MY STORY AND MORE (IV) BY KAYGEEGAL

Hello folks, this week’s episode of Kaygeegal’s MY STORY AND I is here. Thanks to all who take time to read, and comment. We hope you enjoy this serving as well. Have a fantastic weekend.

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“We stand against any form of violence as the elections approach. Nobody should take advantage of this election to perpetrate violence. If our opponents cannot take the heat anymore, they should back off or restrategize instead of engaging in this lawlessness”

“Sir, are saying that this is the handiwork of the opposition party?” Asked a petite man from DBC Radio.

“Well, this is politics and some people take it as a do or die affair. Like I said earlier, we won’t give chance for any form of violence.”

“Do you have a name in mind sir?” Another reporter asked.

“No, I don’t. It can’t be done by an individual, this looks like a party decision to bring us down or to scare us. You know what? It can’t, not in anyway because we are coming out strong.” He glared at the camera as if communicating directly with the opponent.

“But Sir, aren’t you at advantage too?”, the petite reporter quizzed again.

“How?”

“If anything happens to Hon. Akinlade and he can’t continue with his aspiration, you would be the flagbearer and…”

He was cut short.

“Akinlade is my best friend! You can’t call that an advantage”, he retorted.

“Maybe you don’t see it as an advantage but if Hon. Akinlade cannot continue with this because obviously he is a gentleman who doesn’t like to be threatened, do you agree with me that he will step down immediately his life or family’s is being threatened?”

The reporter continued defiantly, catching the interest of the others who left her to continue the questioning.

“Yes he may, but we won’t let him. The opponent cannot shake us”, Mr. Salau Alimi replied calmly.

“Yes he may, and when that happens can we safely conclude that you are the flag bearer?”, another reporter asked.

“Listen you all, this very building has in it my daughter’s husband, my best friend’s daughter, colleagues, investors and staff! You ain’t talking about if they are still alive or how we are trying to save them. All you talk about is me being the next candidate… I wonder how humane you media people in this country are”

He dropped microphone, visibly irritated and stormed off the stage.

***************
“Woow, what a stunt!” I couldn’t believe my eyes and ears.”Did he just pretend as if he doesn’t have a hand in it? What da fuck!”

Lere and Bones kept mute with serious concentration on the TV as if we did not just hear the worst lie ever.

“You guys shouldn’t keep quiet as if this is normal…this is not! Hon. Akinlade’s daughter is lying down in my own room with pains written all over her body and he has the gut to hold a press conference just few hours after in order to blame the opposition party. Chai! How I hate politics.” I cringed.

“We’ve been in politics all along, we’ve been played and we have been encouraging them. None of us is doing nor saying anything.” Lere sighed and continued, “look at Bones here…he is being used too.”

“Don’t tell me that! I only want my daily bread”, Bones cut in sharply as soon as Lere stopped.

It was my turn to look at the unfolding argument between them, there might probably be a fight.

“Can’t you find a honest way of getting your daily bread? Must it be through killing for politicians?”

I could hear the angry note from Lere’s voice, somebody who just treated a stranger for free and didn’t even ask much questions.

“I know your problem, you are fortunate enough to have rich parents that sent you school. Now you can sit down there and judge me! When you didn’t experience half of what I went through”.

Bones was emotional and it got to me. Tension was rising and I knew I should wade in.

“Bones, nobody is judging you here, we are just saying your barbing profession can sustain you.” I reached out to him with my right hand he shrugged it off.

“I guess you were not here when I was struggling to pay shop rent, electricity bill, fuel for generator, generator maintenance, TAX! I’m paying TAX! How much was I gaining? Talk!”, he yelled at me.

I curled up on the single sitter and refused to respond to his rant.

“All I’m saying is, you don’t need this mess you got yourself into. You are even better off as a bus conductor”, Lere chipped in.

“Doctor pray. Pray that you become a bus conductor now”.

“It hasn’t come to that now, I trained to be a doctor and you chose who you are today!”

I stood up, having had enough of their verbal exchanges. Bones had already made up his mind, and as long as he remained the Bones I know, nothing can change his mind. I went to the restroom to relieve myself.

Sitting on the WC got me musing over the situation.

