Na Zaune

Garin mu ƙarmi ne, yana kusa da Chicago. Kamar Jigawa da Kano. Duk lokacin da naje Najeriya, idan na dawo, jirgi ya sauke ni a Chicago, sai na hau mota na kama hanyar garinmu. 

A cikin kusan shekeru ukun farko da nayi a nan, ban taɓa zuwa wata jaha ba, face wata rana da muka je Iowa ni da wasu abokaina, Turawa, muka yi kwana biyu. Ko cikin garin Chicago ban taɓa shiga ba. 

Wata rana sai taro ya zo a Chicago. Duk da bani da gami da taron kai tsaye, sai aka ban baki, na shirya na je, ganin cewa akwai mutane daga Najeriya da suka zo, ƴan uwa da abokan arziƙi da ya kamata a gaisa. 

Ina shiga Chicago daga nan na gane ashe a ƙauye nake. Ai ni yau ne na fara zuwa Amerika. Ashe duk sallamar da nake yiwa mutane a Najeriya nace na tafi Amerika ba Amerika nake zuwa ba, ƙauye nake zuwa. 

Jama’a garin mu fa ya haɗu, kawai dai ƙarami ne. Hada-hada da hayaniyar jama’a ba kamar Chicago ba. Abin da aka fi sanin garinmu da shi ita ce Jami’a. Ga aminci, ba hayaniya. Akwai garuruwa da dama a Amerika masu irin wannan suffar da ake kira da College Town, wato garuruwan da makaranta ce ginshiƙinsu. Har wata ran cewa nake yi wanna shiru yayi yawa. 

A kaf ƙasar Amerika, garinmu na ɗaya daga cikin na gaba-gaba a kyawun zama saboda rashin tsadar sa da kuma tarbiyya. Yana ɗaya daga cikin garuruwa na farko don matasa auren fari kuma marasa ƙarfi, don gina kansu da iyalansu (the best place for the young and broke and the best place to raise the family). Hukumomin birnin na shirya bita duk shekara wa matasan da suka zo karatu garin don ƙarfafa musu gwiwa kan su zauna bayan kammala karatunsu. 

Garin ƴan makaranta ne, kamar yadda na ce, irin Dutse ko Zaria. Idan lokcain hutu ya yi, ya kan zama shiru idan ɗalibai sun tafi. Akwai tarbiyya. Har ta kai da a aji muna iya gane ɗalibai ƴan asalin garin saboda kamalarsu. 

Ina ƙaunar garin, don haka kar kayi mamaki idan ka ji na ce “garinmu”. Rayuwa tana da inganci, ga sauƙi, duk da muna na ashirin a ƙarfin tattalin arziƙi a baki ɗayan ƙasar. Jami’ar garin ita ce ginshiƙin tattalin arziƙin garin. Har ana cewa idan ka tara mutum goma, to takwas daga ciki na da alaƙa ta kusa ko ta nesa da ita. 

*** 

Kwatsam sai ga tafiya zuwa New York ta zo, wadda awa biyu ce a jirgin sama, kwana ɗaya ko biyu a mota, ya danganta da jadawalin motar da ka samu. 

Tsawon shekaru ana ta ce min ya kamata na kai ziyara wasu garuruwan, na ɗan zagaya naga gari, naga yadda Amerika take. Akwai abin da yasa mutane suke faɗar hakan, bawai kawai don yawon buɗe ido ba. Duk da dai ba su bayyana a fili ba, masu wannan batu na jin tsoron halin da ake ciki, kar lokacin gama karatuna ya yi ba ne jo ko’ina ba, na kasa samun aiki, kuma na koma gida. Domin shugaban ƙasa Donald Trump ya kunnawa baƙi wuta. 

Ni kam sai dai na ce to, na ƙyale, don ni zama a garin Amerika ba ɗa-ɗa ni ya yi da ƙasa ba. Na ɗauke shi rabi-da-rabi ne. Idan na zauna toh, idan ban sami aiki na zauna ba, sammakal. 

Matsain lambar Trump yasa wasu ɗaliban ƴan ƙasar waje basa iya zuwa gida hutu. Ni kam ba abin da ya shallan. Sai ka ji an ce, cikin mamaki da fargaba, musamman ƴan Najeriya ƴan Kudu, “Za ka je Najeria”?!. Na ce ehh, nai murmushi. To, ni na kasa ganewa. Amerikan garinmu ce? Ina zuwa gida duk ƙarshen zangon karatu ba tare da la’akari da haɗarin da hakan ke tattare da shi ba. 

Muna yara, idan almajiran makarantar allonmu za su je gida Nijar, sai muyi ta mamaki. Ikon Allah, ga ruwa, ga wuta, ga titi ga komai, amma su a haka duk za su bar wannan su tafi? Me su ka rasa a nan da za su tafi gida? Sai yanzu na fahimta. 

A matsayina na malami, duk ƙarshen zangon karatu ɗalibai kan tambayeni cikin hira ko awkai shirin wani abu da na ke da shi idan muka gama ajujuwa? Sai su cika da mamaki idan na ce zan je Najeriya. 

Da Kofin Duniya ya zo, kuma za a yi wasan ƙarshe a New York/New Jersey (za ka ga ana rubuta New York-New Jersey, su ɗin kamar Makoɗa ne da Ɗanbatta). Don haka sai naje na sayi tikitin tafiya. Na duba na ga farashin tikitin jirgi da na mota. Mota tafi jirgi tsada. Da akwai ban-bancin wajen dala hamsun a tsakanin su. Amma sai dai shi jirgi kamar Spirit da Frontier ba za ka hau da kaya ba, sai dai jakar goyo kawai. 

Ni kam ina da kaya, kuma akwai saƙo da zan baiwa wanda zan je wajen sa. Turawa kam su sun saba. Sukan iya hawa jirgin abin su. Idan suka yi lissafi sai su ga sauƙin hakan, don za ka iya samun canji da kuɗin jirgin har ka sayi kayan sawar da ka ke so idan ka sauka. 

Na isa tashar mota minti talatin kafin tafiya. Da isata na kama waje na zauna, ina jiran mota ta zo. Motoci na ta zuwa, su sauke fasinja su sa ke lodi. Da naga lokacin da ya ke jikin tikitin motata yana ƙaratowa, sai naje na samu direban wata mota da take lodi na tambayeshi “Ko yaushe wannan motar zata zo”? Na nuna masa tikitina, na faɗi sunan kamfanin. Yace nan ba da jimawa ba. 

 

Can sai ga wata budruwa ƴar tsatson Somalia. 

Tace min “mota ta tafi ko, Flexi Bus?” Na ce kai ba tabbas. 

“Ina za ki je ne?”. 

Ta ce min “Miami”. 

Na ce kai ba lallai ta tafi ba. Ni ban ga Flexi Bus ta zo ba. 

Wannan ce tafiyata ta farko zuwa wani garin da ba Chicago ba a motar haya. Amma na san duk motocin da suke zuwa wannan tashar. Ina wucewa ta wajen sosai. Idan hanya ta haɗa akan gansu suna lodi a wajen. 

Bayan mintina sai matashiyar ta tafi. Tafiyarta ke da wuya, baifi kamar minti shida ba, sai ga motar Flexi Bus ta zo. Kowa ya nuna tikiti ya shiga. Mota ta yi lodi ta tafi. Can sai ga wata motar ta sake zuwa, ita ma tayi lodi ta tafi. Da naga lokaci ya na ta tafiya, har ya wuce lokacin da ya kamata ace motar mu ta zo da kamar minti biyar, sai na ce to ai me yiwuwa ana sami tsaiko a hanya ne, sakamakon cunkoso ko aikin titi da ake ta yi (saboda yanzu lokacin bazara ne, lokacin yin aikin titina ne kafin sanyi da ƙanƙara su dawo). 

