Nigerian Lives: 3 People Share Ghost Stories That Scare Them Till This Day

Every week, Culture Custodian talks to Nigerians who share their experiences and sometimes personal details about their lives. This time, we have three people telling us about their ghost stories and paranormal experiences that have led them to believe in supernatural activities:

Julie

I had this friend that stayed in Maitama then. I was around 12, and then she used to come to my place for sleepovers a lot. I decided to go to her house so it wouldn’t look like the friendship was one-sided. With permission from my mum, I took a taxi to their house. Her parents had gone out so we got to play as much as we wanted. We fell asleep as soon as we got in since we were worn out from playing and running around. I suddenly woke up in the middle of the night because I heard footsteps, so I assumed her parents were back. Then I heard the footsteps above the ceiling which was startling since my friend’s room was on the top floor. So, I woke up and put on the light only to see what looked like footprints on the ceiling as if someone walked upside down. Afraid, I woke my friend, let us call her Gina, and she told me that her dad said the house used to be haunted 30 years ago, adding that they had prayed about it. What burst my head was that she seemed unbothered about it. I asked if she told her parents; she said it doesn’t happen when they’re home, and when she told them, they never believed. Omo, after that day, I never slept there again. I was scared to sleep alone at night for the longest time.

Shola

I am an architectural graduate, so when I was in secondary, I did a technical drawing course that required me to put in long hours to do excellent work. Sometimes, I had to stay back in class during Night prep to finish up on my work. One day, I was trying to finish up an assignment when I heard someone chuckle behind the class. I wasn’t someone who believed in scary boarding house stories, so I figured it was crazy juniors playing around. I heard it repeatedly; then I saw someone peeping. I got annoyed as I started wondering which junior would be playing tricks on me. I was so angry that I stepped out of the class only to see someone run past. I followed the person who entered the class besides mine. Inside, I heard my classmates’ voices but the room was empty. I immediately ran out as fast as my legs could carry me. I told my friends about the incident but they refused to believe me until they had a similar encounter. It’s like this thing had recorded our voices.

Samira

What was supposed to be a romantic evening turned into a real-life horror movie for me. I went to see my boyfriend in Kaduna; I stayed in Zaria. He was escorting me home when I saw a guy I knew very well who died three years ago. This guy stayed in our area and was very helpful to us in the neighbourhood. He would help everyone; his mum was a widow who couldn’t send him to school, so he depended on stipends from his errands. One day, we had this light issue and someone had to check the pole for us. This guy offered to help, that’s how he got electrocuted. He wasn’t taken to the hospital on time, so he died. I know he had passed away because we even saw burial posters, and his mum came to my house and discussed it. My neighbours all went for the burial. Fast-forward to the day I was walking with my boyfriend, and I sighted this guy in a different area. I told my boyfriend about it, and he said he would talk to the guy; he did this because he thought I was lying. I stood at the other side of the street. When my boyfriend crossed, he touched the guy on his shoulder and pointed towards me. The dead guy looked back and as soon as he saw me, he vanished. I immediately took to my heels. I had heard stories of people reappearing after they died, which i never believed until this happened to me.

This article is based on real-life events. Names used are mere pseudonyms to protect the identities of the individuals mentioned in the article.

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