The Activist - Season 1 - Episode 8

Episode 5 years ago

The Activist - Season 1 - Episode 8

Lying on Shittu’s bed was a young, handsome guy, obviously Igbo from his skin color and facial composition. He was reading a Biology textbook.
“Hello, who are you and what are you doing here?”

The young man shifted his gaze to Tade. “Am Chukwuma, better known as Chuks. I stay on top of this bunk. Just did not want to go through the stress of climbing. Hope am not disturbing you?”
“No.” Tade said before he could catch himself. “Am Tade, also a fresher over there.” He pointed to his bunk.”I don’t think he will appreciate your lying down on his bed, the owner that is.” Tade had seen him shoo some guys away from his ‘corner’.

“Oh, okay.” Chuks stood up and arranged the bed. “I am a part one student of Medicine.” He said quite calmly. “I just cleared my space.”
“Just what? This is the third week, hope you know?” Tade said, unable to believe his ears.
“Easy guy. I have been in school since, was just squatting with a friend in Awo hall. I got my accomodation late.”

“Sorri oh! So when are you moving in?”
“I have moved in already. My bed is there and my things are in the wardrobe.” Tade looked at the upper bunk and true to his word, a new bed was on the bunk. Tade was sure that Samuel, who had been ‘managing’ the space will be sleeping on the floor tonight, as per a ‘squatter’.

He decided to question him further.
“Why did you come late? And have you attended any class?”

“I never came late, do you understand the meaning of the word ‘squatter’? I was in school since the first day and I have attended all the classes, am the class rep for that matter.” He replied with a ‘matter of fact’ look.
“You have squatted before and you want to bounce the squatter here, is that good? Can’t you have sympathy for the less privileged?”
“Do you understand the word you just uttered? By the way, I was also sent out of the room I stayed in, that’s part of the reason am here. The bunk is my space now, at least until the two semesters are up. Please don’t ask any more questions.” He stood up and grabbed his bag, leaving the room for Tade.

The weeks rolled by and lectures were moving well. Tade was already used to being the assistant class rep and was quite efficient in it, gaining some form of admiration from the female folk. Unlike Ortega, who was loud and hot-tempered, Tade cut the figure of a quiet, unassuming person who did his work quietly, like someone behind the scenes. Ortega on the other hand, was ruffling feathers here and there in the faculty and was already been warned by the faculty president, all to no avail.

The lecturers in his faculty were also another pain in his neck. Some, like Professor Koya, only comes in with his hand-out and dictate like he is reading a novel. Others like Mr Jakande, gave vivid explanations, only problem was that he set tests at every class, even the impromptu ones. It was one of such tests that Ortega started to count his days on campus.
Prior to this day, the lecturer had informed them about the test, they in fact knew the date of the test. The only problem was that…….
He moved the date forward to that day unilaterally.

“Good morning.” He stepped in, replying the few that dared to greet him. “Tear a sheet of paper, write your name and …………” Students were shocked as he started to dictate orders and dish out questions, with a few including Tade silently calling others to hurry into class.

That day they managed to hold the test for an hour, the whole time for the lecture. As the lecturer left the hall, spreading anguish to absent students; many of the students followed him, especially as he was the course co-ordinator and had claimed that the test will hold weight. A few, however decided to ‘scratch’ their axes against the leadership of the class or more specifically, Ortega.

“Tega! Tega!! Tega!!!” Mohammed, a six foot three muscle powered guy called in anger.
“Why you no tell us anything?” He asked, charging towards Ortega.

“We did not know about……..” Tade was trying to defend his class representative, when Ortega eased him away.

“See, I don’t care what you think, because you guys deserve what you got. What does it take you to attend classes, eh? We that come to class and come early are not fools, you know.” Tade looked at him incredulously. Did he not know that the guys he was challenging attended this particular class regularly, even more than him.

Tade spoke up and made a sign for Ortega to keep quiet. Ortega ignored his advice and kept talking.

“I know you and that guy are extra year students. He said, drawing attention of the crowd to Mohammed and a seemingly quiet, slim guy. If you ‘agbayas’ can’t take a simple course like this serious, then it shows what you guys do with your brains, which is nothing.” Tade could not find the link between the class and usage of the brain. If not that they just had a test, he could have swore that Ortega had been drinking early in the morning, or maybe he secretly did. He was going to stop the increasing tension, when the quiet guy stepped in.

