ANALYSIS

OF

AKACHI

ADIMORA

EZEIGBOS

NOVEL

TRAFFICKED By Adenle Adepeju Temitope 03 Feb, 2009

This paper focuses on: Summary of the novel Trafficked Analysis of four leading female characters Language Subject Matters in the novel.

Summary of the Novel Trafficked is a novel that deals with the issues of human trade, that is, women trafficking through a series of reminiscences. Nneoma, the leading female character in the novel shows the trauma that goes with human trafficking; the deceit, the lies, the cons, and the slavery or servitude that goes hand in hand with women trafficking because they all end up as sex objects to men, in order words, the pimps use them the trafficked as prostitutes. The novel which is credited with twenty-nine chapters has each chapter unfolding the stories and circumstances of each of the characters portrayed in the novel. Nneoma after a slight hiccup in her relationship with Ofomata decided to leave her home town in Ihite-Agu and upon hearing from a friend that there were teaching vacancies in the United Kingdom and that she would be introduced

to the agents in charge, Nneoma went straight to her friend and they both traveled down to Lagos to meet with the agents. Six of them were chosen (all ladies between the ages of seventeen and twenty) and were flown out of the country under the guise that a teaching job awaits them. Nneoma expresses her joy and thank her Chi at this junction but little was she to know that danger lay ahead of her. However, before they were flown out of the country they were made to swear an oath before a shrine and that, if we disregard the terms of the agreement, disobey them or cut links without settling our debt. (Pg: 128). Only when Nneoma got to Italy did she know she had been trafficked. After a period of six years of been trafficked she was caught and deported back to Nigeria where the government had made provisions for the empowerment of trafficked women through the establishment of Oasis Youth Centre for Skills Development (OYCSD) her she stayed another two years before she could summon the courage to go back home to see her parents at IhiteAgu. During her two years stay at the centre she was trained as a tailor and she was able to get an admission into the University of Lagos to study a teaching course. The novelist through this novel is

able to skillfully and tactically bring to the attention of the reader the issue of female trafficking and the inhumanity of man towards the women, the need for women to be more educated and enlightened about the issue of trafficking and the dangers attached to it, as well as understanding the process of trafficking. At the centre of the novel is a consideration for the place and effect of parental love in the life of a child. Nneoma parents are an example in this case. Nneoma father in the person of Ogukwe Eke loved his daughter deeply and he believed that it was the spirit of his dead mother that dwells in Nneoma. Nneoma grew up a loved and cherished child in a peaceful home in which she was the third child of four children. Ogukwe who was a clerk at the Internal Revenue Department in the Ministry of Finance regarded himself as a family man, having done his best to train his children in school and provide for them and their mother. Adaeze, his wife, made more money than he does by the nature of her work which is trading and brought home more income than he did. But these things were not voiced,

For a womans wealth belonged to her husband and she could lay no claim to it at any time in her lifetime or even after she died The novelist here subtly voiced out the plight of the woman in the Igbo culture which is also obtainable in other cultures as well where the woman cannot claim anything fro herself even after she laboured to acquire the wealth, she has no say in its spending, giving rise to the voiceless nature of the woman which society and culture had imposed upon her. However, upon Nneoma disappearance from home and her elder sister Hannah religious fanaticism which led her to the arms of Prophet Elias who abused and mistreated her and encouraged her in committing outrageous crimes against Ihite-Agu shrines, completely embarrassing the family, Ogukwe still showed his love for his daughters by receiving them back with opened arms and not overtly criticizing them. The novelist through this portrayal of parental love is able to show that love stabilizes a lot of atrocities and erases pains, loneliness, and sorrow as Ogukwe and Adaeze showed their daughters that they were willing to forgive and forget.

Every day belongs to the thief but one day belongs to the owner of the house (Pg: 145) This is the case with Ofomata who was regularly besieged by Dr Komolafe, a lecturer at the University of Lagos who takes pleasure in extorting money and other forms of things from his students, not only Dr Komolafe but some other lecturers in the campus was reported and had been asked to resign without much publicity being drawn to the case after a two hundred level male student set a trap for him. Ofomata, who happened to be the love of Nneoma before she fled their home town, was used by the novelist to explore the angle of corruption and bribery even in the academic world and the trauma some lecturers make students go through all in the name of passing them in the various courses they handle. The novel goes on to tell the readers the post-traumatic implication which trafficking has on its victims and how Nneoma grew to be weary of men and most things they stand for. Through the eyes of Nneoma we are able to understand the extent of female degradation and through her plight we are able to form in our minds the question as to whether prostitution is a form of male violence against women?