“Lere is wrong, its not only Bones that is in a big mess, we all are. God! What will happen to us, I have a dad in the hospital, Lere is married and Bones…well, his family stopped bothering about him…hmmmm”

I sat there some more minutes doing nothing. The feeling to use the toilet had disappeared and ended in nothing but a long pee. I involuntarily cleaned up when it was evident nothing but a pee was coming. I pulled up my touser, flushed and returned to the living room hoping they would have stopped their heated exchange but I was absolutely wrong, they were still at it.

“I don’t know why you bother yourself so much about these good for nothing politicians when we all know exactly what they did to you personally” Bones was on his legs now barking at Lere.

“What are you talking about?” Lere requested mildly.

“The Ebola case! How much did WHO said they would pay doctors working with Ebola patients? Didn’t they pay that exactly money to Nigeria? Answer that.”

Lere forced out a tight “yes”.

“Now tell me, did up to 40% of what WHO pay end up with the doctors? Answer that too”

“No…but…we knew doctors were cheated, they risked their lives and yet…”, Lere stammered, linking his words incoherently.

“So, doctor are you still not in favor of getting what you can get from there while you can?”, he asked sarcastically.

“I still don’t believe in this very path you are treading. We should be responsible as citizens too”.

I could see how much Lere was trying, he should just give up. Bones was stubborn.

“You want me to remind you of your days in LUTH during your housemanship?”

“I told you the stories!”

“Revisit it doctor, and let me know if you still want the honest path…I have business to take care of. This lady can’t hide here”.

He left us with our thought. To a large extent, I blamed the government for making Bones what he had become and at the same time I wondered what was going through Lere’s mind. The result was a block, I could not make anything out of my thoughts.

I sank deeper into the sofa, thinking of a way out of the situation.

