Erumena Ogun

Mermaids also known as mami water by the Nigerian people has been a source of fascination to me during my childhood years. I can remember when watching the Disney animation "The little mermaid”. I wondered at that tender age if it was real or just a figment of imagination made up by Disney.  Although as a kid I didn't analyse it further, I was just concerned about having a great time seeing ''the little mermaid'' with a bowl of popcorn shared with friends.

Last year, Animal planet had its highest rated show titled ''Mermaids- the body found”.  It was reported that there could be evidences that mermaids are real from extensive research made by scientists but viewers failed to see the disclaimer made by National oceanic and atmospheric administration (NOAA). They claimed it was a video clip made for the public to view mermaid with a possibility of existence. 

Also photos were spread across the social media of mermaids found in Malaysia after the Tsunami, in Zimbabwe and Israel to mention a few. Sightings throughout history has been reported by people like Christopher Columbus and Henry Hudson the explorer. Cultures around the world seemed to have mermaids in their folklore in ancient time where communication between certain tribes were considered impossible.

It seemed people wanted to believe that mermaids exists. This can be illustrated when the government of Israel promised to reward any person who can provide a conclusive footage of a real mermaid with S1, 000,000.

Are mermaids real or just a hoax? I believe that there's a possibility that mermaids could be more than just a fiction character since only 5% of the ocean creatures has been discovered. Although my previous statement was me exhibiting my open mindedness and viewing issues from different perspectives as an LBS student should but prior to LBS, I would say that it was a being created by human's imagination.