Can dai, da naga abin ya yi yawa, har mun shiga latti na kusan minti talatin, sai na kira lambar wayar kamfanin don naji ina a ka kwana. Wata mata ta ɗau waya. Na fara yi mata jawabin abin da yake faruwa. Ta ce na karanto mata bayanai na da na sayi tikiti da su: suna, lambar tikiti da imel. Na fara da suna, Abubakar: A as in Apple, B for ball, U for uniform…R for ring… har i zuwa ƙarshe. Indai za kai waya da kamfani ko ofishin gwamnati, to haka za ka faɗi sunanka don gudun kuskure, shi ne hanyar da za su fi ganewa. Tun abin yana ban haushi har ya koma bani dariya. Idan kuma kai tsaye ne naje ofishi, to da na je bakin kanta sai na miƙa adanti kati ɗina. Mata tace ce ai mota ta zo a dai-dai lokacin da aka bata kuma ta tafi. Nace sam, banganta. 

Mata fa ta dage. Ni ma fa na dage. Ta dage na dage, ana ta tirka-tirka. Da naga ba fa haza, sai na ce to yanzu meye abin yi? Ina mafita? Yanzu ya za ai da ni? 

Ta ce to ko dai na jira na hau motar ƙarfe 7:30 dare, ko kuma na kai kaina birnin Chicago inda motar da na rasa zata yada zango. Idan na riske ta a can sai na hau na tafi. 

Nan fa na fara tunani, na tsaya ko na tafi ko na koma gida? – amma kawai sai na sayi tikiti zuwa Chicago na kamfanin wata motar, mu ka kama hanya muka tafi, da kamar karfe biyu da kwata na rana. Damuwar, ba yadda za ai mu iya wuce motar. Indai mutum ya wuce ka a titi, indai ba tare kuke tafiya ba, to zai wahala ka kamo shi ko ma ka wuce shi, indai ba wata matsala ya samu ba. Dailili kuwa shi ne, a tsarin sufuri a nan, duk wanda ya riga ka barci sai ya riga ka tashi. Har dai za ka bi ƙa’idar tuƙi, akwai adadin gudu da za ka yi, kuma sai ka bi umarnin fitilar titi, da suaransu, to zai wahala ka wuce wanda yake gabanka. 

Muka kama hanya muna tafiya, mu tsaya mu sauke fasinja mu ɗauki wasu, har mu ka kusa isa Chicago. A ƙa’ida kamar tafiyar awa uku ce, zamu isa cikin gari kamar 6:30 na yamma, har lokacin da muka ɓata kafin mu fito bakin gari mu hau hanya. Mun kama hanya mun yi nisa, sai direba yace to fa baa za mu iya isa ba sai 7:30, saboda yamma ce, mutane sun tashi daga aiki suna ƙoƙarin komawa gida akwai cinkuso. Jiki na ya yi sanyi, amma dai ban karaya ba. 

Ni dai kamar na yi tsun-tsu, kamar na koma gida, kamar kawai na sayi tikitin jirgin sama na hau daga Chicago.Na rasa me zanyi. Na yi ta da-na-sani, ina waswasi. 

Tun a baya abin da ya hana ni komawa gida shi ne kar abokai na su ganni kuma na tafi na dawo. Ga shi an sha wahala, sai naga tun da har an yanka kazar to ya kamata a fige. 

Haka na zauna a cikin mota ina ta tunani. Ba mu isa Chicago ba sai ƙarfe 7 da motsi. A wannan lokacin mota tuni ta tashi. Na rasa me zan yi. Sai na tambayi direba, Baƙin Ba-Amerike da ya kawo mu, na ce “Don Allah ina ne inda tashar motar Greyhound ta ke?”, kamfanin motar da zan hua ke nan. Sune suke harkar sufuri da jigilar fasinjan gari-gari a Amerika da Canada. 

Direba ya kwatanta min, yace idan na bi nan sai nai can, idan na wuce gini huɗu, sai nayi hagu. Tafiyar minti takwas ce a allon map da na duba. Na kama hanya, kamar fa na ɓace. Ga shi ina kallo a wayata, ina gani mintuna kaɗan ne, amma na kasa zuwa. Sai shatale-tale na ke a banza. Sai na fara tare mutane ina tambaya. Wasu su tsaya, wasu kuma su wuce abin su ko kula ni ba sui ba. A zaton su ko zan roƙe su kuɗi ne domin an fi samun mabarata a cikin Baƙeƙen fata, wanda cikin su ne talauci ya fi yawa. Wasu su tsaya su ji batuna, amma sai su ce basu san wajen ba. Da ƙyar na samu wani wanda ya sake ɗora ni a hanya. 

Da isa cikin tashar, sai na ga motoci birjik, suna ta shiga suna fita. Fasunjoji na shiga mota, wasu kuma na fita. Idan mota ta sauke fasinja ta huta, sai a sake mata lodi ta fita. Sai na ga har da Flexi Bus, motar da ta zo garinmu. Nai salati na sanar da Ubangiji. Kuka zan yi ko dariya? 

Sai na ce tohh haka a ka yi! 

Sufurin mota kamar na jirgi ya ke – haɗin gwiwa – ka sayi tikitin wannan mota, wata kuma ta ɗauke ka ta kai ka wani wajen, wata ma ta sake ɗaukar ka, har ka je inda za ka je. Ba mota ɗaya ce za ta kai-ka ba kai-tsaye Gwammaja Ƴan-Kura. 

Ashe ma kamfanin Greyhound da Flexi Bus abu ɗaya ne. Flexi Bus ne suka siye kamfanin Greyhound suka haɗe. Amma ba su canja masa suna ba saboda shi a ka fi sani. 

Sai naje kan kanta wajen wata mata, Ɓaƙar Amerika me ɗan-jiki. Nayi mata bayani abin da ya faru. Da alama sun saba ganin irin haka. Ta ce maza, kira wannan lambar, ta nuna wata lamba a manne a jikin bango. Na kira, nai mata bayani. Cikin sa’a, matar da na yi magana da ita ɗazu ita na sake riska. 

Ina fara karanto bayanai na kawai na ji ta gane. Bayan wasu mintina, sai ta ce na duba imel ɗina. Nan take na duba. Sai ga tikiti ya shigo, nace mata e na ga tikiti, na ƙara da cewa amma an soke shi tare da jadawalin tsohuwar tafiyar. Tace na sake dubawa, bayan shi akwai wani. Na sake dubawa. Sai ga shi an canja min tikiti, an sani a motar da za ta tashi ƙarfe 11:30 na dare, cikin awanni uku da rabi masu zuwa. Ita wannan mota ita ce dai za ta ɗauke ni da ace na tsaya a garinmu na biyo motar 7:30 ɗin. 

Ilai, sai ga shi an kashe tsaohon tikiti an bani sabo, an kuma cire kuɗin zuwa Chicago da ban hau ba an dawo min da su. Ni fa har na cire rai, don na san yadda za ai ta kai ruwa rana a Najeriya. 

Duk wanda ya ke harkar sufurin ƙasa-da-ƙasa ta jirgin sama to zai sha mamaki a tafiyarsa ta farko yadda harkar jirgi ta ke, musamman ta jigilar mutane da kayan su. Za a tattaro mutane daga garuruwa daban-daban, gaba ɗayan ku za a cireku daga wannan jirgi, a saka ku a wani, a haɗe a gwamutsa, amma kaya ba sa ɓata, sannan kuma ba a kuskuren siyar da tikitin da ya fi yawan kujerun jirgi. 

Za ku sayi tikiti watanni daban-daban, daga ƙasashe daban-daban kafin tafiya, amma haka za a tattaro na Kano da na Beijin, da na Berlin da na Cape Town a kai su Qatar, sannan a zuba su a jrigi ɗaya dai zai kai su New York. Kuma kowa zai zo a jirgi daban da jakunkunan su daban-daban. 