Whether therefore, prostitution is a form of male violence and show of domination on women or not, the fact still remains that women from all parts of the world are being trafficked everyday to serve as prostitutes in most European countries with the lure of a better life and some are just outright kidnapping. In all, the novel Trafficked, is a book full of the show of love, culture and tradition, education, human trafficking, and a host of other issues which has culminated together to give the work a sense of identity which is common with most of Akachi Adimora Ezeigbo works. Akachi with this book therefore has been able to portray and illuminate more on the issue of human trafficking and other elementary issues that keep a society together. ANALYSIS OF FOUR LEADING FEMALE CHARACTER The four leading female characters selected for this research are Nneoma, Efe, Hannah and Dr. Chindo Okehi. Two of these characters will portray the issues of prostitution and trafficking in their lives (Nneoma and Efe) while Hannah exposes issues of insecurity and lack of self confidence and Dr. Chindo Okehi will portray what the other three women dreamed of being.

NNEOMA A young lady who had been dealt with a blow from the hand of fate; Intelligent, beautiful, and adventurous but who was turned into a brooding, skeptical, traumatized, humiliated, shamed and stigmatized woman as a result of life experiences and most importantly as a trafficked woman, but who however, refused to be nothing and decided to make something out of her life after being deported back to the country as a prostitute and trafficked woman thereby showing an inner quality: strength and dignity. Born to Mr. Ogukwe Eke and Mrs. Ogukwe Adaeze, she was much loved by her father who believed that she, Nneoma, was his mother reincarnated and as such was the apple of his eye. As his favorite child and second daughter (Pg: 10) Nneoma could do no wrong in the eyes of the father and when Adaeze the mother would complain about this, saying, you can go on spoiling her if you wish. You are the one that will regret it (Pg 11). Her fathers reply would be its alright, my little mother cooing Nneoma showing that Nneoma is a much loved child. Her love for Ofomata and their disagreement as to his traditional title (Ozo Nkwus) which he is to assume upon the death

of his father led to Nneoma decision to flee her home town Ihite Agu in Anambra State causing a stir in her house and her parent unnecessary heartache which eventually led to her been lured and trafficked by crooked men who promised her a teaching job upon her arrival at the United Kingdom, but that was not the case as she met herself in Italy where she discovers she is been trafficked and she says, I am completely devastated by the life Im forced to live: hit the street, waiting for customers, winter, spring, summer, and autumn; comeback at dawn, eat and sleep till it all begins again at nightfall (Pg: 129). Life as a trafficked woman subjugated to prostitution left her traumatized and shamed. However this did not stop her from plotting her escape which she succeeded in and where she met some Nigerian men who helped her but were lured by her beauty and tried demanding sex off her. Her second escape came swiftly but she was deported back to the country. Back in Nigeria, Nneoma is faced with the stigmatization of trafficked persons like herself by people and the press, but as luck would shine on her an organization took her and others in and they

were provided with food and shelter as well as an opportunity to learn a skill. Her quest for success and a redefinition of her life started at the OASIS rehabilitation centre where she picked up sewing and proved to be a better tailor as she said, she wanted more. The need and agitation to be a better person and not just a tailor, the cravings to be better educated all led to her re-application for a JAMB form and her quest to go to the university to earn a degree. Her resolution paid off as she passed her examination and was thereby accepted as an undergraduate at the University of Lagos. Nneoma displayed a more positive and matured side of her character under the siege of stigmatization. She gave instances as to her reaction when she was assaulted and fired based on her prostitution record. The first being in New York where she worked and she was caught and the way she retaliated when she was asked to leave in comparison to her reaction when Chief Amadi fired her based on the fact that she was a deported prostitute, in her own words, she says, .. the memory still rankled. But her reaction had been totally different this time. She had left with dignity

