Sunday 16 April 2017

A BRILLIANT REVIEW OF WALE OKEDIRAN'S "THE BOYS AT THE BORDER"-BY UBAJI ISIAKA ABUBAKAR EAZY

ACCESSING THE STRENGTH AND SHORTCOMINGS OF WALE OKEDIRAN'S THE BOYS AT THE BORDER
Title: The Boys at the Border
Author: Wale Okediran
Publisher: Spectrum Books Limited
ISBN: 978-029-304-3
Pages: 141 (Paperback)
Year: 1991
Reviewer: Ubaji Isiaka Abubakar Eazy
Where are all those boys who do nothing all day but idle away making false pretence at being writers and poets? Here is a medical doctor writing inbetween stolen minutes of running in and out of hospital wards yet he makes such a great job of it! I refuse the temptation to tell a lie so I shall say this is but the second novel (the first is After the Flood) which I have read from Wale Okediran.
The Boys at the Border tells a tale of deceit, corruption, betrayal, and revenge within the Nigerian Customs Service. However, the happenings in the Nigerian customs is but a reflection of what is obtainable in other government agencies in Nigeria.
The dwindling price of crude oil has initiated a downturn in the economy scale of the country. This forces the military president to give directives to the Director of Customs to curb the illegal exportation of cocoa and groundnuts (both cash crops) outside Nigerian borders. This measure is taken as a last resort towards salvaging the already dwindling economic situation of the country. But can the Director of Customs achieve this feat knowing quite well that some army boys are involved in smuggling, that the lower cadre of customs officials accept bribes and allow smugglers go scot free, that some high profile individuals such as first class emirs and politicians are making a fortune from smuggling, and not to talk of the dangerous smugglers themselves who are always prepared to give the customs boys a showdown (through spiritual and physical combat involving fire arms) should any attempt be made at confiscating their illegal goods by the Nigerian customs?
Of course it is a daunting task, but the customs' boss has no intention of declaring, before the military president, that he is incapable of carrying out the expected task. Certainly not if the continuity of his job depends on it.
Mr Emeka Emordi (the Director of Customs) convenes a meeting with his immediate sub-ordinates who disagree with the right of the military to order them about and blame all the smuggling on soldiers.

Meanwhile, a confrontation between some customs officers and smugglers has led to the death of Emeka's brother-in-law (his wife's brother) and Emeka's wife (Gladys) blames her husband for not having him transferred from the border as she has always requested of him before his untimely death.
When Emeka is summoned to an emergency meeting with the military council, he came up with the truth that some soldiers were engaged in smuggling, a fact which his sub-ordinates disclaimed when summoned by the military council for fear of losing their jobs. This spelt doom for Emeka who went into a state of Cardiovascular Arrest the moment he heard the news of his dismissal on the evening news relayed over the television.
With a brother dead and a bedridden husband brought to his current state by the deceitful manipulation of the Deputy Director of Customs (Enforcement), Alhaji Jibo, Gladys vows revenge. She was not going to take it lying low. She would strike at the man who betrayed her husband and also deal with the smuggler who killed her brother. Reporting them to the law was not part of her plans. Past experiences have taught her that these men have always proven to be far above the law. Enlisting the help of Peter Ikoku (an ex-customs officer who resigns because he was frustrated by the corrupts practices within the Nigerian Customs) she decides to use unorthodox means to get at them leading her to employ blackmail and attempted murder.
The novel's magical realism keeps you enthralled as Okediran does not mince words on the efficacy of African "juju" (charms and amulets) and for a medical doctor, one might find these beliefs of his absurd yet I admire the faith the writer invests in the metaphysical practices of the African people.
There is stark realism in the story and if you are looking for morals, the novel is not for you. In The Boys at the Border, it is tit for tat. While I do not have issues with Gladys setting up Alhaji Jibo, I do not like the fact that she received money from him and when the money was later discovered as counterfeit, it was taken to the bank to be exchanged for real ones! Does the corruption chain ever stop? What moral right has Gladys to set up Alhaji Jibo when she could allow counterfeit money to be exchanged for her.
Also, the blackmail part is not well written. I expected Gladys to tell Alhaji Jibo that she has given out a copy of the tape to someone else in case anything happens to her. In real life, Alhaji Jibo could have Gladys assassinated for blackmailing him, and the character of Alhaji Jibo whom I met in the novel is not beyond orchestrating such a devilish act. You do not just cut the tail of a snake as Alhaji Jibo and expect to rest easy, you have got to watch your back!
Maybe I do not also like the idea of using crude means to have Lati Baba assassinated. A society without law and order is in a state of anarchy. Gladys takes the law into her own hands by trying to murder Lati Baba and that is rarely a good manner of making someone pay for their sins, there must always be a way to let the law handle the issue and exert full punishment on all who have gone against societal laws. Man must not be allowed to take laws into his own hands else there will be chaos.
But wait, does Samuel Adigwe deserve to die? He has lived by the gun and collection of bribes, so he can go that way. Gladys does not have my sympathy for trying to avenge him. Also, Peter is too sanctimonious for my liking, he backs out when his plans for revenge on Lati Baba fails and claims he is tired of the corruption in the Nigerian Customs. Had Lati Baba (the smuggler's kingpin) not made a metaphysical attack on his life, one wonders if he would not have accepted the bribe and allow the free passage of Lati Baba's goods.
So, Wale Okediran does not have a morally upright character in his novel; such as the protagonist in his After the Flood; except perhaps Emeka Emodi (the customs' boss). The novel's lack of morality will not make me recommend it for students in secondary schools yet its simple narrative style might not make it an enjoyable read for readers seeking novels with exciting twists and a profound story.
I have also come to notice the influence of Okediran's field in his stories. In After the Flood, the protagonist is a nurse and we are frequently brought in contact with the hospital environment. The same is applicable in The Boys at the Border where there exists numerous scenes within and around hospitals, even the story's beginning is at a hospital where Samuel Adigwe is rushed to for treatment after sustaining gun shots injury. Here is an attestation to the fact that no writer writes outside the experiences that condition his being.
If asked to make a choice between The Boys at the Border and After the Flood; both by Wale Okediran; I think I would rather stick with After the Flood for its maturity. Nonetheless, I still enjoyed Okediran's The Boys at Border even if it does not leave me fully satiated.

Meet The Reviewer:

Ubaji Isiaka Abubakar Eazy holds a BA in English Language and Literary Studies. He is a fine poet whose poems and short stories have been published in both national and international journals and numerous literary blogs. He is the CHIEF EDITOR of "Literary Critics And Writers". You can reach him on +2347063369010 (Abubakar Ishaq Eazy on Facebook).