There is a sense that we don’t document, record, or archive and maybe this perception is questionable but it persists.
It could be about who is not writing or about people we expect to write who don’t.
We have a slew of books from soldiers – ironic considering the general reputation they have for being unlettered and no fans of critical thinking: Why We Struck (Ademoyega), Because I am Involved (Ojukwu), My Command (Obasanjo). That said, Nigerian journalists tend to write too – and Ojudu is a journalist before he is anything else.
It is trite now to say a book is timely, maybe all books are. But at a time in Nigeria where inspiration is low and there are concerted efforts to dominate narratives with the sense that ‘we are all the same’ (corrupt) or that everyone has a price or that despite millions of citizens, Nigeria is orphaned as everyone seeks their individual survival first, it is wonderful to have this book.
Through the stories that Ojudu tells of a period in his life that he devoted to being a journalist we get to appreciate several things.
First, it reminds us that Nigeria has a rich history of resistance to oppression and authoritarianism – we don’t share these stories enough.
In the age of visuals, content creators are ‘sleeping’ on incredible, hilarious stories that will inspire. We have books and plays on Fela- but they barely cover the full richness of his life and thoughts. He was deep and knew the power of symbolism – when I read that he used his Mercedes Benz and Range Rover to fetch firewood as a statement against elitism, I laughed out loud. And what about Beko his brother? He also lived a life worth many examinations.
Which leads to the second thing we get from Ojudu’s book – proof that Nigerians have been ideologically and ethically driven to engage. A mix of intellectual engagement, tradition and the wisdom that comes from experience propelled many to risk their lives for their beliefs and the idealism of contributing to building a better nation for all. This reality raises further questions though that are not explored in the book but are signposted – how those who start out with one ideological leaning, deviate from what would seem a logical path.
The adventures of Ojudu are closely intertwined with Bayo Onanuga (Special Adviser to President Tinubu on Information and Strategy) and together they made several ethical sacrifices that makes it difficult to understand how Onanuga justifies the way he executes his current role.
Third, the book is about abuse of state power – something we know too well. Within that intoxicating power of the state, are elements of sad, comedic bureaucratic farce – like the number of times the DSS were thwarted in their plans to arrest journalists simply because they had no idea what the journalists looked like.
Do our security officers not watch crime shows? Even if they were not taught, have they never observed on-the-screen detectives with pictures of those being investigated up on a wall with other details? This gives us a sense why criminals enjoy field years in Nigeria with little to thwart or disincentivize them.
Ojudu is an interesting character and the book does justice to his complexity. He symbolizes, amongst other things, the science of intergenerational experience and fruits falling by trees that bore them. From his telling, his grandfather and father were both social justice crusaders of their times; intolerant of injustice.
Adventures of a Guerrilla Journalist is not written chronologically– it goes back and forth in time and to read it is to veer from story to story, sometimes with breadcrumbs dropped in one place that turn into morsels in another.
However, asides being proud of the antics of so many Nigerians between the 80s and 90s, I was often left wanting to know more. To manage this ache, I have decided to think of the book as a treasure hunt of sorts – (for Atlanta fans remember the episode where Paper Boi followed clues from a song?) and do some digging but the Internet has not been helpful.
For instance, Ojudu mentions a cover story that he wrote about the Orkar Coup plotters of April 1990 who escaped and made lives for themselves in the US. What paper published this story – he does not say and the internet is silent.
I want to read the speech Prof Akin Oyebode of University of Lagos gave when the Committee for the Defence of Human Rights was launched where he adopted the rallying cry, ‘they shall not pass’, made popular by the French and Spanish in WWI and the Spanish civil war respectively.
I really wish more Nigerians would not let ‘them’ pass…
There is also a haunting story of a Nigerian who returned from a sojourn abroad who was disappeared by the police in 1994 – Ojudu covered the story and got thrown in jail for a week for his troubles. But he never tells us the man’s name or if he was ever found. Considering that we are still exercised by police brutality and crime, he could have made much more of this story.
There are also things that only Ojudu can share. Why didn’t he support Gani’s 1999 campaign to compel the state to investigate then Governor Bola Tinubu for false declarations related to his educational qualifications? Ojudu brings this up when he discusses falling out with Gani but says nothing about why he took that position particularly since this question of Tinubu’s qualifications and identity remains an issue.
How TheNews decided to treat the stories of Salihu Buhari and Orji Kalu differently is puzzling…it buttresses an observation on Nigerian culture that I have made elsewhere – that begging washes away all sins, it can get you out of anything, even murder.
Adventures of a Guerrilla Journalist, 320 pages long and published by Babafemi Ojudu could have been better edited.
Writers are notorious for not liking their work to be edited but every writer needs the detachment of an editor. It is also a major flaw that the book has no index – it is impossible to find with ease, invaluable references to people and events.
In summary, it is a good read interspaced with quotes, pictures, news pages and magazine covers.
The language is fresh, the dialogue and descriptions engaging and hilarious, other times thought-provoking, even painful.
Adventures of a Guerrilla Journalist provides a rich telling of a time in our lives that made me feel oddly nostalgic for a period that I did not experience in the way that Ojodu did and probably never will.
Curated from Substack and published with kind permission of the author
