WHO OWNS LAGOS ?

 WHO OWNS LAGOS ?

Who discovered River Niger and in what year? The teacher asked the class in a rehearsal class mood. 

'Mungo Park the British explorer in 1796!', the pupil answered in a concertedly loud verbal pang, with smiles drawn all over their tender faces.

They knew the answer was correct, at least to the best of their little knowledge, that is, 'our teacher said..' 

For the teacher, she knew they were not right but her loyalty to the system meant that the syllabus must be followed, even strictly.

I smiled and walked away knowing that this was all we learnt while we grew up. 

Believing what we were taught in class because someone made us see and believe what he wants us to see and believe. That to me was the height of our collective self denial.

Poor kids, there syllabus lied to them I said while consoling my curious self. They will grow to know some day, that indeed Mungo Park discovered nothing but a river the natives had lived with years before he was born.

I grew up to know that before Mungo Park arrived the River Niger area there lived around the river, natives who drank, fish and fetched water at the banks.

These were natives, people of the Delta; Anaocha, Ukwuani, Enuani etc and among them were also the Igbo.

This is a glance of the story about who owns Lagos.