Memories from Boarding School days: La Bush

It summarized different episodes of experiences from boarding house, particularly of junior school days.

La Bush

“Aye e ti baje o, aye e ti baje o, lie down flaaaaaattt” he would say from about a six foot distance, Akeem, the then green house captain while I was in junior school beats lazy students silly or those doing house chores shoddily. He like Arogundade (lefty) whips like TV faces of cowboys, adept at punishing junior students in Federal Government College, Ikirun. One fateful midnight, he woke us all up in blue (Niger) house quarters of new hostel, city hall and began calling names of students who had failed to live up to expectations in house duties. We were made to hang on to the top of wardrobes with legs dangling in space and beaten mercilessly. Michael was a victim, I remembered seeing his hands sore, lacerated with spastic body aches like a malnourished boy. J.J also trembled at our house captain’s feet under the unction of a punisher.

Such was the experience during early years in F.G.C.IK and much more was the wealth of wisdom, character and resolve that followed years after; even beyond senior school days.

My first lesson as a new student was during siesta in my bed space beside Toba, who I later met in the university years later. The house captain caught about five of us talking instead of observing the siesta and took us out to do “angle 90” with our backs leaning against the wall and buttocks sitting on nothing. It took only a few minutes before we were finished, spent, groaning with spastic legs as we sauntered back to our beds silent as a graveyard. The act was enough to welcome us into the system. Meanwhile, JJCs heard stories of “La bush”, a beast who tormented juniors and was most qualified for the punisher’s shoes in the history of Blue house. They said his beating skills compared to an American movie’s marksman; half devil half dazzle, teachers dared not stop him whenever he dealt with a junior student who refused an errand or did poorly in daily apportioned task or even just unfortunate to cross his path on a day without clouds. He was the crème of the whole senior-junior affair and had just passed out of the college before 1999/2000 when my set came in. We often thanked God we never met him despite ample woes.