A forever dream …

When the Reverend Babinton Macaulay had a dream of founding a school, and James Pinson Labulo Davies bought into the dream by providing a seed funding of 50 pounds sterling to buy books and equipment for the school, I’m not sure the positive collaborators realized they were up to something that would change the facet of the Nigerian society.

The first secondary school in Nigeria, the CMS Grammar School, began with six pupils on June 6, 1859. Other Christian missions were to establish secondary schools several decades later. MBHS (1878) was situated at Broad Street, almost opposite the Baptist Academy (1885). CMS Grammar School was also on Broad Street. St Gregory’s College was founded in 1928, and King’s College was founded in 1909.

The initial six pupils have multiplied into several thousands, if not millions. Like the Chinese philosopher, Lao Tzu said, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

We are honoured to have passed through the School, even though my mother would have preferred me to attend a popular secondary school in Ikenne Remo, for obvious reasons.

Thanks to my paternal grandfather!

I owe the little I could write to the Grammar School for three reasons.

One, the pupils would always look for each other’s flaws in English. So we were our censors.

Two, in my third form, the library was my morning duty, where I was an “executive” cleaner with two others. I was exposed to a wide range of books, magazines, and newspapers.

Three, my English literature teacher, whom we called “Lady Macbeth”, unconsciously helped me. Whenever we had literature, I would go write some “poems” on the chalkboard. When the teacher came, she would look at the so-called poem and order a pupil to rub it off.

At school, we played when we were supposed to and studied hard, knowing the school did not condone malpractices even at the certificate level.

I believe Reverend Babington Macaulay was a continentalist since the last verse of the school song reads:

Africa will surely rise,

Fail we not in high emprise

Hidden here the secret lies;

UP! AND ON!

While wishing the Grammar School a very happy 166th birthday, I believe the Reverend deserves the highest national award posthumously.