AYO AND BOLA

This is the 100th post on this blog, and is to celebrate my personal person, Ayobola Raji on her birthday today. Happy birthday sweetlies, keep growing and glowing, and thanks for being an inspiration to write, always *wink*wink*
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The sun was scorching terribly, too hot for an August afternoon. Those who were lucky enough to have air conditioners had it blasting at full throttle while those without that comfort rolled down to allow the heat mixed air into their vehicles. His sensitivity to heat was well documented so it was more like the day’s weather punishing him for whatever it was.
His body had recently started playing tricks on him recently. He hated sweaty armpits and laughed at those who had sweaty rings on their clothes’ armpits. The same had started happening to him, and that was not funny.
On this particular day however, he was past caring. The discomfort he was going through made every other thing meaningless, except it was what would bail him. He was feeling hot from his insides and was sweating profusely to the extent that he would have taken a cold bath at any available public bathroom. It was that bad.
Ayo kept encouraging himself that it was a matter of minutes before he would have some relief.
“The Promised Land is right in front“, he said to himself.
He indeed got into his “promised land” within minutes and thanked his stars when he got to the local money transfer desk in the bank. There were less than five people in front of him.
“Hello Sir, I’m behind you”, he told the greying man in front of him with a full smile. Ayo had never been able to hide his liking for trim people, especially those who stayed that way even when growing old.
“Its no problem young man”, the man replied him. He dashed to fill the money transfer form in a jiffy.
The atmosphere was a lot better than the scorching heat outside and he would gladly stay a few more minutes after his transaction but he hated staying in or around banks when he had nothing to do.
“Who wants to be a victim of armed robbery in these bad times?”
He got on the queue and sighted her. Dark skinned, pretty face with a dash of oil and little make-up, moderate build; surely how he liked them looking. He smiled to himself.
The lady looked a few years younger and he would have not spared her a second look due to his very selective nature with the opposite gender. Ayo believed he had looks that could make any female go weak at the knees so he hardly gave them attention. He always told himself there was no need to fawn over any female when countless others would gladly have him around.
Somehow, his eyes strayed back to her and he took in her features again, ticking what he think got him attracted in his mind.
“Pretty face, ticked; good height, ticked; standout gait, ticked; good looking supple skin, ticked; good spoken English, can’t say; fine hair’ can’t say as hair was covered with veil (she must be a Muslim)”
His eyes kept roving in her direction and he kept seeing one new thing or the other. She looked very pretty to him but he could not place what made it that way because she was not what they call ‘drop dead gorgeous’ but she had this aura of grace about her.
She wanted to make enquiries while he wanted to do his local money transfer. The queue moved and it was his turn. His concentration shifted to the lady who was to attend to him and he was so immersed that he did not know when his “bank beauty” stood beside him, said a few words to the Internet Banking staff beside him and went to sit.
Done with his transaction and aiming to leave the bank, he saw the Internet Banking desk free and decided to pick a form to activate the service so he would be spared having to run to the bank on “days like this when one has to move cash into another account”.
Picking up the form, he sat without looking, only to see that he was beside his “bank crush”. She was filling the same form he was about to start filling.
“Good one, I’ll strike NOW“.
“Excuse me”, he said to her. She looked at him, her face void of anything.
“Can you put me through”
“Where exactly?”
“Well…”, he tailed off when she had to answer her phone and started speaking fluent Hausa language, ending it with a Yoruba sentence.
“I’m sorry please. What were you asking about?”
“Ohhhh, never mind. I’ve sorted it. Are you from the north?”
“Nope. Why?”
“I like the Hausa language and you just spoke it with quite finesse and grace”
“Ohhhhh, I grew up in the north and it was more like the first language for us after English”
“But you just chipped in Yoruba now”
“Yeah, I speak Yoruba too. I’m Yoruba, the Yoruba speaking part of Kogi state”
“Now I understand. You’re at advantage”
“Which advantage’s that?”
“You speak English quite flawlessly, at least I’ve not noticed any blunder. You speak more than one Nigerian language”
“Ohhhh, ’tis a blessing and a curse at the same time”
The duo kept talking on diverse issues but Ayo noticed the eyes of a fair skinned bank teller on him and bank crush. The guy was making eye contact with her and smiling.
“What in God’s name is keeping these people? There are other places I have to touch and the day’s going pretty fast”
“This bank seems to now take their customers for granted. Nowhere to sit per se, yet they won’t answer one on time”
Moments after, the person to collect the filled forms arrived and attended to them.
“Please stay for a few minutes so you can get your passwords”, the stocky, busty lady said.
Ayo looked at “bank crush” and both smiled understandingly before going back where they initially were. There were two seats available so they sat side by side.
“So I’m Ayo, a journalist. I work with The Ink News and I do a bit of personal writing. I graduated in 2007”
“That’s cool Ayo, Bola is the name. Sociology grad, class of 2005. We sorta share the same interest, I write too”
Ayo got weak, how would this young looking babe be two years his academic senior?
“Wow, you don’t look it. You look like an undergrad”
“Well, I’m running my Postgrad at Premier University already. Should be done with my Masters in a few months”
He was feeling defeated already but had to keep up not minding the gap between them.
“If she’s running her Masters, I’m also working nau”
“Mr. Ayo Adewale”, the bank staff called out.
“Excuse me”, he said and got up. He picked his Internet Banking pin letter and was ready to go. Expecting Bola to be called, he was disappointed when another name was called.
He used that opportunity to take her contact.
“Well Bola, you mind making a new friend?” – he said, placing his phone in her hand – “please add yourself to my BBM. We should be friends”.
“Yeah, I like your guts. We can be friends Ayo”.
BBM add done, he bade her bye and he remembered the scorching sun outside the bank.
“I’ll get home soon man. At least I made a new friend”.
Ayo and Bola remain very close friends till this day.

MY STORY AND MORE III BY KAYGEEGAL

Hello people, apologies we could not post this story last week. I am presently on holidays and was in a poor network zone. We belatedly bring you the third episode of Kaygeegal’s MY STORY AND MORE. Enjoy reading, and don’t forget to share and drop a comment.

Blessings…

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BONES

After reading what was on the note, Bones set up a meeting with his Mentor.

“Are you surprised?” he chuckled and puffed grey smoke from his pouted lips. Bones stared bizarrely.

“Things like that happen all the time”, his mentor continued. “Its not new.”

“Ahhaaa. Over surprise dey worry me o. Why dem dey kill themselves inside same party? Me dey think say na opposition party gimme the job now“.

Mentor laughed and spread his hands. “Welcome to politics.”

“Hmmm but why he wan do something bad for him friend now?”

“That one still dey surprise me too“.

Mentor looked straight into his eyes “Tell me, who is stopping him from being the governor of this state?”

Bones shifted uncomfortably on his chair.

“Hon. Akinlade, but no be say him dey stop am now shebi na people want him pass”

“Shey he no go win if Hon. Akinlade no show?”

“He go win nah”

“So wetin you dey talk? That’s why he needs to get Akinlade removed so that he can win.”

“Wait o, na two weeks remain for election o.”

