It was a Monday morning and breakfast was fluidized beans and hot-tongue-peeling corn pap A.K.A. Akamu or Ogi. It was ate in a hurry just like every Monday morning without the girls in attendance because of the regular assembly.
Chuks* and Dele* were writhing in pain. Not the excruciating type, but the type that signalled riot in the bowels. They managed through the unusual boring assembly with one road on their mind – Jamaica. Why Jamaica?
Jamaica Road links Blockies avenue, Ikoyi and Ajegunle roads and their corresponding staff quarters. Jamaica created a feeling of a borderline for the school with no building on the other side of the road as of 1998. But Government Block have since been built across the road. A certain church had foundations too across the road. Is the church complete now?
While the school choir drummed away, Chuks and Dele took on their heels, way ahead of the others matching out of the assembly hall. They ran through the science block unto Ajegunle road heading towards Blockies avenue. They were pressed no thanks to the chemical reaction btw the beans and pap.
They skidded over the blockies rollers (Dung bees) that characterizes Jamaica Road, after wadding through the wet grasses of the blockies avenue. On locating a seemingly good spot, they jumped over the gutter into the bush and positioned to add human made manure to help the weeds achieve their glory.
Few minutes after the initial release of the blockies, Chuks hurriedly wore his green terylene knickers and stepped aside. Dele looked up with awe in expectation of an explanation of such hurry. “Look down” Chuks said. Dele’s gaze left Chuks’ face to the floor where he was squatted. Lo and behold, he saw: “Died in 1944”
Up and away, they bought ran, heads over heels, in fear and surprise. Jamaica road had shown them a new discovery.
The infamous awi Land was accessed through Jamaica Road. So also was the Lagos Benin expressway. You could hear the zooms of various vehicles by just walking along Jamaica.
It was also believed that a certain tree swallows fingers that touched it. How true? Jamaica was a haven for new canes for officials and captains to administer their brute and power.
Oh Jamaica, tell me a guy that never stepped on you? You were the shortest link from Newblock to the school area through the GC unit and library. The girls were denied of such privilege by virtue of their hostel location. Oh Jamo, you were scary at night with crickets producing the music. We feared for snakes, scorpions and unknown animals.
What a road to pass! Just watch your steps in the morning unless you love the scent that comes with sharing a portion of blockies under your sandal.
All hail Jamo. Who named it Jamaica?
Have you read the Newblock account?
Chuks and Dele are not real names*
Enjoy.
By Chibuzor Amos (@AmosCP)
Posted from WordPress for Android
Amoscp's Blog 
You wrote about Jamaica without mentioning the main thing it was notorious for, apart from the awin forest. Perhaps 1998 was very different from 1990
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