Wise was born in Bamenda, North West Cameroon, where part of growing up involved reading most of the novels in his father’s small library. His short story entitled ‘Devils’ won third prize at the 2014 Writivism International Short Story Contest held in Kampala, Uganda, where he also took part in the Writers’ Studio Workshop. He holds a Bachelors in Accountancy from the Oxford Brookes University UK and a Masters in International Development from the Institute of Education, University of London. Wise is the Founder and Executive Director of Action Foundation, a leading youth-development civil society organization in Cameroon. He is an award winning activist and social entrepreneur.
‘‘My President is a genius!’’ Elizabeth exclaims and laughs as I walk in, without looking up from the newspaper. ‘‘He deserves a Nobel Prize,’’ she concludes, suddenly wearing a serious look. The contrast between the initial laugh and the now thoughtful frown irritates me, even more than her words. A boy dressed in nothing but a pair of shorts sits by her side. He has a broad chest covered in shiny black hair, a solid six-pack and well-toned arms. I do not greet. I just stand there with my hands in my pockets, glaring down at him. He gets up and leaves. I have little patience with kids who sleep around with their grandmothers and even less respect for grandmothers like Elizabeth who sexually enslave their grandsons. I should call her Mum with love, with the reverence that every child should have for the woman that brought them into the world, but I call her Elizabeth.
When the boy vanishes into the house, I take the seat on the other side of the table, from where I can see Elizabeth’s face. Elizabeth still does not look up. She is whispering to the newspaper. She smiles, she slaps the paper as if to congratulate it for bearing good news. You would think that I am some invisible thing or a sight too unpleasant to behold. But no. This is Elizabeth: the thespian, the politician and player who knows how to put on a good show, even for an audience like myself that she wants to ignore.