“My guy, name no dey sell, na party dey do the magic. Let the ruling party bring in the dumbest candidate on earth, people go still vote am because of his party”, he sighed heavily.

“That’s true o. Hmm”

Mentor threw the stud of his just smoked marijuana wrap on the floor, a signal to leave. Bones understood and stood up.

“Thank you bro.” Mentor nodded.

“Watch out for seals on paper and any other means of communication. Some people will interact with you face to face while some never will” Bones smiled.

“Don’t stop learning English and add computer training to it”.

Bones stopped walking and Mentor was constrained to do the same. His confusion was evident when he spoke.

“Computer training? Why?”

“You need it, seriously if you want to thrive in this business.”

“Huh? OK.” they both exited the shaft.

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The silence frightened him but then, wasn’t he a street boy? He had at different times slept on Lagos streets because there was no place to call home. He had learnt to walk softly without alerting anyone so as not to attract attention to himself.

It worked perfectly for him when he got to the company of Hon. Akinlade. His had been informed that there was an ongoing meeting that had dragged on and stopped the staffers from going home on time. Perfect timing!

He checked his phone for the information he had been waiting for.

“1-9-6 staff members. Note that Salau Alimi’s in-law works there and you have 5 minutes”

“Now this is complicated. My client’s in-law is in the building…what do I do?”, he mused.

A call to Mentor would take a longer time so he shrugged and continued towards the plant and machinery store. One of the security men on duty looked at him warily as he passed.

“Wait!”, the security called out to him, Bones froze.

“You didn’t fasten your safety boot properly and you know its dangerous to enter the plant with that carelessness. It is not allowed”

Bones smiled and nodded before bending down to fasten the boot properly. The security ensured that he did it accordingly before he left. A minute was lost. The store contained heavy machine and opened boxes of PVC were lined up at the end of the store.

“Oh the chosen candidate is not a saint after all”, he chuckled before facing the gas plant. “Here we go”.

He landed safety on the ground floor just in time before the rumbling of the building started loudly. He had exhausted the five minutes grace and dust had started clouding his vision.

“Just one minute. One minute please”, he prayed beneath his gas mask. The thundering sound of the collapsing building drowned the noise of scared people as they ran helter-skelter for safety.

Bones was escaping from the collapsing building when he heard the faint scream of a baby.

“Oh no, I no fit kill baby join“, he thought and moved towards the sound…his gas mask was dusty and he could not see well. The sound was coming from the small relaxation hut beside the main building. He quickly removed the planks and baobab dried roof. Beneath was a lady covered with blood.

“Not a kid, good”.

Bones sighed in relief and turned to get out of the compound that was filled with people running in different directions trying to escape in the middle of creaking sounds of crumbling bricks and wood.

Her moan however drew him back to her. “Oh shit!”, he muttered.

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LOLA

The knock woke me. Soft, but loud enough in the middle of the night to wake me up.

“Knock on my door? C’mon that’s not possible. At least you have to pass through the gate, which I  locked before sleeping”, I mused.

“Damn!” I muttered when the sound came again. “Damn!!” because it was my phone that was making the ‘knock knock’ sound.

“Who da hell changed my ring tone?”, I asked no one in particular as I drowsily picked the call. I was jolted back to life when I heard Bones’ voice on the other end.

“I’m outside. Come and open the gate quickly”, he quipped

“What? Something must be wrong with my hearing”.

“Lola, please come out to the gate. I need your help.” He pleaded this time and I could notice the distress in his voice. That was abormal, it was unlike the Bones I know who always tried to speak like he had 10 wraps of marijuana in his system when he could not even smoke cigarette. The soft spoken, fear riddled end of his voice was activated. One thing was certain…Bones was in a mess.

“I’m coming.” I quickly picked the key from the shelf, ran out of my room, passed the sitting room and opened the main door without a care in the world. Just right in front of the gate however, I paused.

The ‘what ifs’ started running through my mind – “What if he was captured and held at gun point to come and help kidnap me? Or kill?” “What if I got raped?” “What if ‘they’ have acid with them?”

“Lola, abeg open this gate now”, he called out to me through the peep hole on the gate. That jolted me out of my thoughts.

“Are you alone?” I asked.

“No.”

My heart skipped instantly.

“I have a girl here who is bleeding seriously and needs help.” My heart continued working but I still picked his flawless sentence.

