could exist
in
Aba. I realized the danger of a single story and
felt
the pain of being judged incessantly by a
sweeping
generalization. Someone needed to tell the other
story of this city, to make it known that there is
more
to Aba than notoriety, and I chose to do so by
writing.
I started writing stories of Aba’s diversity and
good
features, -{Aba’s football club Enyimba F.C once
brought the city to limelight. The famous Ariaria
international market in Aba has been said to have
every item a buyer could imagine. A secondary
school in Aba (Dority) once ranked second best in
Nigeria. In general, Aba is often termed ‘the
Japan of
Africa’ for the extraordinary skill of its’
indigenes in
recreating international brands}- which I shared
in
my school magazine, and even once in a
newspaper.
It gladdened me that people would take my essay
home, read it and share with their friends and
families, so that when next they see that
frightful ‘Aba
headline’ in the news, my essay would reassure
them
that Aba has a good side which the news often
fails
to reveal. Loving that I could influence people`s
thoughts so easily by writing, I chose to keep
writing.
Indeed, people who stigmatize me for living in Aba
do not know my privileges. It has taught me to be
smart and vigilant because if you are not smart in
Aba, a hoodlum would pick your pocket right under
your nose. I have equally learned to be observant
because a nonchalant Aba resident could easily be
kidnapped. I have woken to news of violence,
theft,
kidnapped neighbors and missing children, thieves
being lynched and afterwards, set on fire. People
see
Aba as a microcosm of the violent world. I would
watch the Israeli/Palestinian conflict on CNN and
get
the same sting as when I hear any tragic Aba
news.
The ‘Aba’ environment has embedded in me a
craving
for PEACE and the desire to be part of a
transformation process.
I did not choose Aba; it chose me. It aged my
young
mind with experiences, yet I remain grateful. I
am
bold, passionate and determined because that is
what living in Aba does to you. It makes you used
to
challenges and immune to obstacles for you are
not
shielded from them, you are taught to face and
overcome them. Aba gave me a reason to write
and
stories to base my early writing on. It directed me
towards my passion, major and goal. I crave to
see a
world free of violence, where veto power
countries
would embrace the third world countries and
selflessly aid their development. I am therefore
willing to achieve this. I would work towards
peace
for the modern world so that the future
generation
will meet a better place. My endurance,
inspiration,
and versatility are courtesy of the fact that I
grew up
in the right city, a city that made me whole.
THANKS FOR LISTENING TO MY STORY
