The book of fiction: “Scores to Settle,” is written by Olukanni Olayinka, a businessman, pastor, and graduate of the University of Ibadan, with two novels and hundreds of poems to his credit. The novel was published in 2022 by Origami.
The work is an 11-chapter fiction spread across two parts, and spanning 110 pages. It is set in Port Harcourt, a city in southern Nigeria.
In the book we are introduced to Lawrence Ezike. Orphaned at 17, Lawrence was an only child of very successful parents who tragically died in an automobile accident. We learn that our protagonist, Lawrence, lives on the streets and in kiosks, having been ejected from his home by his father’s relatives.
Dave is also a street boy like Lawrence, with similar experience of being chased from home. They both live off doing menial jobs and sleeping in kiosks and stalls, or anywhere they find. The work indeed reveals the unwholesome treatment meted out to children especially, when their parents are dead by families of the deceased.
In Scores to Settle, Olayinka weaves his plot structure in such a creative manner as he also tells the story of Chief Chukwuemeka, a businessman and politician with governorship ambition. Chukwuemeka is the father of two children, Lucy and Kenneth, her brother. Chukwuemeka clinches his party’s ticket to run for Governor in his state, but he has to contend with the intrigues that unfold after his party’s primary election. Now he has to make a choice between his governorship ambition and something very dear to his heart.
- Eid: Wike urges continued prayer for Tinubu, good governance
- Uromi killings: Okpebholo suspends vigilante groups in Edo
- Nigerian boxer collapses, dies in ring during fight
- Eid-el-fitr: Police deploy personnel to prayer centres, markets in Rivers
- Nine die in Katsina lone crash
The work Scores to Settle peeps into the political landscape of Nigeria with the author’s portrayal of a fictitious political party’s peaceful primary election. In the book, we get a sense that party primaries can be conducted in an atmosphere of comradeship, camaraderie and brotherhood. But do losers accept the outcomes in good faith and congratulate the winner? The work provides a deep insight on the post-election trappings of typical Nigerian political parties.
So in this book, Lawrence and Dave suddenly become the heroes in the rescue of Lucy from the den of kidnappers. The kidnappers and Dr Nwafor the politician are arrested and prosecuted by the police.
As a result of their heroics, our protagonists Lawrence and Dave are adopted by Chief Chukwuemeka, and their lives change. They now graduate from street boys to undergraduate status in the University of Benin, alongside Lucy.
In this novel, Scores to Settle, Olayinka Olukanni gives a view of the workings of secret cults on the campuses of higher institutions in the country. He uses Dave as a canvas upon which we are given a picture of how cultists prey on newly admitted students in Nigerian tertiary institutions in their hunt for members, and how Martin baits Dave and gets him initiated, even with strong warning from Lawrence.
In this work, all characters get their due justice, and Lawrence and Lucy get their dreams accomplished in a lavish wedding and live happily ever after.
But ultimately, the work is a melange of skilled storytelling and racy narration deployed by the author. It is rendered in an easy to read language for the enjoyment of all.
. Olatunbosun is a broadcast journalist, fact-checker, and book reviewer at Splash FM 105.5, Ibadan. He can be reached via 08023517565 (SMS & WhatsApp only) and e-mail: molatunbosun@splashfm1055.com.
Follow The Eagle Online Channel on WhatsApp