“This guy must have been trying to develop himself a bit more”.

What he said however came back like a flash- “bleeding?” “help?”. I immediately started fumbling with the padlock, key and gate. It clicked open and he rushed in with the bundle he carrying and ordered me to lock the gate immediately. I had so many questions in my head. They were coming like dice being thrown from different directions.

He had already laid the lady on the three-seater when I entered the sitting room. Her clothes were torn, dirty and stained with blood in different places. She needed a hospital theater, not my house.

“What’s happening Bones? What have you gotten yourself into?”

I tried not to raise my voice. I really tried because the scream that was threatening to escape my throat was louder than an earth shaking thunder during heavy rain pour.

“Calm down Lola”, he started, trying to come close and pacify me.

“Back off Bones and don’t frigging tell me to calm down. You brought a dead girl into my house and tell me to calm down.”

I unconsciously moved closer to him and beat his chest. “Tell me what’s going on.” He moved away from me and went to the cabinet as if I had not said anything.

“Call Lere…now”, he emphasized on the ‘now’.

“What?”

“Please, stop asking what. Nor dey ask me yeye kweshun Lola. Just call your friend, the doctor. This girl needs help, she don dey kpai dey go“.

Not caring a bit about the lifeless form on the couch, I lost my tempo and turned my rage on him.

“Are you out of your mind Bones? What business have you gotten yourself into? Now I have to deal with God-knows-who? And who is teaching you English anyway?”.

“That…”, he pointed at the dying lady, “…is Hon. Akinlade’s daughter and I have been learning English of my line of…”

I cut him short when what he said made meaning to me. Wherever he was learning English language was of no importance at that moment.

“Wait! That’s Akinlade’s daughter? Akinlade the governorship aspirant?”

He nodded in affirmation. My scream finally let loose.

“Are you crazy? You want to get us killed? What are you…” The lady moaned and on impulse, we were both by her side. I ran into my room to pick my phone and call Lere, my doctor friend. The phone rang off the hook thrice but I persisted. He answered on the fifth dial.

” Lola?” His deep voice was gruffly,  and it pierced right into my brain, not ears.

“Lere, please come to my house now please.” I pleaded, half sobbing.

“What’s happening there? Do you realize that we are in the middle of the night?”

“Yes I know, I need your help. Somebody is dying here”.

“Who? Aren’t you the only one at home?”

“Yes. No. Errrm, yes but somebody is dying here” I wasn’t making sense and I knew it.

“Calm down and tell me what’s going on. I have a wife, I can’t just leave home in the middle of the night”.

“I don’t know…the lady is badly hurt”, I stammered.

“Which lady? What happened to her?”

“Gosh how can you doctors be so calm to ask stupid questions even in a case of emergency?”

Just then, Bones snatched the phone from me. I was oblivious of his presence.

“Doc, its Bones. I rescued a lady from a collapsed building. She is badly hurt and needs help immediately”, he said into the mouthpiece. “I can’t take her to the hospital, its complicated”, he paused and then added “…she is Hon. Akinlade’s daughter. I can’t risk it.”.

“I found her half buried under the collapsed building. Thank you and please tell no one, okay? Thanks”. He dropped the phone on the bed and turned to me.

“He will be here soon”, Bones said and went back to the sitting room. My head was just buzzing, my stomach was in a knot.

Bones was going to get us into trouble. He was cleaning the lady’s face with a wet towel when I entered the sitting room.

“Is she okay?” He looked at me as if I asked the dumbest question ever. I blinked. There was nothing to do, we had no medical knowledge in anyway so we had to wait for Lere.

“Tell me.”

“Tell you what?”, he asked, not taking his eyes off the lady’s as if his stare could retain her life.

“How did you get here Bones?”

” I took a bus…”

“That’s not my question. Whoever is teaching you English should have taught you…”

“Taught me to read minds?” He gave me that amusing stare again.

“I mean what happened, I want to know.”

“Babe, you know I can’t tell you….”

“Oh yes, you can. If you are going to drag me along with you to jail, I need to at least know why”.

“Okay, first of all, you nor dey go jail…”

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LERE

He stared at his phone for what seemed like eternity after Bone’s husky “Thanks” ended the call. Only one word would fit now – LOST. He made for the fridge. A bottle of coke won’t be such a bad idea to calm his shooting nerves. He glanced over his shoulder, his wife laid there, far gone in the realm of sleep. She came in the previous day looking dead. She barely responded to his welcome greetings before crashing away.

