I hated the evening news. It was bearable to be called together for the morning news by my father after being handed a hot cup of tea with slices of bread by my mom at 6 am, but to be stalled from playing, reading a novel or sleeping so we could all watch the news at 8 pm was totally unbearable for me.
Source
I dragged my sleepy self out of the room the minute my father knocked on the children's room. He didn't need to come in, we all knew that we had to be in the living room in 5 minutes.
My younger brother was already fast asleep so he was exempted from watching the news that day, but my older siblings and I marched to sit in front of the television a few minutes after we heard the knock.
We expected my father to tune in to the African independent Television but instead, he had changed the channel to CNN NEWS. My mother too did not ask him why, I could see her eyes were already heavy with slumber.
At exactly 8 pm, the CNN News Central began.
The first highlight was that Pakistan terrorist Osama Bin Laden had been killed by the US government.
My father clapped his hands excitedly while my mother gave a whoop of joy.
“Ehhen? So they have finally captured this evil man?” My mom asked rhetorically
“They've not just captured him, he has been killed. Finally! There will be peace in this world” my father responded. You could hear the excitement bubbling in his voice.
Prior to this time, we watched on the news that the terrorist had been organizing massive murders and bombings both in the US and other parts of the world. He had bombed several US embassies, Including one in Kenya which caused Africans to begin to fidget.
“But daddy, why is this Osama Bin Laden bombing everywhere? What did everybody do to him?” My older brother asked on one of those days after we watched another attack he had just launched.
“Osama Bin Laden is who we call a terrorist,” my father began that evening after the news. “And a terrorist is a person who takes away the peace of a people by setting out to completely destroy them as revenge for one reason or the other”
There was complete silence after my father explained this to us. I shifted closer to my older sister fearfully. What if this Osama Bin Laden man decided to come into Nigeria? If he had once come into Africa, there was nowhere he couldn't reach.
I wanted to ask this question when my brother said, “But what did the US really do to him? They are the ones he has been attacking frequently”
“Who can tell why people do the evil they do? He will have his reasons but they can never be good enough for all the killings he has done so far”
“I hope he won't come to Nigeria” I eventually voiced out. My father shook his head.
“Nobody knows what he will do next but God will surely deliver usl”
Now that he was dead, my parents were more than excited that he wasn't coming to Nigeria next like we all feared.
I remember that it was because of Osama Bin Laden that we were taught safety measures and what to do if we were in an environment where possible threat was perceived.
“Lie down if you hear a gunshot,” our safety education teacher would say each time we had a class with him, “and if you see any suspicious movement, make sure you alert any adult around you. If there is a man in uniform, run straight to him and give a report”
I spent almost all the time at public places looking over my shoulder for suspicious activities.
“These terrorists carry out their acts through people even as young as yourself” we were told, “If there is anyone carrying a heavy bag around you, make sure you distance yourself immediately and at the first sign of suspicious behavior, you do what?....”
“Report to the nearest adult!” The entire class would chorus.
It was also from that period that I learned that people carried bombs on their bodies and willingly bombed themselves along with designated places just because a man who would stay alive told them to do so.
The death of Osama Bin Laden was a welcome development. That night, my siblings and I discussed late into the night instead of going straight to bed like we always did after watching the evening news.
“Daddy said President Barack Obama sent soldiers to kill Osama Bin Laden. I want to be like Obama when I grow up” my older brother said as we all drifted off to sleep.