Muka hau mota da misalin ƙarfe 11:30 na dare mu ka kama hanya. Mu sauka nan, mu tashi can, har mu ka isa garin Detroit na Jihar Michigan da misalin ƙarfe 5 na safe. Nan ne muka yada zango, inda kowa ya sauka don can ja mota zuwa inda kowa zai je. Haka dai, motoci sai shigowa suke yi cikin tasha, wasu su sauke fasinja wasu su ɗauka. Motar mu za ta tashi da misalin ƙarfe 11 na safe, wanda daga nan kuma sai tasha ta gaba, Pennsylvania. Amma a hanya mun shiga ta Ohio, inda muka kwashi wasu fasinjoji a garuruwa daban-daban na Ohion, kamar su Toledo da Cleveland, sai dai a irin waɗannan garuruwa ba a tsayawa mai-yawa don canja mota. Sai dai a tsaya na ƴan mintina fasinja su hau ko su sauka. Wani wajen kuma a bada minti kamar biyar, wanda zai siyo abinci ya saiyo, wanda za iyi fitsari ya yi. 

 

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 

Tafiyar duka dai kwana biyu ce, mu tsaya a nan mu yada zango, mu yi gaba mu ƙara lodi. Mun shiga garuruwa da dama, a ƙalla guda 7, daga ciki har da Illinoi, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, sai Pennsylvania, sai kuma New Jersey sannan ita kanta New York. 

A duk cikin garuruwan da muka je ba wanda ya fi burge ni kamar Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Ba wai don garin yafi sauran garuruwan Amerika ba, a’a, sai dai kawai cewa yanayin zubin ƙasar garin ya ban-banta da sauran. 

Duk manyan biranen Amerika na da manyan benaye da hanyoyi, suna da wuta da ruwa marasa yankewa, suna da wuraren shaƙatawa da more rayuwa da kuma wuraren al’adu da tarihi. Ko’ina da irin abubuwan da suke da shi, da kuma gudunmawar da suke bayarwa. 

Yanayin zubin Pittsburgh ba irin ragowar garuruwa ba ne. Pittsburgh na da yanayi mai wuyar sha’ani. Garin na da tudu da kwari, yanayin hawa da gangare, ramuka, tsaunuka da kwazazzabai masu maban-bantan tsayi da zurfi, sai kuma duwatsu, dazuzzuka da bishiyu malale a ko’ina. 

A wani wajen tsaunukan sun miƙa sama ƙoƙoluwa, har su kan kama daga ƙafa 1,500 zuwa 3, 000 da motsi. Sai kuma wani yankin da yake da kwazazzabai, da ramuka masu zurfin gaske da ruwa a ciki. Wani yankin nada rafuka, koguna da kwazazzabai masu zurfi. 

A nan a ke yin ta! Duk abin da ka ke ji ba nanata zance ba ne. Duk akwai waɗannan maban-bantan yanayi a garin. 

Ina ƙoƙarin kawo maka yadda abun yake ne a zahiri; duk da hakan nada sarƙaƙiya, musamman ganin cewa akwai ban-bancin yadda muke kallon ilimi da kuma yadda Bature yake kallon sa. Tangarɗar shi ne cewa saƙon a gaskiya ba zai fita yadda ya kamata ba. Amma ba damuwa za mu yi ba, saboda hakan zai kai mu kai tsaye inda nake so mu je. Domin fahimtar me nake nufi, ka je ka rubuta ‘Pennsylvania topography’ a yanar gizo, za ka ga abin da zai fito, kuma ka mayar da hankali bisa abin da zai biyo baya a rubutunnan nan gaba kaɗan. 

Fahimtar garin Pittsburgh kamar yadda yake haƙiƙa na buƙatar yare na musamman, a nan muna iya cewa kan fannin ƙasa da muhalli tunda shi muke magana akai, wanda ban sani ba a Hausa idan akwai. Bisa wannan dalili, abubuwa da dama ba za su fito fili ba yadda ya kamata, wanda hakan tawaya ce. Ga misali, ya za a faɗi waɗannan a Hausa: landslide, earthquake, slope failure, ground collapse? 

Kusan duk abu ɗaya ne, amma kowanne akwai dalilin da yasa a ka bashi suna daban. Don haka ba ɗaya ba ne. Dole ne yadda za a faɗe su ya kasance ya bayyana abin da suke yi ko yadda suke ko aikin da yake faruwa a zahiri. Ba ta fuskar rahoto ba da za a hakaito abin da yake faruwa, a’a, ta fuskar samar da ilimi, ko bayanin da zai iya ceton rayuka ko halakar da su, asarar dukiya ko akasin haka, ko kuma samar da sabuwar hanyar bunƙasa harkokin yau da kullum. 

Lura da wannan bayani, ga misali, kana mai ƙudurce cewa kuskure ɗaya, duk ƙanƙantarsa zai jawo – ba wai zai iya jawowa ba – a’a kai tsaye zai jawo gagarumar matsala, zai hana yin abin da a ke so a yi gaba ɗaya, kamar gina gari irin Pittsburgh mai wuyar sha’ani: 

“Wealthy cities in hazardous sites such as Los Angeles or Tokyo can reduce geological or meteorological risk through massive public works and “hard engineering”:” stabilizing landslides with geotextiles nets, gunnite, and rock bolts; terracing and regrading oversteep hillsides; drilling deep drainage wells and pumping water out of saturated soils; intercepting debris flows with small dams and basins; and channeling storm runoff into vast systems of concrete channels and sewers”. 

(Planet of Slums, 124) 

Ƴan magana suka ce: tunaninka kamannunka. 

 

Aiki sai mai shi. 

Irin wannan ilimi da fahimtar ire-iren mabanbantan yanayi da zubin ƙasa na garin Pittsburgh shi ya bada damar gina garin, kuma a ka iya yiwa garin yadda ake so. Wani wajen an yiwa ƙasar hikima, wani wajen an yi mata dole, wani wajen kuma an hau tabarmar sulhu. 

Shi dai wannan gari, a kowanne lokaci a duk inda ka ke, za ka iya kasancewa a saman tsauni da ya kai ƙafa 3,000; ko kuma cikin kwazazzabo da ya kai ƙafa 1,500 ko 2,000. Ga kuma ruwa da ya zo ya keta garin ta ko’ina, kamar River Ohio, wanda ba ɗaya ba ne ba biyu ba. Hakan ya sa garin ko ina gada ce, wata ta keta can, wata ta keta nan, wasu a tare gungu-gungu, wasu kan wasu, kuma ba wai na ado ba ne irin na Chicago don samar da hanyoyin mota. A’a, wannan gadoji na dole ne, dan samar da hanyoyin sufuri da zirga-zirga. Wasu gadojin sun tsallaka saman ruwa, wasu kuma saman kwazazzabai. Wani kwazazzabon zurfinsa ya kai ƙafa 2, 000 ko 3,000, idan ka faɗa ko kukan ka ba za a ji ba, amma haka a ka shiga a ka saka harsashin gada a ciki. 

Da adadin gadoji 446, ana yiwa garin Pittsburgh take da Garin Gadoji (City of Bridges), kuma kimanin mutane milyan 2.3 ne kacal a garin idan ka kwatanta da Kano. Babaan abin mamaki shi ne yadda a ka sarrafa zubin ƙasar dan gina garin da samar da abubuwan zamantakewa na dole da za su tallafi rayuwa. 

Saman tsauni ka ga gida, gefen sa kwazazzabo. Wani tsaunin kuma ya kai tsauni ba zai yiwu a keta shi ai titi ba, sai akai haƙa ta cikin sa a ka yi ramin titi ya yuce (tunnel). A saman irin wannan tsauni kuma sai ka ga an share wata ƴar hanya inda layin wuta ya bi ta kai ya wuce. Ko kaga eriya sabis akai. 

Abu dai iri-iri, ya danganta da yadda wajen ya zo da kuma me ake so a yi. Wani wajen ya yi makaifa, wani wajen ya yi kwanciyar magirbi, wani wajen ya yi rami a makaifa, wani wajen tsauni ne ya yi sama kuma mai kwanciyar magirbi, wani wajen kwazzabo ne ya kai-kaita, amma duk da haka ba a fasa yin abin da a ke so ba. 

