Based on the novel The Lekki Headmaster, what kind of job did Akindele, the older Nigerian migrant, do when he first arrived in the US?

Answer Details

This question tests comprehension of a supporting character's experience in the novel. Akindele is an older Nigerian migrant who had moved to the United States. According to the text, when he first arrived in the US, he worked in freight loading.

Freight loading is a physically demanding, low-skilled job that involves loading and unloading goods at warehouses, docks, or distribution centres. The fact that Akindele - presumably an educated Nigerian professional - had to take on this kind of work upon arrival illustrates a harsh reality of the immigrant experience: qualifications earned in one country are not always recognised or valued in another.

This detail serves the novel's broader theme of brain drain and its consequences. It shows that migration does not automatically lead to professional advancement and that many Nigerian migrants must accept work far below their qualifications, at least initially. The contrast between what Akindele was trained to do in Nigeria and what he had to do in America underscores the personal cost of the diaspora experience.