IT'S OUR WORLD

Everyone wants to dress and feel youthful. So if you are a youth, this is such a natural feeling. Most guys want to appear in public and get everyone staring at them and complementing their outfit. But it is a few percentage of these guys that actually get the “What a nice converse you’ve got there!”or “Wow! See those Toms” or “Man, your Hilfigher is classic” or “Step it up dude, your blazers are killing!” Some people have actually resigned to fate sticking only to some “work cloths.” For crying out loud! You don’t want to look like someone who just stepped out of a 1914 magazine. Add some spice to your dressing. Unfortunately, there are girls who make me want to say: “God, do I really have to be identified as belonging to the same specie with this girl!” It is that bad. No one is saying you should not wear decent cloths. I have no “indecent” cloths either. Girl, talk to your wardrobe. This is not about money; it is about your taste. The little you have, save to buy something chi...

I had always kicked against the word ‘feminism’ and always liked to dissociate myself from the conversation. I just couldn’t draw the margin between a misandrist (a person who dislikes, despises, or is strongly prejudiced against men) and a feminist (someone who believes in feminism - the advocacy of women's rights on the basis of the equality of the sexes). Recently, I had a conversation with my project supervisor and he asked what I would like to do after school. I told him and he was quick to call me a feminist. Now, that wasn’t quite complimentary to me. I mean, I felt he did not understand me. I hated to be called a feminist. I argued with him and told him how I quite understand men (I’m not sure I do) and why I think calling myself a feminist wouldn’t be representative of by my repertoire (a stock of skills or types of behavior that a person habitually uses). I even went on to tell him about what I think should be done by couples and so on. It got me thinking. It ...

THE WALLS THE SCHOOL CONFINES BY ADEYEMO PRAISE ADEOLU Record has it that when I was in kindergarten, pre-school, nursery and junior high, my teachers would always come to class then and teach lots of “important” stuff to us. Brilliant! But I do not think my dad ever uses his quadratic equations and several theorems he had learnt in sustaining the family. This is just an eye opener. We go to school to learn what the syllabus has to offer, we do not learn what we need do to give back to the society. And that is the unfortunate situation our educational system subjects us to. So many a great graduates are turned out everywhere into the saturated economic market and have no clue as to how to survive. Common sense! They do not know how to, simply because they are clueless. This piece was birthed in a very boring class on a fateful Monday afternoon. And I asked myself how the knowledge of what I was being taught would lead me straight to hitting the jackpot. Don’t get it...

IMPROPER FUEL STORAGE Walking down the memory lane, man has used and still uses so many sources to generate energy. When man was still a Homo erectus (about 2 000 000 years ago), in a bid to generate heat, he substantially made do with burning of firewood to satisfy his need – heat. Over the centuries, several methods have evolved –with the previous method being a guideline for the next method- to generate energy. These methods are generally referred to as fuels. Fuels are any materials that store potential energy in forms that can be practically released and used as heat energy. Due to the relentless efforts of man as he evolved from Homo erectus to Homo sapiens (6000 BC), in his search for fuel, hydrocarbons (firewood, biofuels like alcohol; charcoal, fuel oil) are by far the most common source of fuel. The importance of fuel cannot be underestimated, as it is an essential part of life. Civilization and technology, in their inter-woven relationship, hav...

Walking down the memory lane, one could not only agree but also come to terms with the fact that the Giant of Africa, Nigeria has achieved and is still achieving remarkable improvements. Ranging from the world of technology, to our educational system, our economy, down to even the health system and agriculture, Nigeria is making a landmark in history. I am proud to be a Nigerian, and therefore intend to make my nation an object of pride to display to the international community - the world at large. But just like  Oliver Twist always asks for more, I dare say that this is not yet the Nigeria of my dream. Over five decades ago, we gained our independence. I can vividly remember that there was a controversy in my school during the occasion of Nigeria's 50 years if independence if it was worth celebrating or not. Whenever we point those accusing fingers at the government, we fail to remember that just a finger is pointed and the remaining four fingers are pointed to ourselves. Simpl...

MASS FAILURE IN WASSCE & NECO EXAMS BY NIGERIAN STUDENTS: WHO IS TO BLAME?           English Language is a core subject in the curriculum of many countries especially those countries that were colonized by the British. Mathematics, a veritable tool involving the use of figures to solve everyday problems is also a core subject which is widely accepted all over the world as being important. Apart from these two, there are other subjects that are referred to as “core” depending on whatever field is concerned. Little wonder why it is that before an aspiring university candidate can be admitted, he or she must meet the criterion of having a credit and above at ordinary level (O’level) in these subjects. There is a dreadful monster limiting the achievement of this feat – MASS FAILURE in West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) and the National Examination Council (NECO) exams. This has turned to be a sore in the wound of m...