“Mr Oortega. He started. You have only attended this lecture seven times while both of us have attended the lectures ten times.” He informed a stunned audience. Why was he keeping attendance of everyone?
“We have attended this class more than you and you are calling us unserious. Do you know how many people have given up on lae because of this lecture? One-tenth of my class! If you think this course is easy, let the semester results come out, in fact do the exams first. Every mark counts in this course and because of people like you, a good number of us lost marks.”
“Now, I don’t really care about others since they are not here, but if me or Mohammed here have to repeat this class, consider your life as a burnt offering to God, you hear me?” He walked away with Mohammed, instilling some fear into students.

“And we are Part Two students, not extra year students!” He said smiling, as they walked out of the hall.

Tade looked at Ortega, who was still ‘forming strong head’ and concluded that the semester was not going to end well. As students dispersed, he grabbed Ortega tightly and dragged him away.

“What is always wrong with you?”
0rtega looked at him like he was a fool and wrestled his hand away from Tade’s grip.
“Why must you make war with almost every person that is different from you in this class? Don’t you know that as a class representative you are supposed to unite the group together, this class? Students that are in tight situations suppose to meet you to help them and you are doing this. Do you know if Mohammed and Dumuje ( referring to the quiet guy) are cultists or worse? Why can’t you for once behave like the representative you suppose to be?”
“See, see, I don’t have time for all what you are trying to tell me. Ortega started. What’s your business, ogbeni? I sabi you from Adam? No be this school we sabi? Wetin you no sabi no talk! Besides na only me dey dey talk to, so no come dey form counsellor abi coach for me, you hear me?”

“Stop to be forming Van Damme too!” Tade shot back. He wondered what Ortega’s confidence was in that made him so bold. No cult killings so far, but he has been hearing of threats from some quarters. With Ortega’s abrasive behaviour, more people are sure to be bruised.
He walked back to the hostel and narrated everything to his eager room mates.
“Your class rep get ‘liver’!” Made said, punching the empty air.

“And he is a fool! It was an unnecessary confrontation. A simple apology would have done wonders. Shittu spoke next. Its annoying when such people start their cocky arrogance.”
“Arrogance suppose to be cocky!” Samuel spoke, forcing Shittu to notice him.

“Who ask you come into this discussion sef? I talk say I no sabi English?”

“Sorri oh! Samuel replied, looking contrite. For me, the guy must have something that is giving him that confidence. Maybe na babalawo or he be cult member.” Ovie kept reading his note quietly, contributing in no measure to the discussion at hand.

“That one no mean! Persin fit arrange im f.uck up! Nobody dey wey dem no sabi him password for this life.” Quadri came on board.

“Which one be password now? Quadri you don come again!” Everyone said in chorus, forcing themselves to laugh as Chuks entered.

“Chuks, Chuks! Come contribute to our talk na.”Made said, dragging Chukwuma before he could protest, Oya Tade gist am.”

Tade told him everything about the incident, including the threats.

“The guy is brave but stupid! In life, you have to choose your battles carefully, if not you could die before you have the chance to be born.” Many a person were stunned by that, even Malik who was typing some project work suspended his work and listened.

“He is just brave but headless, like a bull used for amusement. Funny enough, I feel that the quiet guy will deal with him.”

“Why?” Made asked.
“Quiet guys are dangerous. Loud guys already tell you of their plan, that is if they have one. Quiet guys keep the plan to themselves and wait for you to take your guard down and sleep before hitting you!” He hit his hands together, startling them all. “By the time they are done with you, you won’t be able to retaliate. That’s why silence pays at times, because your opponent does not know the next move. This Dumuje guy won’t be the first person that will be offended, abi?”

Tade nodded and was about to say something when Malik cut in.

“You said Dumuje, right? The same Dumuje Otaku?” Tade wondered how he knew the surname.

“Yes.”

“Tade, don’t get into the way of that guy. He is well connected to cults all over the school and is well loaded. His father is a former Minister. I can assure you that your class rep is as go as dead, its just a matter of if its during the break or second semester.”

“But we never even do the exams!” Tade said in shock.

“Dumuje will make sure that he will fail the exams, no matter what he does! And when that happens, be sure of this; Dumuje will fulfil his promise! A Lannistar always pays his debt!”