She therefore asks herself, Was this a sign that she had matured, or had become hardened? (Pg: 282). Her love for Ofomata never died as she is seen picturing him in her mind and always recounting the various episodes of their time together and when fate brought them together, she felt sure that this man would take her back knowing her for who she was (Pg: 311) In all, Nneoma displays and represents a lot of things to our contemporary young ladies. She who had experienced such dehumanization at the hands of fellow human but stood firm in the face of adversary and refused to allow her past experience becloud her present and future, is a lady who deserves an applause. Not minding her experiences she believed life still offered more than she had witnessed and isnt afraid to reach out and get that which is meant for her. HANNAH Hannah, the older sister to Nneoma is a lady plagued with low self esteem and who in her desire to be loved and in gaining

recognition took to Christianity. In the process of religion she

became the concubine of a prophet named Elias even at the objection of her parents. She ran away with the self proclaimed prophet. Hannah fell under Prophet Elias spell when a friend took her to his church one Sunday; three years after Nneoma had disappeared. Frustrated by her fathers complaints and pathetic groans over the non-payment of his gratuity and pension and the loss of his favourite daughter which also meant the loss of the piece of land promised by his prospective in-law; unable to find a job after her secretarial studies, and lacking much of the comeliness of her younger sister, Nneoma, which made men slaves to passion when they saw her, Hannah fell for the first man who paid her serious attention (Pg: 170). Hannah is found to ask herself always, what does Prophet Elias see in me that made him love me (Pg:170). This therefore led her to becoming Prophet Elias concubine since her parent objected to her marrying him. After three years of wild adventure, Hannah returned home damaged and disconsolate as she had been kept as a concubine in a harem of ten women and she was often used as a punching bag

when the prophet needed to unburden his pent up emotions. After all this she decided to return home to her parent. Her father upon seeing her was not ready to forgive her and was ready to send her out of his house but after he saw the agony she was in, took pity and decided that after all Hannah was his first daughter and forgave her. It wasnt easy for the mother to forgive Hannah but she thought to herself, Hannah behaved so outrageously, she had stretched the elastic cord of affinity beyond its limit (Pg: 180). Lebechi

unwittingly broke the spell of discord between Hannah and her mother and through this the universal language of maternal love was opened. Hannah like her sister Nneoma, after her ordeal decided to make a better person out of herself and decided to let go of the past and press forward into the future and in doing so, she took up selling okrika second hand clothes- which she bought from Aba and sold in Ihite-Agu market. Hannah exhibited a level of responsibility, maturity and repentance when she realized she was lucky to have a second chance. EFE

A young lady who was one of those deported based on the fact that she was trafficked and was made to the street displays an aura of positivism in the novel Trafficked. Efe is a woman who refuses to let anything or circumstances get the better of her. She is full of life and light-hearted, welcoming and friendly, above all she is one to find good things in worst places or situation, never afraid of lurching out after her deportation, and she proved to be loyal. Efe displays her sense of friendship to Nneoma as she was able to get Nneoma to talk about her ordeal as a trafficked person and was able to motivate Nneoma that life is not ending because of what had happened to them but that it is what they make out of the opportunities given to them. Throughout the novel, Nneoma found it easy and comfortable to confide in Efe and even after Efe left the OASIS centre she made sure she kept in touch with Nneoma. Efe played the friendship part well in the novel. Her sense of enthusiasm and positivism comes to play when she was willing to move on and have a relationship with a man she was unaware off as been a trafficker and upon knowing was willing to risk uncovering the man for who he is. Her journey back to her hometown met her with a load of adventures as she constantly told

Nneoma over the phone and at a point Nneoma remarked that, though she and Efe were similar in some ways, they were totally different in many others. Efe couldnt bear a dull moment; she liked to be on the move all the time, having new experiences. She was not afraid to take risks. She had responded to a strange advertisement placed in a newspaper and on the basis of that traveled abroad with strangers. Even the experience of being trafficked had not diminished her go-for-it attitude to life. (Pg: 125) With this, it shows that Efe having undergone the same experiences which Nneoma went through reacted to it in another form as compared to Nneoma. Efe has therefore shown that ones attitude and reaction to issues is of great importance to the survival of humans. Dr. CHINDO A senior lecturer in the Department of Science Education of the University of Lagos, Nigeria, tall and elegant who is in her early forties is a brilliant academic whose opinions are highly respected, not only that, but she is highly concerned about the welfare of her students, kind and generous as well as understanding and a good mother.

Dr. Chindo was always careful to remember to get Ofomata books when she travels out of the country on her academic tours and as Ofomata would describe her, Dr Okehi did not belong to the class of lecturers who discussed their colleagues with

students (Pg: 148). Nneoma in describing Dr Chindo Okehi said she was confident and refined. Nneoma remembers Chindo generosity towards her when they met in London and how Chindo helped her to rebuild her shattered psyche and mend her broken body. Chindo was special Nneoma concludes (Pg: 197). Dr. Okehi also exhibited her kindness and generosity when she offered Nneoma an opportunity to live in her sons quarters so that Nneoma could save some money. She is aptly described as, Ma, you are so kind to me (Pg: 308). An added plus for her on her ability to be a good confidant Dr. Chindo Okehi hereby represent the image which Nneoma aspires to be in the novel Trafficked, that is, the symbol of enlightenment and disciple and she is also the willing instrument through which Nneoma and Ofomata are brought together again.

