BenAbdulhamid

To Heal the World, Fix the Child  It is arguably indisputable that our greatest enemy today are not the heartless, corrupt government officials whose undying ambition is to fleece our country of its resources; neighbours nor the abject poverty that results from acute mismanagement of the country's human and material resources; rather our greatest enemy are the monsters we make out of our children. These monsters, as they come of age and are ready to strike strangle not only the homes from where they emanate but the society as a whole. Many commentators and public affairs analysts have been calling, day in, day out, for good governance and healthy democracy; but what many of them miss is that even the good governance, ideal society or healthy democracy we are dead craving for can only arrive and establish itself when we, collectively, decide to rehabilitate or reform those monsters of our own making. Unless we take up responsibilities and sanitize our homes, our societies will ...

The Price of Being a Writer AbdulYassar AbdulHamid When I first in January 2018  as a fresh, hot-headed graduate then - decided to put my ambition to be a writer into practice, I suspected that the decision would come with the same  easiness as when I resolved to hang up my boots. Howbeit I was not up to the class of professional footballers, I journeyed to different places, I contributed enormously to the team I played for; and did play out of passion and at will. Quite different from what I experienced from that most popular game in the world, writing as an art comes with considerable challenges and responsibilities. It needs a nifty bit sleight of hand to be accomplished. Now, apart from being 'writing, at its best’, a 'lonely life' as Ernest Hemingway said in his 1954 Nobel Prize acceptance speech, it is a never-ending tedious work that, may likely, sets a writer against his relations, family and friends. A writer trawls, like chipmunks or squirrels, all th...

Lets Dust off our Patriotism By AbdulYassar AbdulHamid When I first came across John F. Kennedys historic words, Ask not what your country can do for you  ask what you can do for your country, I was dumbfounded being familiar with how things are going here; and after I deeply meditated about the present day Nigeria many questions trailed my contemplation: how many daring Nigerians spare even a thought for their communities let alone the country? Is this practicable in Nigeria? The questions are endless. I oftentimes deliberately raise some arguments while discussing some critical issues with my friends purposely to gauge how patriotic we are to our dear country, Nigeria; but unfortunately, nine out of ten of such occasions, the result is the same. I cannot help but conclude that, though it may sound abrupt, if we have love for this country it is a very faint or shallow one. It will never -so sad - shoot us to something great. Unlike what many people mistake it to be, Patrioti...