Ni dai ina zaune cikin mota ina ganin ikon Allah. Ruwa, tsauni, rafi da dazuzzuka sun ratsa garin ta ko’ina. 

Lokacin da Turawa su ka zo, sun tarar da ƴan gargajiya ba sa iya zuwa inda su ke so ta daɗin rai. Su kan su Turawa lokacin sai sun haura ruwa ko sun hau dutse kafin mutum ya je inda ya ke so. Don haka Turawa su ka fara gina gadojin itace kafin daga bisani su maye su da na ƙarfe. Amma fa wannan ana maganar shekara 208 da ta wuce ne, daga 1818 zuwa yau, 2026, lokacin da aka fara gina gadojin katakon bayan an sha gwagwarmawa kafin fahimtar muhallin da kuma ƙirƙiro kayan aikin gini da kimiyyar su. 

Sababbun zuwa muka ciro waya muna yin hoto. Ina ganin wasu Indiyawa suna ankarar da juna abubuwan mamakin da suke gani. Sai juye-juye suke suna ɗaukar hoto. A zuciya ta na ce “colonized people”, yadda aka yiwa Sarakunan Arewa da wasu masu iko a Afrika ke nan lokacin mulkin mallaka. Sai a ɗauki Sarakuna da ƴan jarida irin su Abubakar Imam a kai su London, sai su dawo cikin mamaki da jin-jinawa Bature. Hakan ya zama wata waƙi’a da take tabbatar da mulkin Turawa akan Baƙaƙe, tunda dai su Turawa har gobe sun yarda cewa, a faɗin su, “It is unnatural to be ruled by your inferior”. Kuma dai, game da Baƙaƙe, suka sa ke cewa, “If you are not inferior, you will not be one second dominated”. Idan kuma ka yi musu, Turawa suka ce, to me ya sa kai a ka yi wa mulkin mallaka ba kai ka yi ba, me ya sa kai a ka mamaya ba ka kai ka mamaya ba, me ya sa kai a ke juyawa a halin yanzu ba kai ka ke juyawa ba? 

Wannan zai sa ke haska maka me yasa Iraniyawa su ka zaɓi su mutu a kan su bari Turawa su danne su. A wannan tunanin dai, za ka fahimci cewa duk wata matsala da ka ke ciki ka na ciki ne saboda gazawar ka, saboda matsalar tafi ƙarfin ka, amma ba wai don matsalar ba ta da magani ba ne ko ta gagara. 

Tunaninka, kamanninka. 

Labarin kai manyan Arewa London ya tuna min da abin da Turawan mulkin mallakar dai su ka yi a Gabashin Africa, musamman Tanganyika, Tanzania a yau. Sai su ɗau Baƙaƙe su kai su bakin Ruwan Victoria. Sai su nunawa Baƙi gadar da suka gina, wadda ita ce ta farko a Afrika da ta tsallaka ruwa ta haɗa garuruwan gefe. Ƴan Afrika su kalla su girgiza kai, wane mutum, su kuwa Turawa su ce: “engineering wonder”. Hakan ya nunawa ƴan Afrika cewa ehh, dole a mulke ku. Kuma dama al’ƙawarin Allah ne cewa ilimi shi ke mulkar jahilci. 

Da muna hira da wani Baƙar fata kan abin da na gani a Pittsburgh, sai ya ce to na je Sin? Domin shi ya je, kuma abin da ya gani ba wasa ba. Sin ta wauce hankali. Ai Amerika ba komai ba ce, a faɗar sa. Na ce na yadda, amma dai lokacin da Amerikawa su ka yi wannan aiki fa babu ilimin kimiyya da fasaha da hikimar gine-gine da tsara birane irin na yanzu. Babu inda za ka siyo mashina da kayan aiki ko ka kwafo. Duk abin da za ka yi, sai dai ka ƙir-ƙire shi da kanka, inji ne ko mashin. Shi kansa mashin ɗin da ya ke yin mashin sai dai ka yi shi. 

Ni dai a raina cewa na yi da a ce mutanen mu ne su ka je Amerika, to da wani wajen cewa za a yi ban da shi, musamman wajen su Pittsburgh da ke da wuyar sha’ani. Don wani wajen sai an fasa dutse, kuma dutse ba na wasa ba. Wani wajen sai kayi tafiyar mintina a cikin rami, wani wajen kuma gada ce gaba siyaki baya damisa, sai dai ka ga kana lilo kamar a siraɗi. 

Baya ga titina, an gina gidaje a saman tsaunuka da kwazazzabai an kai musu ruwa da wuta, ba maganar tudu ko kwari ko fargabar ambaliyar ruwa ko girgizar ƙasa. Allah kawai Ya san ilimin da a ka gano kuma a kai amfani da shi wajen gina garin Pittsburgh. 

Can mu ka tsallaka wani ruwa, muka shiga asalin garin Pittsburhg, inda zuciyar garin ta ke, inda a ke hada-hada. Abubuwan da za ka fara karo da su su ne samaniyar garin, cike da dogayen benaye masu nunawa sama yatsa. Adadin dogayen benayen garin ya kai 115, wanda 34 daga ciki sun wuce tsawon ƙafa 300. Sannan ƙasan garin a rarake yake, kamar ragowar garuruwa, inda nan ne layin dogo yake, da kwatoci da layin ruwa, da sauran su, daga ƙasa ta ɗaya har zuwa abun da ya sawwaƙa. 

Yanzu damina ce a Nejeriya, na ga mutane sai ƙorafi suke ruwa na cika musu layi. 

Pittsburgh na da tasiri a ƙasar Amerika. Garin ya samar da manyan ƴan kasuwa kuma hamshaƙai, irin su Andrew Carnegie da Andrew Mellon, waɗanda sune su ka kafa cibiyoyi da gidauniya iri-iri, wanda su ke ɗaukar nauyin bincike kala-kala, kamar na kimiyya da fasaha da sha’anin zamantakewar ɗan-Adam, ƙungiyoyin sa-kai, harkokin mulki da gwamnati da sauran su. 

A cikin wasu cibiyoyin bincike da kowannensu ya kafa, Andrew Carnegie mai Carnegie Technical Schools, da kuma Andrew Mellon mai Mellon Institute of Industrial Research, cibiyoyin na su guda biyu sai suka haɗe a shekarar 1967 suka zama Carnegie Mellon University. Don haka a fannin ilimi garin Pittsburgh ba baya ba. 

Bayan da Andrew Carnegie da takwaransa Andrew Mellon suka gama tara dukiya, sai su ka ba da waqafin wani kaso daga cikin dukiyarsu ga harkokin bincike da faɗaɗa ilimi. Duk da su attajirai ne da su kai shuhura a cinikayyar ƙarfe da gawayi da gina layin dogo da hada-hadar kuɗi da bankuna, ba abin da ya fi taimakon su wajen tara musu dukiya illa ilimi da bincike. Ilimi ne ya basu damar gano sabbin hanyoyin sarrafa abubuwa kuma suka kere sa’a. Don haka su kai masa tagomashi. 

Idan ka je unguwar Oakland, inda a nan Jami’ar Carnegie Mellon ta ke, tare da Jami’ar Pittsburgh, babban abin da zai ɗau hankalinka shi ne Music Hall da Library. Gine-gine ne na alfarma zubin Rumawa. Da yake Pennsylvania na ɗaya daga cikin garuruwa 13 da Turawa su ka fara dira, har yanzu akwai irin tsofaffin gidajen da suka haura shekara 200 da mutane ke zuwa don ganin tarihi da yawon buɗe ido. 

