The Good Old Days

About the Book

The Good Old Days is an interesting novel for general readership, a fiction in simple prose, based on the unfolding real life experiences of a people tinkering with national development but having very little or no meaningful progress to show for it over the four and half decades of their existence as an independent nation, despite nature's bounty and mouth-watering opportunities provided.

The ten chapters of the book portray the nature of mismanagement and the resulting failure or decline very evident in every sector of the economy, as well as the growing sense of loss, disenchantment and nostalgia across the country.

The political leaders' obvious lack of patriotism (well reflected in high level corruption, dishonesty, low work ethics and very expensive style of democratic governance) is seen in the book as the root of the worsening downturn in national development. The book stresses that the evident ominous trend (which is not exogenously determined) will be halted and reversed only when the country's political elite become less self-seeking and more patriotic, less hypocritical and more transparent in performing their various leadership functions.

About the Author

Chike Onyemelukwe received his B.A. (Hons.) and Ph.D. at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria, and a post-graduate Diploma in Regional Development Planning in The Hague, Holland. He taught in the Faculty of the Social Sciences of the University of Ibadan from 1970 to 1987 when he voluntarily retired.

While in the university, professor Onyemelukwe published several scores of journal articles and widely reviewed books now in use in tertiary institutions. Among the books he authored are Economic Geography of West Africa, Longman, London, 1983, and Industrialization in West Africa, London and New York, 1984. Since his retirement he has been helping with his publications to meet basic educational needs at the grass roots. His Social Studies series are currently in use as official textbooks in Nigerian schools.