He hurriedly got his “emergency bag”, stuffed it with what he could (ampoules and vials of drugs littered his closet), slipped into a pair of joggers and white tee-shirt and set out.

Dr. Lere could deny Lola of very few requests. Unfortunately,this was not  one of those times he could deny her. He felt she really needed him. Subtle voices of ‘savage garden’ rendering ‘truly madly deeply’ broke the silence of the night and he drove out and away.

Lola was waiting at the gate when Lere arrived. He swiftly seized his bag from the car and raced into the house. This was an emergency and his adrenaline levels now could easily match the event. He caught the image of the ‘fragile bundle’ lying in the room,with Bones at the entrance. He stood there for seconds, thinking out a plan. He saw that she moved slightly.

“She’s alive” , he announced.

“We know”, Lola cut in sharply,”that’s why I called you. She must remain alive,please”.

At that time the girl moaned softly..” help me.please”.

“Airway is patent, at least”, Lere smiled, muttering to no one in particular. He did a quick evaluation: random blood sugar normal, Blood pressure sub-normal ; pulse weak, distant and racing away,breathing was laboured. She had bruises scattered all over her body, also cuts at some places.

“She’s lost quite some amount of blood and she needs plasma expanders at least”, Lere told Lara and Bones. The blank look on their faces told the story – they didn’t understand his gibberish.

“Just do what you can, and fast!!!”, Bones almost screamed.

“Remember,we can’t take her to any hospital, at least until after the elections”, Lola quickly added.

Some tense seconds of silence followed shortly.

“Let’s see what I can pull off then, hopefully, it’ll be just enough, barring any dislocations or fractures. God help us”, Lere said before setting out to work.

MY STORY AND MORE II

It’s Good Friday people, nice to have the opportunity to witness another holiday. Make it count…
Here’s the second part of Kaygeegal’s MY STORY AND MORE. Please read, enjoy and comment. Blessings

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Bones walked down the street wondering how best to convince Lola that the job is not that bad. She knew what he had been facing since he got to Lagos. There were very limited job opportunities for semi-literates like him. PHCN, slow market, Lagos State Government. Lagos worked for those who could afford to rent lock-up shops that government kept building instead of affordable low cost shops. Lagos needs to work for him too nah!
With this thought, he approached Mama Alaje’s kiosk. It was an illegal ugly structure built with wood on the road side. Many times the Task Force had damaged and strictly warned Mama Alaje not to put up the kiosk again but due to her influence, the kiosk would still find its way back to the spot with the same set of woods almost immediately.
She pimped ladies for some of the top officials which made her arrest difficult and there were rumors that she also sells weed but not caught yet. Her kiosk suffers for her sins.
“Mama Alaje! Mama toh sure” Bones hailed.
“Bones! Bones!! Okunrin meta (one man with the strength of three)” she hailed back. “How now? Ki lon shele? (whats happening?)”
“I dey where you keep me put. Mama abeg gimme my usual mix”, he sat down on the once upon a time lovely couch in front of the kiosk.
Mama Alaje started mixing her herbs in a small plastic cup, she paused a second and looked at Bones strangely. Consciously, Bones looked down at his canvas, he could feel the eyes burning through his head down his spine. He shivered inside. If anybody should know his secret, definitely not Mama Alaje, she was the local radio station, the newspaper station and the town crier. Pay her a visit in the morning and you will know who did what the previous day with several others. That was why Bones preferred going to her kiosk in the afternoon when all her customers have gone to hustle.
Mama Alaje finished mixing the herbs and gave it to Bones who wished he had gone somewhere else to drink his paraga. His drink shot down his throat with a great speed that made him cough.
“O je ma para e. shior (don’t kill yourself)” Mama Alaje hissed.
Bones held his burning throat and a bad thought ran through his mind…how best to kill the parrot before it talks, which won’t take long anyways.
As if Mama Alaje was on cue, she broke into a dance and started singing“ero tin r’oko, ero tin r’odo, ojo ti yawo ba na omo oko, oro ni o so ra re” (people going to farm, crowd going to stream, when wife beats her stepchild, words will pass round.)
Bones had heard enough, he threw the remaining content of the cup away and stood up. Nobody knows his story, nobody should blame him. He has mentors, great mentors. He can’t die now. He took out a 100 naira note and placed it on the wet table before strolling down the street. He knew Mama Alaje was still on his case. If only she or Lola knew what he went through just three weeks ago….