Idan mu ka dawo gida Kano, wannan ya sa dole a jinjinaya Mallam Isyaku Rabiu da ahalinsa, da irin su Alhassan Ɗantata da ire-iren su. Ba yadda za ai ka zo Kano baka ga tasirin su ba. Tasirunsu ya ɗanfaru a garin Kano, daga gine-ginen gidajensu, makarantu har i zuwa masallatai. 

Kamar su Andrew Carnegie da Andrew Mellon, su ma haka su ke a Kano, duk da mun so su fi haka. 

Muna fatan samun irin su da yawa. 

Ƙarshe.

Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano as a Social Repair

Crime is one of the prominent features of the city. The mitigation of crime and other social vices is a responsibility that falls not only on the shoulders of the government. The health of society is a responsibility spanning multidimensional fronts: comprising authorities with direct power, to family and residents of a community as a collective. The social health of the city is also the work of architects and planners. 

A man standing at Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano, Sudawa, Kano, 2024

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Physical planning is an important factor in influencing the social health of society and its inhabitants. Respected voices in urban planning note how a great urban environment, in terms of design and social services, can enhance people’s quality of life and foster a sense of community. I set out in this piece to use Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano as a social repair tool and planning theory for combating crimes and other social ills in our society. 

We have recently heard the gruesome murder of an entire family in Kano, first in Tudun Yola and then in Ɗorayi, by the same alleged criminals. Cities are characterized by petty and violent crimes. The job of the residents and the governments is to institute policies that combat and prevent crimes for the safety of the inhabitants and prosperity of the city. Sustainable urbanism involves governments at various levels as well as residents of the city. 

I was particularly happy weeks ago when I learned that communities around Dala have mobilized to construct police station around Kuka Bulukiya cemetery to combat persistent phone snatching that has cost countless lives of innocent passersby. The idea of constructing security outposts in crime hotspots has been a productive strategy for combating crime. It is not only fighting crime, it replaces crime with security and constant human presence and activities. It does not only prevent crime and protects lives, it brings life and economic activities to the beleaguered locations. 

My friend once took me to an area in the ancient city to pay a condolence visit. It was a long time ago I cannot now remember the name of the neighborhood. Those who know Kano intimately can piece together snippets from my narration to figure out the area. I can vaguely say that the area was around Mandawari, Ƴar Mai-Shinkafi, Gyaranya or Baƙin Ruwa or Gwauran Dutse. We walked through the alleys after the condolence and appeared at the Aminu Kano Way. 

The neighborhood has a shelter christened Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano. It is an open pavilion in an open space at the heart of the neighborhood. I was intrigued not only for the discovery, but also for the name and the social function of the place. This was the first time I got to know the place, or any shelter named Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano in the city. I began to think about the connection between the place and the famed radical politician. 

I did not ask the naming history behind the shelter, but my imagination wagered that this must be the spot where Mallam Aminu Kano hung out with friends and conducted his public life. It must be the local context where he started his political career, a gathering place for the nightly schooling and political organizing. My guessing was supported by my assumption that the place is located within the ancient city, and not far from his initial dwelling at Aisami/Sani Mainagge axis. I was intrigued and fascinated by the place for its great potential in building community. 

The Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano is a mini square and public space for the community. It enables the residents to perform social and religious functions. Residents of the neighborhood, particularly the elderly and retirees, use the pavilion to hang out. The community uses the open space to perform funeral salat for the deceased. The main street around the space serves as a collector road that receives people from nearby alleys and neighborhoods. Thus, the open space becomes vibrant with life. Residents and visitors use the space to park their vehicles. Around the square sprung up activities by informal people, vendors and small entrepreneurs who set up stalls for services and various wares, delicacies like tsire and awara and other household items that cater to the neighborhood hospitality and social needs. The shelter becomes a living room of the community. My reading is that Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano is an open space that allows residents to do things that they cannot perform in the narrow alleys of their neighborhood.

Part II

For this reason, Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano stays with me. I want to suggest an expanded version of this space be built in as many places as possible in the ancient city, its suburbs and major towns across the state. This is based on key spatial ideas for sociability and security of communities and neighborhoods. 

Ancient cities like Kano had been built around its traditional institutions. The city spread out from the Emir’s Palace, surrounded by other civic buildings such as the court and the central mosque that eventually formed the city center. Spreading in a radial pattern, subsequent expansions and settlements of the city and major towns followed the same tradition. All roads lead to the city center. And the civic or the city center is almost always located in the vicinity of the dwelling of the traditional ruler. Outside the city, the Maigari’s or Dagaci’s house sat at the center of the settlements.

The best location for the Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano is to look for the ugliest and the most dangerous part of the neighborhood and tear it down to create a large enough open space to build the shelter. This place should be the heartbeat of the area by concentrating some basic services in the building such as small local clinic, school, library, administrative offices for Mai-unguwa, Dagaci and security agents and a conference room where important community meetings and non-partisan civic engagements can take place.

A strong civic component and social life are essential. The idea is to overwhelm crime, blight and unsightly facades. The building can serve as an venue for adult literacy classes, mass education and public orientation centers for social mobilization and political awareness. As a multipurpose building, the place can host activities such as elections, immunization campaigns, skills and personal development training for local youth. 

A mosque can be located close to the shelter. Around the mosque is where the elderly sit, dine and eat. It is where they enjoy quite calm and festive hours by day and night. Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano should be the agora and living room of the community. Clusters of civic buildings, residential and commercial uses can create sociability. This is not new; it is something that needs to be consciously improved upon existing traditions. Several Hausa villages have santa or tsakar gari where you have mixed uses that draw people together. Since the shelter is located close to the mosque, it should also serve as an open space where funeral prayers can be conducted. Commercial activities can be encouraged around the area to provide a more vibrant economic life. In Kano city, many neighborhoods have ƴar kasuwa within walking distance that allows residents to make purchases for their daily needs. 

The small clinic located in the center should offer first aid services and cater to the health of the most vulnerable. It should deliver basic drugs and inexpensive medications, medical advice and other services that might not require a trip to the hospital. Local people who have training in medical fields can volunteer and operate the place. They can also request NYSC corps members to be posted there. Funding can come from donations from wealthy residents of the community. People who retired from active services from various walks of life can participate. Skilled individuals can also ask to set up offices and contribute their services to the community. Community services can serve as a clear benchmark for future political leaders. People can see what potential representatives have contributed to their local communities before they enter politics – what they have done to the people before asking for their votes.  

It would not be a bad idea to allow car owners to park their vehicles in and around the shelter. Community-owned assets such as donated vehicles for conveying the deceased, power transformer, and water sources like a borehole can be sited there. The underlying assumption is that communities would actively work to protect their assets and improve their neighborhood. Their commitment or otherwise to safeguarding their assets is a clear proof of their collective responsibility, leadership, accountability and readiness for sustainable development. 

The idea is to use Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano and make the targeted place active and vibrant with human activities. The dwelling of the traditional ruler should be sited there to continue to facilitate administrative functions and liaison with various levels of governments for record-keeping, issuing birth certificates and documents, and other civic engagements. The closest idea to this is Ofishin Wakili, which can be upgraded where they already existed. If built in magnificent architecture, places like this can become historic sites that represent the community and tradition.  

The building should house an office for joint security agencies, including the police and Hisbah. This is where disputes will first be reported. It will enhance coordination and timely reporting of suspicious activities to support early crime prevention. Emphasis is placed on civil matters and prevention of violent crimes. The activities and involvement of the security should be largely civil and minimal. The point is to increase safety through informal supervision. The security agents, the elderly and small business operators form public characters who keep an eye on the neighborhood. The retirees and the elderly also fill the void and silence when other people are at work or school. They can alert parents – and the security agents – to what is happening in the neighborhood. Sustainable urbanism can be achieved through densification of social life in hitherto dark corners without militarizing the neighborhood. The refurbishment of the neighborhood is a valued alternative to blight that provides security through communal social space. Services and buildings can be dispersed according to the needs and resources of the community. The purpose is to chase away the thugs from the heart of the community and bring light to the dark corners and crevices. In the process, services are brought closer to the people. Traditional institutions are involved more closely and meaningfully into public service for their immediate communities.

