This is a suggestion on how a Nollywood actress could have managed Enugu and Imo men better, without suffering heartbreak. This actress saw shege in the hands of Enugu and Imo men whom she subsequently baptized with a terrible name.

The actress in question is Esther Nwachukwu, aka Esther Sky. Her experience convinced her that men from Enugu and Imo have “lost their romance.” When a friend drew my attention to her lamentations about unromantic Enugu and Imo men, I simply laughed. “Well, I knew it wasn’t just the economy that was in recession!”

We are losing many things in the Tinubu economy but taking it to matters of the heart is not fair.

Esther’s spicy take appeared in a chat published by The Punch‘s Saturday Beats. She talked about scarcity of local romance and her regrets on dating married men.

“I have dated a married man before, but it didn’t end well. Some married men who date single ladies are demons.”

This statement has been playing in my head ever since. I was imagining Enugu demons stalking and entrapping single ladies, per the Dracula of a bygone film era. But the image did not quite fit what she was describing, from what I know about the subject. As we speak, single ladies still attend Enugu and Imo demon conventions, only to return with stories that touch the heart. This familiar experience is worthy of a Nollywood script: Actress dates married man, gets heartbroken, and then turns into an anti-cheating crusader—warning single girls never to trust men who wear wedding rings but can’t keep their zippers up.

Esther is not alone. Headline-worthy relationships and heartbreaks have become professional hazards for our Nollywood screen goddesses. They are like 5 and 6 – following each other as night births day. Should we count the actresses that have made headlines, not for box-office hits but for their entanglements with well-connected “Uncle CEOs,” “Daddy GOs” and “Alhaji Chief Sir (Dr.) Somebodies?”

But let’s back up a bit and return to Esther’s astonishing case against vanishing romance in two southeast states. She agrees that Nigerian men can be romantic—as long as they don’t come from Enugu and Imo States. Excuse us, ma. If only you know what our Enugu boys are saying about your claim. Here are samples:

“Demons, true… but na who dey always happy to open many doors for dem?”

“Facts! But those demons never sneak in — they’re summoned like royals and welcomed with scented candles!”

“Yea, but why do they act surprised like they never for once caught the wedding ring on the man’s finger?”

“Some married men are demons — and some single ladies keep falling for the horns and kudi-Owo-Ego!”

Others, however, agreed with you, saying romance levels in the southeast drastically dropped since Onyendu taught everyone to cry marginalization!

This whole affair—pun intended—should spark a broader discussion about how to manage Enugu and Imo men without making them complicated liaisons. But why in the first place do the screen goddesses get entangled with men who are not afraid of hellfire, aka oku-mmuo? Is it the pressure to keep up appearances? The harsh reality of the industry’s financial inequality? Or just the lure of these bad uncles in Agbada and sharp suits?

Kudos to Esther though; her honesty is refreshing. She was not glamorizing dating married men. Instead, she is waving a red flag for the younger girls coming up, telling them: “Sis, it’s not worth it. He’ll cheat on you and his wife—and still forget your birthday.” This great advice should be produced as a Nollywood storyline, one where the heroine doesn’t fall for the flashy married man but for the guy who shows up with a big ambition, pays attention, and, above all, believes that romance isn’t extinct in Enugu State. In other words – and the sole purpose of this my rigmarole – we entreat our Nollywood goddesses to date single men who know what romance means – even if they’re from Enugu😎😜

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *