MANTLE.

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I had gone to resume at my PPA, (primary place of assignment) for my youth service when the principal dropped the bombshell on me. He told me that since I studied linguistics and communication studies, I was going to be the leader of the youth corps in the school.

Nah! I most definitely didn't like that, I hate being at the center of anything, I prefer being on the sidelines and chipping in suggestions. The principal of the said school, Mr Olowoporoku smiled at the puzzled expression on my face and motioned for me to sit down on a vacant chair right in front of him in his office.

We had only just met because he wasn't around on the two occasions I went to submit my letter of placement. The day he dropped the bombshell was on a Monday and I had come to resume work. Why would he just decide something like that without asking if I was cool with it? I wasn't cool or even remotely okay with it at all, I hated it so much I was already considering changing my PPA (primary place of assignment). I would rather add milk sugar, groundnut, and water to sawdust and down it in one gulp as my lunch than stand in front of people as the leader.

I wasn't shy, no. I'm probably the most confident person you would ever meet. I don't talk much in public except when I'm with my OG's (Originals) my circle if you know what I mean. Out of curiosity, I asked, "How many of us are in this school? I mean youth corpers. How many people will I be in charge of?"

Scratching his head with his left hand, he chews at the butt of the pen in his right hand, "Actually, you are the only one which is why you have been selected as the leader."

This man has to be kidding me, selected from where? Among how many people did he make the selection? He's such a clown, I couldn't stop myself from laughing at the absurdity of the situation. I quickly composed myself and put on a serious expression.

"How come I'm the only one here? Were other youth corpers not deployed here?"

"They were but they didn't show up, you are the only one that came. Let's forget about them."

His explanation didn't make sense, but I let it go, what's the point? I was later to find out that he made a deal with five other youth corp
ers that were posted to his school for half of their salary (stipends from the federal government) monthly as a bribe for not reporting for duty. Don't be surprised, most principals do it and it's all shades of wrong.

No wonder he was quick to move on from the subject.

Okay, so I resumed and was tasked with teaching English Language to the junior classes.

Everything was going well with my assignment and it was bearable. I wasn't charged with many responsibilities, and I liked it.

That was until the Head of Department (HOD) of English quit after a misunderstanding with the principal.

I don't blame her, the man was a greedy, fat, pot-bellied, short man, I think you can picture him, he was bald and had a fondness for suspenders that hung on his body like a clown's getup. Yeah, he had that papa ajasco (a certain comedy character from way back) kind of vibe but he was stingy and owed his staff salaries for a few months. I didn't like standing close to him cause he seemed to be anti deodorant. You could always see patches of sweat on his shirt, and he never bothered to hide the smell. It stunk, badly. A dead rat doesn't smell as much as a dead wall gecko, believe me. He smelled like a dead wall gecko that had burst somewhere.

He just didn't want to pay, he liked owing despite all the bribes he collected.

Moving on, the head of the department quit, and guess what? Just like me, she was the only one in the so-called department. Funny right? The principal was a stingy guy, he didn't want to hire more staff cause of pay.

After the head of the department quit, he quickly put out a vacancy for an English teacher because the Senior Secondary School Examinations were approaching for the Senior Secondary Class 3 students and they needed to be prepared.

He got applicants, but they were all pathetic. None of them were any close to the standard that was needed.

To fill in the vacancy, he hired two teachers who were just Secondary School leavers themselves. What to do? Time was running out.

The answer was obvious, I was the next best thing. If it were to be because of the principal, I wouldn't have gone the extra mile. I feared for the students, I didn't want them to fail and I took the challenge.

So, I stepped up and took it upon myself to spend extra hours coaching the students after school. Did I also mention that other teachers in the school were lacking in many areas? I subtly interjected myself into the education affairs without seeming intrusive and gave helpful suggestions that were put to good use. I emphasized the importance of teaching aids, correcting a student, the thin line between discipline and wickedness, and many more.

What about the new teachers? Yeah, right, I didn't forget, I coached them too. You see, before being assigned to my PPA, I had teaching experience from a few years back and I wasn't new to it. There was also the fact that my Mum is an English teacher and she was a principal at that time.

I called her and she taught me many things that helped me. Guess what? I'm delighted to inform you that the school recorded a 98% success rate in the English language subject and success all through in other subjects that year in their WAEC (West African Examinations Council) examinations. I was ecstatic and for the first time in my life, I took on the mantle of leadership and it turned out good.

Imagine the tears on my face and everyone's faces when I was leaving after my service was completed. They were all sorry to see me go, and the principal broke character by ensuring a ram was killed for my send-off. I later heard from a student that he bought the ram on credit and has frustrated all the vendor's efforts so collect payment since then.

Leadership isn't so bad after all, I thought to myself later. All you have to do is step up and coordinate with a level head. It's okay to be proud of myself right? I earned bragging rights, and I tell you it wasn't easy. Try working with a stingy version of Papa Ajasco and you just might understand.

Hold up! I think I should add it as part of my achievements on my CV, it will look cool right? It's going to read, "restructured the educational system of a secondary school and took over the mantle left by an aggrieved staff, thereby driving the school and the students in turn to the best results ever recorded." Uhn! Uhn! I'm not sure it would look cool lol or would it?

Oh! And by the way, despite how much I enjoyed it, I'm never taking up the mantle of leadership anymore. It's too tasking amd it just isn't for me.