We published 12 entries for this Easter Contest which you can read here and the winners of the N100,000 cash prize emerged following our peer review on 16/04/2023. 1. The Igbo — Yoruba Mistrust by Chukwuemeka Oluka was the clear favourite as it received 3 nominations and was the most discussed story. The writer traced the political history of suspicion between the Igbos and Yorubas leading up to the recent events of the 2023 elections. He made an objective and balanced analysis before offering suggestions on the way forward; “Starting with Lagos, Igbo residents in Lagos and their host communities should realize that Lagos is better when the two tribes work together.” It takes courage to broach let alone do justice to this sensitive topic but Chukwuemeka has never dreaded uncharted paths. For that and the earlier stated reasons, his opinion piece wins the competition’s star price of N30,000. Congratulations Chukwuemeka. 2. Messindinho The Unfeeling Beast by Emmanuel Enaku got 2 nominations and was the second most discussed story. The writer who is growing into the darling of our community now owns this Messidinho character whom he has used in previous stories. It is impressive how he manages to show dexterity in each story. This time Messidinho plots to avenge a wrong by his friend while still finding time to indulge in his characteristic eroticism. The ruthless execution of his plan leaves the reader wondering what manner of character is this. Congratulations Emmanuel. This story wins N20,000. 3. Rotten Tooth by Kenneth Nwabuisi received 3 nominations. In this story about sibling rivalry Kenneth once again proved to be a wonderful storyteller. Narrated in a timeline, with great dialogue and expressions like; “No. I mean I understand how you feel, but I wouldn’t advise you to let this feeling grow. I may be unavailable for it at the moment because I’m currently seeing someone.” the fractious relationship and vengeful acts of two sisters will have you reading to the explosive climax. What a wonderful story! Well done Kenneth. This story wins N10,000. 4. TAMING tHE Thug! by Becky Peleowo had a nomination and I love the creative caption. Writing about the experience of a young man who reluctantly decides to be a political thug for the first time, the writer in some parts reminded me of Virginia Woolf’s stream of consciousness as her ink flowed through past events. She effortlessly brought one of the often overlooked causative factors of thuggery to the fore and wove an emotional tale that showed her creative talent. Congratulations Becky. I enjoyed this story and the last line was poignant. This story wins N10,000 5. Celebrating New Life: A Poem By Solomon Ekoja got a deserved nomination as the writer continues to prove his versatility. It wins N10,000 Thug by Victor Oladejo and Miracle: A Poem by Stephen Ayilegbe earns N10,000 each for consistency and courage respectively. The other entries were equally good and I loved the poems JUST WHY? by Becky and If I Were Jesus by Chukwuemeka. I haven’t written one in ages and I’m inspired to do so by reading these works. I vowed to be stricter in enforcing our rules and more capitalist in rewarding excellence, thus in line with the first part some entries were rejected for ignoring the instructions and not meeting our editorial standards but all writers were rewarded including those that had only one published entry. However, every day will not be Easter going forward. Writers are advised to join our Whatsapp group to keep abreast of our activities by sending an email request to admin@cmonionline.com as only those who participate in our peer reviews will be eligible for the prize. Also, endeavour to get a domain of your own to start building your platform. Feedback has been sent to some writers and you can always refer to our free resources and this post in particular for tips that will help you to improve your writing. We thank everyone who participated in this competition and those who have been on the journey with us. Our special appreciation goes to Newross & Co who sponsored this contest. Congratulations to all!