The university had just reopened after a spell of three months due to the renovation of halls of residence so they said as was reported in the dailies. Kola a 300 level Law student, a “blight” spirit was excited at the prospect of going back to school. His mates who had the privilege of going to private universities had either graduated or about to and here he was, a victim of the tidal wave of strike that rose whenever there was a breach in promise. It had become so frequent it had devasted the future of many. Kola full of excitement boarded a car from yaba in Lagos to Ibadan to resume for a new session at the “premier university”. In the bus was a mix of eager students who chatted noisily about the state of education in the nation. Kola was lost in his thoughts for he had barred his mind to such discussions, for three years had thought him it was like chasing the wind. Two hours later he was at the entrance of his alma matter, thrilled for he was on familiar grounds once again where his destiny was been molded .The sight kola beheld at the campus bus stop sent sharp pains through his heart, an “aluta” was in progress. “Greatest Nigerian students, great” the leader of the student union shouted and the response was overwhelming. Kola sobbed in his heart has he walked on, ignoring the call for camaraderie. The halls of residence wore a new look, the showers worked but bed spaces had not been allocated yet. Lectures had begun the previous week so he had to stay with a friend that night. It took him three weeks to finally secure a bed space thus he had not had enough time with Nkechi his sweet heart for she had just been allocated a bed space too.

The rules governing the hostel accommodation was nauseating. You could not cook, the volume of the radio must be turned low and social life on campus was non-existent. Kola a lawyer had become a law breaker, feeding himself at the cafeteria had become burdensome and expensive. It was 10pm that fateful night, the boiling rice smelled nice on the hidden cooker and suddenly he heard the voices of demonstrators. Voices that had been suppressed in the course of the semester by the school senate for the student union had crashed like the foolish man who built his house on sand.“Greatest Nigerian students, great” we just received a memo tonight that from now on, no more female visitors in the males hostel and no more males in the female hall of residence. Kola’s heart went straight to Nkechi and he voiced out his anger “enough is enough” as he joined the demonstrators and the chorus resounding from all corners of the hostel, the rice forgotten on the “hidden” cooker. He had been stripped of his rights to a healthy social life, the right to eat meals cooked himself or by Nkechi and now he was about been stripped of his dignity as a man. He resolved this was a battle he would fight to the end. The unity the student leader could not get from the students with his fire branding words and rhetoric’s was given to him on a platter of gold because of the “woman”. It took a woman to bring out the man in him.