After The Coup

After The Coup

After the Martial music shook the whole place, many people rushed out to the streets and danced under the open skies. But the dusk to dawn curfew restricted our movement, so we couldn’t leave our neighborhood. Many of my neighbors crowded the few bars near their tenements to drink whatever kind of liquor or soda they preferred or could afford, chatting, ranting or shouting about the state of emergency.
“Yeah! Make them go! Dem be thieves!” The garrulous fat neighbor in traditional Yoruba male dress said as he swigged from a bottle of Star larger beer. He always made more noise than sense. And we regarded him as the Baba Sala comic of the neighborhood.
They were about six sitting on plastic chairs round the plastic table in front of Johnny Way Restaurant. And some others were also seated nearby. The poor masses always praised every coup that toppled any government they resented. Most of them were very gullible and naïve. But some of them were good company whenever I was bored and wanted to be entertained gratis. Sitting in their midst and having a good laugh was very good comic relief to overcome the grief of living in such a chaotic state.
I could sniff the smell of the steaming pot of pepper soup. The strong aroma of the spices made me to sneeze.
“Ahaah! Sylvester don’t spray us with your Oglomatoglomasis germs oh!” The garrulous Yoruba man exclaimed and the drinking partners laughed like ridiculous clowns.
“Excuse me,” I said as I brought out my clean white handkerchief to wipe my nose.
“Silver Sylvester, Black Oyinbo man,” said another neighbor in jest.
“The booboo can pose,” said another one.
The sound of my ringing cell phone was my saving grace. I picked up my cell phone from the top of the table where I was sitting and walked away from the noisemakers to answer the call. I heard two of them hissing in derision. I hissed in dismissal of their jibes before answering the call. You cannot have intelligent discussion with intellectual morons. Just ignore them.
“Sylvester, you no chop the isi ewu again?” Asked Mama Janet the fat woman who was cooking the pepper soup.
I gestured that I would eat the pepper soup.
“I will come right away before 6pm to beat the curfew,” I said.
It was the features editor of Nigerian Times who called.
“How many words?” I asked.
He said only 1,500 words.
He wanted me to write my commentary on the coup and the unidentified coup plotters.
We only heard the radio blaring Martial music and an announcement of a dusk to dawn curfew. There was no programme showing on all the TV channels. The radio kept on repeating the same Martial music and announcement. So, my commentary would only be on the public reaction to the coup and the justification of the coup.
The new President had only been sworn in two weeks ago. He was another Yoruba leader. He won the Presidential election, because the National Economic Crimes Commission (NECC) disqualified the man who would have won. And I could swear that Alhaji Gana Adamawa masterminded this coup.
 
“See oh!”
I heard the voices of two neighbors pointing at the major road and I looked.
I saw an armored tank with armed soldiers passing by as some people were hurrying to various places before the curfew. Thank God my editor gave me this camera phone. I quickly took shots of the passing armored tank and mean looking soldiers. The pictures could fetch me some dollars from Reuters.
The goat head-pepper soup was not very important. So, I returned to my flat to write my commentary. I must not delay this breaking news! 

End.

Read my longer writings:

When Two Africans Woke Up This Morning

http://www.blogwonga.com/blogwonga/read_article/6
 
Sorry, My Name Is Not Fyodor Dostoyevsky

http://www.blogwonga.com/blogwonga/read_article/8
 
Dear Americans, Our House Is Also On Fire

 http://www.blogwonga.com/blogwonga/read_article/7

Fahrenheit 7/7

http://www.blogwonga.com/blogwonga/read_article/12

May God deliver Nigeria from the devils who do evils.
Nigeria will never fall in the Almighty name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.

Nigerians were fooled into voting for President Olusegun Obasanjo.
Only God can deliver Nigerians from the bondage of the cultists in power.