Stakeholders – government, traditional institutions and community members – should work together towards realizing the Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano as a state-supported, neighborhood-funded civic infrastructure across Kano State. Zauren Mallam Aminu Kano should be conceived as a community and family resources center for residents of the neighborhood. It should be designed as a crime prevention tool through visibility, social life and shared space that strengthens grassroots governance and access to basic services.  It is an also an embodiment of spatial implementation of good neighborliness, the warmth and the communal character of Mutumin Kirki society. 

AFCON: Spatiality and African Grassroots Football

 AFCON has just concluded. Senegal won the trophy, but many football enthusiast know that actual play of the game is only half of the big spectacle. There are many things going on in the backstage that takes time to materialize. When you look at the countries and roll the camera and see them doing well, you will patterns lock into place. There might be visible investment and development of physical infrastructure, but there is also something more to it. 

Senegal, champions of the AFCON Tournament, 2026

As a sideline to every soccer tournament, one of the things I pay attention to is the grassroots, street-level infrastructure that feeds talents to the national team. In these tournaments you would not only pay attention to the official game or what happens in the big arenas but also to the images that come out from foreign visitors depicting themselves playing outside the formal venues. The soccer crowd, wherever they are, tend to find where to play.  To host a tournament, you really need to have a solid infrastructure for the formal as well as informal arenas. But more so, this tells us stories about the status of the game, leisure and of where citizens play. 

As usual, it seems Nigeria is left behind when it comes to grassroots soccer infrastructure. Senegal, Algeria, Angola, etc, have a thriving street soccer infrastructure. This infrastructure is not formal, but they seem to enjoy a greater consensus that cuts across formal and informal divide between citizens and governments. 

In Latin America, there exit in the favelas and barrios spaces in the communities where local kids can play the game. The spaces may not be the same, may have different nomenclature, may straddle a line between the formal and informal, but they retain the same purpose and spirit.

In Senegal, they are in the form of navétanes, a semi formal regional tournament played in local spaces. These spaces are not owned by the government or private individuals, unlike say, primary school premises or other government buildings. They are simply communal spaces where the navétanes games are played. These spaces are respected by everyone, no encroachment or erecting structures, public or privately owned. Kids start their careers from their neighborhood and move progressively to regional teams and then to professional league, to the national team onward to international careers. You find similar spaces in Brazil as developing ground for talents that would later go on to dazzle global audience. 

In North Africa, they have a thriving culture of street football played in what we can call in Nigeria 7-aside stadium. The difference is that these spaces in North Africa are free and open to everyone. They sit in open spaces in the middle of neighborhoods. The key idea here is access and openness. The use of open space for soccer must not require any payment and removes any other impediments that can exclude people. A truly public space is one that allows you in without asking for a fee or proof of innocence.

In Nigeria, empty lots and vacant spaces are constantly being developed. There is no respect for spaces where kids can play. The idea is that for places where formal sporting infrastructure is not in place, small-scale people in their communities use these spaces for leisure and sporting activities. Kids will have a chance to play the game from the very young age until they dribble their way to the national team. The grassroots in many parts of the world are where players are made and imbued with the spirit of the nation before they go through academy for the refinement of their talents. 

African soccer, like their South American counterpart, is largely dependent on informal infrastructure, local people coming together to form their own infrastructure. People as infrastructure is where citizens enter into a series of temporary, makeshift arrangements with each other to provide services that authorities are unable to deliver.

By killing these spaces, Nigeria is killing her young talents. It makes it difficult for the local kids to develop interest let alone play the game and nurture their talents. Angola, not really a footballing nation, has a thriving culture of street football. I noticed from the videos I watched that street lots exist, and they are everywhere. They don't seem to be developed or encroached so rampant as we see in Nigeria. It seems these spaces are protected by consensus just like they are protected in Brazilian favelas and Argentina's barrios. 

Football is the game of the poor. Commercialize football and you create a barrier where only the rich can afford to play. Commercial football delivers more money to the pockets of few individuals without bringing much needed, collective glory to the national team. The English Premier League is the wealthiest league in the world but the country has fallen far behind other footballing nations.  Germany has academy system in place but their overall sporting culture is anchored around process that resembles socialist democratic football than individualistic, capitalist model that Nigeria tends to lean towards. One of the biggest problems that Nigeria's football faces as an institution is the seeming, increasing reliance on academy for her national talents. Academies are simply there for money. Another thing is the seeming sole reliance on foreign-based players. This is understandable for the refined talents abroad but there seems to be a problem with that in Nigeria. 

There is nothing wrong with foreign-based players populating the national team. Countries tap into their talents abroad sharpened by cutting age training models and infrastructure. One of the biggest problems to this in the case of Nigeria is that players know exactly why they're called up to the national team. They understand why and there is no confusion about the nature of the transaction. There is nothing that dilutes or softens the nature of the transaction. The country only sees them when it needs them. The country is not there when they need her and so in their bloom and glory, they may not give their all. They will not play with their blood and heart. 

Secondly, tapping into foreign players in Nigeria is not grounded in any philosophical sporting policy. For instance, what it means for a player to play for the national team? What does the national team mean to them? What is that one thing that all players can understand as common language and shared values? Something like a unique national culture common among the youth? You can only find this in the street football that is played across the country. Pick that ideology and craft it into the national sports policy. What we see instead is total indifference at best if not outright obstacles thrown in the way of the nation's youth by the government and private interest groups. 

By eliminating informal spaces, we have destroyed the conviviality and socio-spatial relations that emerge from street game. Street soccer gives the manager of the national team a foundation, something to start with. The street is where every player understands what it means to play for the national team. From the ground up the Nigerian player can develop the character of the Nigerianness just as the French players are instilled with the French values and what it means to play for the national team. But since we don't have formal structure and arrangements like the French or the Germans or the English, where players are developed through various academies under the guidelines of the national football federations, the street is where our players should build their character. The Senegalese have taken the navétanes and use it as a national sports policy. It is an informal, grassroot football that develops independent of the government. The coach and players speak the same football language that came from the streets. 

By erecting structure on every available space in Nigeria, you tighten the rope for the children in local communities and make it hard for ordinary folks to make their way to the national team. So many talents would slip through the cracks before rising to the top and reaching their full potentials. We are already importing a dangerous trend from abroad where only kids from rich background would be able to play the game and make it to professional level.

And since we don't have meaningful ways in which citizens feel indebted to their governments and their countries beyond familial ties, the very few that already found their way to the highest level of the game know why they're playing. They're simply playing commercial football. They have already paid the price on the way to Europe without the aid of any national structure. When you call them up to the national team after this, they will not play with their heart and their blood. 

Light-Skin Football: American Player and the African Medicine-man

 

“Do you ever wonder why a small European nation is likely to beat a giant African nation in the game of soccer?” 

This is a terrific class. I have taught Soccer in Africa for the second time, in the summer and fall semesters 2024. The class allows me to discuss many ideas that are swirling in my head. I did a paper the previous year about African soccer and why the game was not matured and developed. Why does the game in Africa fail to compare with other football nations? Specifically, why the game is not as good as South American football, countries with shared socio-political similarities with Africa? 

I communicated what I considered the obstacles and offered some possible solutions. I made a case for an alternative vision of soccer from a total Eurocentric model to a model grounded in local context. But what are the cultural archetypes and theories that should be incorporated in the alternative vision of African soccer? I however am aware of issues in management style, corruption and governance. I used Brazil and Argentina to demonstrate that European model of soccer is not the answer to African football. Europe may have the money and power, but South American nations break the jinx, where dysfunction brilliantly turned into a catalyst for quality and respected soccer. 

