Chopchair

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten N ot many families or villages in the Lebialem Division at the time were lucky to have schools located on their neighbourhood. The lucky few sent their children there at ages as young as six. Quite often school was a very long distance away, in some cases as far as five kilometres from most homes. Pupils had to cross extremely difficult terrain to steep hills and deep valleys to get there. If you sipped and fell, there was very little chance of surviving because you would break many bones on your body by the time you reached the bottom of the hill where your body would finally settle. Consequently, it was not surprising that children in class one were as old as fourteen. They needed to be strong enough to protect and defend themselves before venturing out of their homes for the hazardous journey to school. In a majority of cases, when the terrain was not much of a threat, more discouraging obstacles awaited them in the schools themselves. There, because of their ages and sizes, the big bullies were the laughing stock of much younger and brighter pupils who answered all the questions, and who lived near the schools. This made the big boys very uneasy and unenthusiastic about school. Where the big boys were not the butt of jokes from smaller ones, they were the victims of a brutal system. In those days school was associated with punishment and torture rather than education. The story was told that between the age of six and twelve, Fuo-Akendong refused to send his “Chopchair” to school, for fear that he would be beaten by teachers. The story goes that during that period 40 Linus T. Asong he sent a relative living with him to study and report back everyday to his son what the teacher had taught them after beating them. The slave did so for six years, passing only four examinations. Then one day somebody told the Chief that if the boy did well and a scholarship came for somebody to be sent to college, it was the boy and not his Chopchair that would benefit. Only then did he decide to send his Chopchair to school. That changed the spirit of the people of Betaranda towards education somewhat. Somewhat, because many of those who had the opportunities to go to school were not much better off. There was the perennial absence of seasoned teachers. So-called “sons and daughters of the soil” who had acquired professional training down the coast, and whose presence would have alleviated the problem, refused to work in their own villages. Outsiders were reluctant to render services there since it was clear that the natives themselves hated the place. Many of the teachers were themselves dull, poorly trained employees of the PARENTSTEACHERS ASSOCIATIONS. In many cases they had been permitted to complete their courses in the Government Teachers Training College mainly because they sponsored their education there rather than that they had exhibited any particular ability either intellectually or professionally. The upshot or all this was that youths found farming, fishing or hunting around the villages a more profitable and less embarrassing occupation. They eventually gave up the idea of school altogether. This was precisely the situation that confronted Peter Nwolefeck. His was confounded, however, by the fact that they needed to keep him in hiding. 41 Chopchair *** In the neighbourhood were his peers, vagabonds, hunters, thieves, fishermen. They called themselves “Bambes”, which simply meant the desperate ones. They were generally seen in groups of fours and fives. For some reason they always added an S to name. In Peter Nwolefeck’s group which he virtually led there were seven Bambes: Bambe Peters himself, Bambe Isaiahs, Bambe Sams, BambeNchongs, Bambe Mantros,Bambe Caps and Bambe Cos. After Rosa convinced him by telling him the story of his life for the second time, Bambe Peters immediately summoned his Bambes to whom he related the story. It was too good to be true. At first none of the other Bambes seemed to believe. What made them pay attention was just the fact that he was a boy of very serious disposition. And when it became obvious that he was speaking the truth, they all began to find out how they could turn the whole matter into their advantage. At the end of the story, Bambe Peters stand was clear: there would be...