LANGUAGE USE IN TRAFFICKED Language as a style used by Akachi Adimora in Trafficked is one of the authors technique through the use of words to convey particular meanings and since it is a known fact that a work of art is expressed in one language or another, each language therefore used in the novel is physically and psychically articulated to suit the situation and subject being written about; not only that, it reflects the authors personality. In reading Trafficked, one is particularly drawn to the diverse language used in the novel, each language representing a particular dialect and region in the country in which the author wishes to draw the attention of the reader to. Sentence O di egwu o (Pg:191) Tribe Igbo Meaning It terrible Allah (Pg: 191) Ole (Pg: 191) Hausa Yoruba God Thief is

Make you no mind de man. You know Pidgin say na de way dem dey chop country

money (Pg: 202)

This particular form of language mixture code switching and code mixing is peculiar to bilingual environment and through this the author is able to expose the mind of the reader and at the same time make readers identify themselves with the characters

depending on the nationality of the reader. Invariably, the author is able to add up languages such as; Yoruba, Igbo, Pidgin, Hausa and English in the deployment of the novel. Another peculiar way in which the author is able to use language in depicting the style of the author is the fact that one is particularly drawn by the level of affective and emotional language which pervades the novel. The novel burst out with the language of despair; Id rather die than return to that country (Pg: 3) This is equally followed with abusive languages: Shame on you .Go join the rest of the scum (Pg: 17) This led to the language of enquiry; Why are you so hostile? (Pg: 19) Have you gone mad? (Pg: 46)

A similar sentimental outburst recurs later in the novel; Whatever gave you the ideas that you could successfully escape from me? (Pg: 53) How did he find out where she was? What was she to do now? (Pg: 53) The language of romance and love persist the novel also: Nneoma, his favorite child and second daughter, would perch on his knee and, pulling his moustache playfully, ask him what work he had done in the office, instead of telling him what she had done on school (Pg: 10) How he enjoyed cuddling and kissing her! (Pg: 36) She came out all smiles. In the full view of everyone, he pulled her to him and kissed her lips. She laughed, protesting mildly. Ofo, stop it. You are shameless (Pg: 74) She laughed softly and walked away. Suddenly she felt that this man would take her back, knowing her for who she was. (Pg: 311). The language of friendship also pervades the novel:

 Dont get me wrong, Efe said quickly. I just want to be your friend in the real sense, to carry some of your burden, if you allow me and also get you to share some of mine, if you are willing (Pg: 97) The language of discord also pervades the novel which is as a result of Lebechi constant attack of Ogukwe and his family for want of trouble Eyi-o, aghonaha-o! Yes, their evil plan has succeeded! .... The war has just started. Well see who will get tired first! (Pg: 116) So the champion trader is back with her apprentice daughter, Lebechi jibed (Pg: 118) Considering the language aspects used (semantic, syntactic and phonological concepts), Akachi Adimora was able to show her level of dexterity. Therefore, the semantic, syntactic and

phonological aspect of language use will also be considered. SEMANTIC The author was able to use proverbs in adding more meaning to her choice of words. Proverbs is used aptly and concisely all through the novel thereby giving the novel a flavour peculiar to Akachi Adimora. The use of proverbs in the novel helped in defining

the authors style and making it unique. Examples abound in the novel and they are: A foolish chicken overlooked the knife that cuts its throat and got angry with the pot cooking it (Pg; 4) Show me the person for whom life is continuously blissful and I will doff my hat for him or her (Pg: 5) A woman who neglects or disrespects her husband will become destitute (Pg: 9) When a visitor is not offered a seat, he will attract more visitors to his host (Pg: 30) When a boil attacks the scrotum, you do not leave it untreated for fear it will give pain to the sufferer Everyday belongs to the thief but one day belongs to the owner of the house (Pg: 145) Legs that fly like shooting star must realize that flash like lighting are watching (Pg: 181) An ostrich buries her small head in the ground forgetting that the rest of her body is sticking out for the world to see (Pg: 185) Since all lizard lie flat on the ground, it is impossible to tell which of them is suffering from belly ache (Pg: 204)