Fall class, 2024

I had a diverse set of students in the fall class just like in summer class, which certainly translated to all kinds of cultural lenses. I promised my students that I would rate them just as they rated me. My comment here is generic, not singling out anyone one of them. I am very understanding person by default, a trait that I learnt from my teacher back in Nigeria, Mal. Aliyu Sambo, a man of leniency and ebullient intellectual energy. Like my teacher, I have great empathy for my students, but I know when to draw a line when it feels like I am being taken advantage of. 

I have had a positive experience overall. My class made wave across the campus. Campus community reached out and talked about it. Students excitedly participated in class discussion. My teaching utilizes discussion and Socratic method. I find this method quite interesting because it exploits and leverages knowledge gaps between the teacher and the students. Whenever I noticed some students holding back and refusing to engage, I quickly told them I was not trying to trick them. I was simply trying to show them something in the best way they could learn. Baiting them to make assumptions, sucking them in in their belief, and then exposing the holes in their assumptions. Teaching and learning are trade-offs. Hawk your ignorance, I will buy it with knowledge.  

What I love about teaching this class is that students liked to hang around and engage in after class conversations with me. It was a chance to talk further about course materials and share personal stories. They shared their campus life; they spoke about their travel to Europe and Africa and their background (I always ask about their background from the first day of class because this is America. You would know why shortly) and their connections to the game given this was America, America not being a soccer nation (the reason why). Immigration and soccer geography of the family history play a small positive role in some folks for enrollment in this class. 

One lady went to Uganda and played the game with neighborhood kids. She had an encounter with a traditional healer. This happened during a discussion in class on football and magic. The medicine-man gave her a love portion. Once she used it on her body, he promised, everybody in the street would get attracted to her back in the US. She did not use the thing ever. I asked her why, she said no one would like that attention. The whole encounter is an eloquent culture difference between the student and the medicine-man.  

Uganda

I broached the idea of forming a team and testing the theories we learned in the class. I approached the university men’s soccer team. The college men’s team unfortunately had their calendar fully booked. They couldn’t have a space to play with us except next year, by which time the class and the fall semester had ended. 

I vibed with the students. I blended with them effortlessly. I am a man of slim weight and curated stature. My lean figure gives off youthful impressions, which made the students think I am their age-bracket. I could sense from their behavior and attitude how they thought of me in their mind. It is amusing and hilarious. Some people might think I am complaining or that it is my African ego being bruised. No, I am not the kind of person obsessed with lordship respect. It is just that this time the kind of vibe is not student-teacher relation. It is peer-to-peer vibing. I came across as so youngish that if they have a chance these students could have invited me to their parties. 

I had a chance to visit Chicago at the end of the semester. Not that I had never been to Chicago. I go to the city twice a year. However, my experience is limited to the outskirt of the city, around airport, not the downtown. I went to the downtown this time. Met a lot of African folks coming from all over the US. I met some folks who travelled from Nigeria to Chicago for the same conference I attended. Chicago is a big city unlike anything that our city is. I almost argued once, when one of my colleagues said college towns are not real towns as such. 

Professor Miles and I

While in Chicago, I met William F. S. Miles, Political Science professor at the Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts. With a Jewish background, Miles is fluent in Hausa. He lived in Nigeria for some times. The last time he was in the country was three years ago. He asked where I came from. Kano. I asked which town he lived in Nigeria. Katsina. I said I know Katsina. But then, he doubted me light-heartedly and tried to test my knowledge. He asked if I knew Daura. Yes, I know Daura. I was once there, in Daura. Which other town had I been to?, he asked. I searched my memory and came up with other names, none of which was where he lived. Could I try again?, he asked. I ransacked my memory once more, struggling to remember the name of a town I visited in Daura axis, which is where he lived. I was blanked out. I was struggling for the name of a border town with a big weekly market. It was at the tip of my tongue. He was smiling. He was deriving pleasure from my struggle. Mai-Aduwa, I finally called it up after great difficulty. He smiled, shook my hand and gave me his card. 

One theme remains constant as I reflect on my work on soccer. African football is mired in colonial entanglements. It needs to find independent voice and playing style of its own. Another problem is that African football elevates money over utilitarian value. 

There is the question of “being there at the beginning.” African football however was as old as when the game was shaping up in the late 19th century Britain and early 20th century international football context. African countries couldn’t participate in the maiden 1930 World Cup edition in Uruguay because of their status as European colonies. Only independent nations were permitted to participate. There is also the psychological aspect of the game, in which African players are completely pysoped by Caucasian rivals due to historical racial hierarchy. Confidence and self-esteem evaporate in the presence of light skin and Whiteness. Imposter syndrome and inferiority complex take over. Sense of personal inadequacy permeates the African player psyche. There can be some win here and there but sustained challenge to “light skin” football is unthinkable. However, this is not the only or the final narrative. 

If Africa cannot realistically challenge European domination economically and politically, they cannot also challenge European domination realistically in soccer.  But there is catch. They can do in football what South Americans did by charting their own playing style and imbue it with local flavors, cultural elements and social milieu.

In addition to discussing so many aspects of the game, the class explored the representation of the game in African cinema and literature. Through the various readings, we pointed out the compelling and complex contradictions of the game, its joy and conviviality, the politics of space and urban life. In sum, it is a journey to Africa through soccer and the rest of the footballing world. 

An interesting aspect of the game is its philosophy and theories, ideas that shaped the game. We talked about time and space, geometric and non-geometric space. People express surprise once hearing philosophy and soccer in one spot. They are surprised the game merited discussion linking its back to Greek philosophies and theories: ontology, liberty, order and chaos. We go back to Greek mythology, Nietzsche and Shakespeare to talk about football.  My quick response to this reaction is to say: “Do you ever wonder why a small European nation is likely to beat a giant African nation in the game of soccer?” 

We studied the role of culture, city planning and architecture as affordance factors conditioning the dynamics of soccer. We understood that language plays a crucial role in cross cultural communication in football global crowd. Language barrier can close off a large audience to ideas and their nuances within certain cultures around the game of soccer. Not many people know about Professor Francisco Seirul-lo and his work, football Einstein behind Barca genius and the rise of Spanish football. Or the conversation around football fiction. Football terraces are designed like theatre and movie halls and the events they show reflect social drama in both. But why football fans don’t go to the stadium with a book of fiction? 

Many people do not think football merits heavy philosophizing. This takes me back to Nigeria. I have heard people question the role of coach, especially Barcelona fans in their glory, that anyone one of them from the street could have assumed the manager role and won matches. In fact, they boasted that the 2008-2009 team didn’t even need a manger to win a game. We addressed question like this, asking: is winning or losing determined by temptation or predestination? That is the role of freewill and liberty for the player and the role of manager as demiurge imposing order from the outside. No wonder the manger is the first man in line when a team is failing.

To borrow from César Luis Menotti, the Argentine tactical scholar, football is a set of ideas that the coach must transmit to his players to defend that idea. What is the idea of African football? Why do we play football as Africans? What idea are we defending? I intend to be talking to Africa’s football crowd about that idea. 

Husufin Farin Ciki: The Radical Way of Doing Hausa Writing

Husufin Farin Ciki is a collection of 21 short stories, infused with elements of tradition and modernity. The cllection sits between radical thoughts, rebellion and conformity. However, there is tension and complementarity between opposite ideals one wonders where the writer stands.

The stories come as fresh air; they do not follow the tired pattern of popular Hausa fiction writing. Stories in the collection do not aspire for a simple denouement or end on a predictable note. This sets Ado Bala apart from other Hausa writers. And as a genre, Hausa short story writing is relatively new and experimental form. Ado is contributing to this body of growing form. 

Bala’s work is a serious work, devoid of comical melodrama, adrenaline shock and awe as well as sensationalism that characterized contemporary Hausa writing.  “Nijeriya, Yammacin Afirka”, for instance, raises important questions about progress, tradition, conservatism and modernity. The protagonist, Bala, does the unthinkable against the overwhelming wishes of his society. He chooses Western education over the age-old, revered farming occupation. This tension highlights not only the importance tradition holds in Hausa society but also offers a moment to reflect on the society’s approach to issues in life. 

