Plight Of An African Child

He sat alone in his ragged clothes, he watched as people were resuming to various offices. All he owned were his life and an old book plus a shabby pencil he picked from the garbage.

Written in his book were self-made interviews he had been conducting on himself since he acquired the book. Often, when you move closer to him, you would hear him murmuring the words “I am Kosi Kabuoh, a Presenter” as he would stretch his hands out like he’s waiting for an exchange in pleasantries.

That simply depicts the normal life that would not be expected of an African child dwelling in poverty. Many reporters, both internationally and locally have stereotyped our African Children as unhappy and non-ambitious children who lost it all to environmental factors.



Judging from the books I have read, when writers mention the word ‘African child’ in their books, most of them try to create a Visual imagery of poverty or illiteracy. Many people try to understand Africa’s children by looking a poverty or education reports. But the variety of backgrounds shown by our African reporters reminds us that differences across the continent can be greater than similarities. African children can be happy without being wealthy.

Children who have a number of activities they enjoy doing may enjoy a happy childhood.

A key factor in determining whether children have a good or quality life or also a decent life is the survival of their morale.
Apart from reporters stereotyping our African children as clothless, emaciated, diseased and so many other bad features, they have taken up to describe Africa as the home of poverty.

 A typical example can be seen in these lines “welcome to Africa, where  tears flows as river, where food survives only in the belly of tigers, children with protruding bellies under exposed bridges. The politics of pity towards African children and Africa itself perpetuates fundamental ignorance which needs to be eradicated.

To my humble journalists from those Continents, where flaws do not exist, stop presenting our children as Savages, and desist from presenting our future as a cloth less fellow. In this part where we belong, posterity has plans for us.


AKINLEYE MARGARET INIOLUWA 
CLASSICS DEPARTMENT
200 LEVEL.