A person who wants to confuse a fly climbs a tree to fart (Pg: 239) Poems are another form of language which the author uses in adding more to the characters intention, thoughts and actions. The author is able to use poem prolifically to express the feelings and moods of the character, giving it the stream of consciousness appeal peculiar to Virginna Woolf. Examples are: Mother and daughter talking Confronting differences Bridging gaps Closing ranks Mending broken fences Mother finds her lost child Child rediscovers the taste of mothers milk. (Pg: 182) Iwe na-ewe ayi O, iwe na-ewe ayi Ochu okuko new oso Elias mekporo ala [We are angry

O, we are very angry A fall awaits the one who pursues a hen The hen will escape unhurt Elias committed an abomination]. (Pg: 219) LEXICAL DEVIATION Lexical deviation occurs when the author uses a word in such a way that it stands out prominently in the sentence, what Chapman call foregrounding. This lexical deviation could be hyperbolic, metaphorical and dialectical or code switching. DIALECTICAL OR CODE SWITCHING LEXICAL DEVIATION This is the infiltration of mother tongue vocabulary into the second language. It is a prominent feature of a bilingual or multilingual community in which Nigeria is one. Examples are: Words Iyawo (Pg: 20) Okpo (Pg:35) Asa (Pg: 35) Nsogbu adili (Pg: 38) There is no problem at all Meaning (English) Wife

Aka ji ya (Pg: 42)

She

is

captive

somewhere Guguru (Pg: 190) Bole (Pg: 190) Obodo oyinbo (Pg: 40) Popcorn Roasted plantain White man country

METAPHORICAL LEXICAL DEVIATION This is the transfer of the concrete meaning of a word to an abstract meaning by analogy, for example: One for motorists, another for motor-cyclist and the third for footruns (Pg: 107) Here the underlined word is used instead of people without vehicles or motor cyclist. HYPERBOLIC LEXICAL DEVIATION This is an exaggeration in order to produce a strong impression, for example: His bulbous nose flared slightly as if he was displeased (Pg: 106) bulbous here could have been substituted with a simpler word like fat

Why are some of the lecturers excesses not curtailed by the authorities? (Pg: 33) Here the author could have used a simpler equivalent reduce. The author successfully uses language as a style in carrying out the idea, intention, truth, meaning, and reference for which, only language can act as its subservient and convenient vehicle of expression.

THE SUBJECT MATTERS IN TRAFFICKED The subject matter of Akachi Adimora in Trafficked is one that deals mainly about those things that affect women in our society. It exposes certain vulnerabilities of the Nigerian socio-economic terrain which has presented the modern Nigerian woman as prey to the dangerous tidal waves of post-modern phenomena. The issues in Trafficked will be discussed under the following subheads: Trafficking Betrayal Love Friendship

Stigmatization Education TRAFFICKING Akachi Adimora uses her novel Trafficked itself as a form of enlightenment on the issue of human trafficking and how

particularly young Nigerian women are lured by traffickers into this modern form of slavery. The title of the novel itself speaks volume regarding what to expect in the novel and this issue is pronounced as it can get every where in the novel. Human trafficking particularly women trafficking is a global issue that needs to be raised as it is a form of inequality to women in the society, not only inequality, it shows that men still regard women as a toy to be handled which way they please. Not only does human trafficking serve as a form of women inequality in the society it also reflect the socio-economic stand of the country as most trafficked women are lured by the opportunities they think awaits them. The theme of trafficking exposes the Nigerian women as prey to the dangerous tidal wave of post modern phenomena as the gripping tale of a young Nigerian Igbo girl who fell to the lure and illusions of overseas opportunities and possibilities which presented her with a

fast track on which to live ends up on the platform of slavery to prostitution. Through the use of characters like Nneoma, Efe, Alice, and Fola, the author makes the reader understand what really is at stake on the issue of human trafficking and not only this, the reader is made to have a glimpse and understanding of the measures taken in rehabilitating the deported trafficked women as well as the level of poverty which would drive people out of their own country into the hands of those that would even make their life more terrifying and would reduce them to animals. BETRAYAL The theme of betrayal in the novel Trafficked is of great importance, as we that through this, a sense of loss is felt by those chiefly concerned. This sense of betrayal is sensed by Nneoma (a trafficked young woman), Ofomata (a jilted lover), and Ogukwe (a heart broken father). Betrayal could wreck serious socio and psychological havoc in the life of its victims and Nneoma, Ofomata and Ogukwe are no exceptions. Nneoma who was hypnotized, mesmerized and