Farming occupies an important place in the hearts and minds of the populace. Obviously, Western education lifts much more people out of poverty and offers easier path to prosperity and upward social mobility than farming. But farming is too important to ignore. The society does need it. Practices in agriculture however remain traditional and pre-modern. What Bala’s society should do? Bala shows the way. His action is his way of thinking out of the box at the level of his own small village. Everyone believes that farming is better than Western education and so when Bala deviates from the norm, the whole village rises against him, not only the people but the elements and the entire universe as well! Nonetheless, he dared to fail in non-conventional way.

As a writer, Bala is an acute observer of the tiny details of life. He can let a reader on a terrible secret. He can bring to the surface what the society buries. He can transport the past to the present. He can also be neutral to a disapproved behavior or practice.  This is because Bala’s work is realist in its orientation, which is why we are jolted by its shocking revelations. We are able to recognize ourselves in the stories. We see ourselves truthfully and be able to see the reality of our own dark secrets and desires. This is true in “Tangaraho”, the love story of Ramatu and Imran, a loving couple separated by death. Imran died; only once Ramatu engaged in an affair with another man. We do not blame her; the writer does not paint her negatively nor incites reader’s harsh judgment. He invites us to show empathy, instead of blame, for her action. We are sad, though, guided by our sense of Hausa cultural norms and Islamic morals. However, humans cannot stop being humans. Bala is not there to pacify nor consider reader’s emotions. His work is realist, brutal and tragic. His stories carry a touch of sadness or melancholia. 

It is difficult sometimes to discern the position of the writer towards certain behavior or action. Bala goes against the predominant and acceptable, though of course, he at times appears moralist and preaches traditional middle-class values. Is he for modernity and its new ways like the individualistic lifestyle of Ya Gumsu and Alhaji Njidda, the people in the eponymous story, or is he for tradition and conservatism like we encountered in Nijeriya, Yammacin Afirka? Sometimes I suspect it is my cultural sensibility lurking in the shadow, imposing my own interpretations on the writer. 

Bala is writing within a larger literary tradition. His narrative can be distinctly local, but his inspiration and style are not narrowed. He brings into Hausa writing concepts scarcely utilized in contemporary Hausa writing. Within these philosophical concepts we encounter solitude and aloneness, introversion, sexuality, the self and its consciousness, concepts that were not traditionally embraced in Hausa cultural norms. They do not hold much significance in larger social setting. They are denied their secularist elements and social functions and are majorly discussed in the context of spiritual realms. Religious moralism aside, Bala allows his character to fully explore the facility of life and its social function.

“Keken Ɗinki” is about the friendship of women, the social function of gossip, the place of individual against the societal collectivism. Aunty Yarinye is one of those women who runs with the wolves. Her life is revealed to the reader through her association with Sa’adatu. Sa’adatu comes on a visit and tells Yarinye her imminent marriage. Yarinye dampens her enthusiasm. A career woman, Yarinye chooses her sewing machine over marriage because men in her society are terrible. The society is limiting, people are not defined as individuals by their own merits but as an extension of their family and traditions. This is why we encounter so much conflict and resistance from Hamman when his sister Jummai decides to marry Usman Shehu Abdullahi, a man from Christian background. In the same vein there is a hierarchy between men and women. What Anti Yarinye cannot get way with, her ex-husband Salisu is allowed to go off scot-free on account of his family pedigree.

Interestingly, NYSC narrative finds its way into the collection, a modestly large but unheeded writing genre, laying bare the distrust and suspicion of the North against the South. Very few prospective corps members are willing to venture to the South for fear of the unknown. A Northerner in the South is sure to face unique, difficult life situations and strange experiences. Prospective corps members and their families seek dubious ways to avoid being posted to distant lands. Corruption comes in handy, for “yadda za ai” that Alhaji Njidda suggested to his son means a privileged way of redeploying Abdul’aziz to a Northern state via undue advantage and favoritism. Husufin Farin Ciki is a searing critique of NYSC’s inability to ensure safety of corps members. Bad roads and insecurity expose the lives of Nigerians to great dangers, insecurity and death. 

Husufin Farin Ciki is true to its words. It delivers on its promise, supplying stories of disease, sickness and death, which we are constantly confronted with, directly or just few degrees away.  Abdul’aziz died on his way to the national service. His parents are thrown into grief and lamentation, questioning the future of their life and its purpose. In this, Bala nudges at the concept of death and genealogy. Alhaji Njidda “…na jin tausayin mutanen da ba su haihu ba, domin ya taɓa ɗanɗanar ɗacin rashin haihuwa, yana jin tausayin mutanen da basa haihuwa, waɗanda tsokar jikinsu ba ta bar wata tsokar ba, waɗanda mutuwarsu ta ke zama tabbatacciyar mutuwa ta din-din-din. Har abada” (84). 

Another interesting story is “Akwatin Gidan Waya”. We meet a curious child who ponders about basic concepts of how things work in everyday life. Walking with his aunt, the 10-year-old repeats after Anti A’i “Menene ɗaga ƙafa kuma?” This reminds me of my own experience, asking the women in my family “menene idon matambayi”? Through experiences, trials and tribulations the boy comes to understand the basics of things. The boy gets to learn and uses letter writing obsessively. Epistolary practices were very fun in the 90s, the era in which the story is set, used by family and friends across cities and towns and across boarding schools among siblings and lovers. 

We followed the young Auwal Idris Sadauki from his struggle with and awe of simple technology like the workings of post office to the advent of more sophisticated system like mobile phone when he enrolled in Ahmadu Bello University Zaria for university education – obviously Ado Bala himself. Each new technology appears first as a wonder and renders the previous one obsolete. “Na cika da mamakin wannan fasahar zamani. Allah ya kawo mu zamanin da za ka aika da wasiƙa kana kwance, ba tare da ka je gidan waya ba, ko ka sayi kan sarki ka liƙa ba…” (119).

For Ado Bala, not only marriage and other social malaises can be valid material for fiction writing. Light issues as obsession and fascination with post office technology and mystery of childhood is a subject of fiction writing, which is great considering these are the things many Hausa writers ignored. In this, his writing gains a lot in aesthetic values and depths.

Bala writes about the Kano City with considerable spatial sensitivity and awareness. As a Kano man, you can have a vivid mental picture of the settings, whether it is Yakasai Masallacin Jalli or Durumin Iya or Dandalin Turawa or the time in which the events are set. These evoke fond memories for anyone living in Kano City in the 90s, calling up the picture of the Post Office in Jakara and the stamp buying experience. 

Bala is fond of the disappeared practices of the era, like kids on errands weaving different hairstyle with corn silk and husks. Or singing the old Hausa songs. Bala uses the surrounding landscape to support the narrative. Dates seller and a random sweet vendor get featured in the story. Further, his treatment of the setting reveals the inter-relationships between the many Northern cities and towns and neighboring places like Cameroon not only in terms of shared values but also how marriage, trade and civil service brought these communities together. In Northen states and the Sahel, so it seems, everybody is related to everybody.  

Bala’s work retains elements of African oral tradition, tapping into the golden age and the age of creation. “Labarin Wasu Yan Biyu” for instance follows the opening pattern of oral storytelling. So also the story of Yusuf Ɗansambo in “Abin da Baka da Maganinsa”, the man who is rumored to be the richest young man ever in the history of Kano. In the olden days, words of mouth are the most potent news dispatcher, hence the spread of rumor and hearsay about the unmatched fortune of Ɗansambo. 

Bala proves to be a master of his craft, bringing modernity and tradition side by side. However, it is not everything that is under his total control. The story of Laila and Bashir in “Kiran Jama’a” is too good to be real. It is a telling fantasy, a mere propaganda campaign. This is one of the lapses of the collection, in addition to the absence of clinical, water-tight proofreading and publishing standards.