tantalized by her dreams of the famed European splendour, that

she could be who she want to be was betrayed when upon arriving found out she is in Italy (instead of London) as a trafficked person sold into prostitution. Nneoma is also the cause of Ofomata sense of betrayal because she choose greener overseas pastures over Ofomata love thereby leaving him a jilted lover and making it nearly impossible for him to love another woman until they met again. Ogukwe (the heroine father) felt betrayed over the loss of his favourite daughter whose where about was unknown, about his brother who betrayed him over the house they both built for their mother, about Lebechi (his brothers wife) who continually

assaulted him over little next to nothing and about his first daughter Hannah who decided to become the concubine of a fake prophet. Akachi Adimora therefore uses this theme in exposing the havoc in which betrayal can cause in the life of its victim, the psychological damage experienced by those who feel this emotion and their inability to let go of the emotion which later would bring about other forms of emotions in the life of its victims. Trafficking itself is a form of betrayal and it leaves all its victims a shadow of themselves.

LOVE Love makes the world go round and it forgives a multitude of sins. Love is a recurrent subject in the novel Trafficked and the author shows her dexterity with the usage of this emotion. All through the novel, the theme of the novel resounds; the love between Nneoma and Ofomata, Ogukwe and his wife (Adaeze) and his children (Hannah, Nneoma, Ohaka and Mma), Nneoma and Efe, Dr Chindo and Ofomata and Nneoma, and the list is endless. This affords the author to show that love conquers all; not only that, but it affords the author to bring and infuse a sense of hope into the tragic tale of the victims of trafficking that love can afford them to forget past pains and agony giving them leverage and motivation to press forward toward the mark of achievement and excellence. Love also affords the author the opportunity to portray her characters as real people because the author recognizes that for any character to be authentic and acceptable, it has to exhibit his or her own quota of limitations and shortcomings. Love therefore allows each of the characters an element of reality and equally portrays them as a group of people who realizes that they need the love of people around them to forge ahead.

FRIENDSHIP The novel frequently emphasizes the bond of friendship between Nneoma and Efe. This bond was what helped Nneoma and it was on the platform of this that Nneoma could face the challenges that comes her way when she was deported back to her country also; the novel got its form from the initiation of friendship by Efe towards Nneoma. After a while at the OASIS, Efe was able to get Nneoma to talk about her ordeal when she discovers she is being trafficked and afterwards she confesses that, I feel cleansed. My body feels light. Efe, thank you for listening to my story (Pg:135) Not only is the theme of friendship exhibited between Efe and Nneoma, we had it between Dr Chindo and Ofomata as well as Dr Chindo and Nneoma herself because DR Chindo offer of friendship started when she met Nneoma in London and her friendship proved true as we see in the novel that Nneoma went in search for her, found her and Dr Chindo was still able to lend a helping hand. STIGMITIZATION The result of the glitterati of the west as sold to the Africans by several uncanny vendors, of which the media of popular culture

should be chief, possesses the lacerating sting which wrecks lasting and severe emotional and physical havoc on its victims has a name called stigmatization. She and the fifteen humiliated young women shuffled out of the aircraft, past the crew who stood aside, watching them as if they were lepers or slaved disembarking from a slave ship. She looked up and saw the disdainful expression on the face of one of the stewardess, and looked away quickly (Pg: 4) Shame on you, one of the officers taunted. Go and join the rest of the scum who flew in from Rome a few minutes before you Look at them,.what a disgrace to the country (Pg: 17) Nneoma, sit down, Why didnt you tell me you were a deported prostitute when I interviewed you for this job. I asked a question.you are a good worker and talented tailor: no one can deny that. I cannot keep someone with your background here. So I am terminating your appointment with immediate effect (Pg: 272-273) EDUCATION The author also recognizes the position and importance of education in the lives of people and she believes in the centrality of the role of women in any exercise in national development worth a

second look and the sacrosanct of education to both the man and woman whose place in the global scheme is to be reckoned with. Through this Akachi is able to reinforce the idea that for women equality in the society, education is of great importance and Dr. Chindo in the novel is a fine representation of this, as she serves as a symbol of enlightenment and disciple which also serves as a motivation for Ofomata who is a student in the university campus as well as Nneoma who having being deported wished to go back to school.

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Literature Comparism. Lagos: Anason Intl. Press Ltd.

Onyerionwu, E. (2008),

The Times of the Signs: Neo-globalization in Trafficked in National Life of Sunday

November 9, 2008. Stark, E (2000), Tricking and Tripping, Prostitution in the Era of AIDS. New York: Social Change Press