THREE WEEKS AGO
He was with some of his friends on the street arguing over football. Bones is a strong supporter of Liverpool and the early part of the season had not been in their favor which made his friends tease him about being a loser.
“You no suppose sell Suarez at all”, one of the friends quipped.
“Abeg bone that one, even if Suarez dey there, dem go still dey chop am steady”, another added.
“Una dey craze!”, Bones fumed
“No dey talk say person dey craze bcos of that your yeye club. E don tey wey una don dey walk alone”, they all burst into laughter.
Just then, somebody ran past them. They looked from the runner to the men chasing him. Bones was still wondering what the guy did to deserve the hot chase when one of his friends shout. “Everybody, run. Na Police” before he could think, the other guys had already scattered running away from the spot. He regained his sense and made to run but one policeman had caught up with him already. He held Bones midriff and beckoned on others to come and help him. Bones looked at the other policemen who were like three, they had arrested another guy who they were already beating mercilessly with their batons and guns, the guy was bloodied all over. What he saw made him shiver and he needed to think fast. He struggled with the policeman who was still finding a way to hold him down with his pot belly, struggling with his heavy gun and also trying to get his colleagues’ attention. Bones used this opportunity to hit the policeman with his elbow. The blow hit him so hard and he squealed painfully, releasing Bones immediately.
He kept processing thoughts in his head as he ran in escape. They can’t find me now. God, what have I done?
A loud gun shot reminded him that he was still within reach. The wounded policeman’s scream had obviously caught the attention he had been seeking since he held onto Bones and they made wild chase after him. Everything was happening so fast, no time to think, no time to think at all.
“Stop there! Stop there now” a policeman bellowed. “I will shoot you if you don’t stop” pointing the gun at his back.
The threat got to Bones as his legs automatically obeyed the last order. “I no do anything”, he said half protesting, half appealing. Few minutes ago, the worst that could have happened with his friends was a hot argument between he and his friends not blood clotted fight, not mad chase and definitely not gunshot.
The policemen kicked, hit, ‘nodded’, beat, in fact bit him. He had committed the greatest offence – injure a policeman. He was handcuffed and dragged to the yellow van they parked at the entrance of the street. Bones couldn’t believe his luck. It would be worse if he gets to the station, hence started pleading. “Oga, abeg I no know anything. I no know say na police hold me” his pleas attracted more blows and kicks. He refused to enter the bus which resulted in more beatings, his body was covered with blood and sweat, and now urine.
“Oga, abeg no make me enter. How much you wan collect make I give you. Abeg, no carry me go station.”, he pleaded
One of the officers paused for a second. “Where is your money” he demanded.
“I go go collect am for house” Bones said with the remaining bit of his shattered confidence, thinking he had hooked them like monkey to banana.
“You dey craze!”-kick-“Shey the money go disappear come here?”-slaps and blows-“Or you think say we be suffer head like your family ni ”. The kicks and blows intensified.
It took three nights in a disease ridden cell and intervention of a mentor/local champion to get Bones out of the station.
“See dude, you nor suppose dey suffer like this for these yeye people hand o. We dey wake you up, yet you dey slumber. Jara e man yi, wake up!!!”, the mentor/local champion advised on the way home after Bones was released.
“Police shouldn’t be harassing you like this if you know your way. Look at me, who born that policeman well wey go say him wan arrest me? Who born am? All this shakara na because say I get people behind me now.”, he bragged. “You dey strong, you get the right stature, I no just know why you dey hide your talent. Since you dey Lagos, how much you don save?”
Bones was too sour to reply, his body was aching seriously and wished he could just lie somewhere far away from the station and the tormentor called mentor.
“Answer me now, how much you get for account? Shey you get account sef?” Tormentor/Mentor/Local champion continued as they walked out of the station to the car park. “Do something! I dey yarn you this because we come from the same village. Do something asap.”

TODAY
Bones was tired of waiting for the initiation that was supposed to come after exhibiting skills, his tiredness took him to Mama Alaje’s kiosk which was worse than his wait and Lola had been sulking over her boyfriend or the politics issue. He shrugged and crossed the road to his compound. The compound as usual was noisy with full housewives talking competing on whose voice was loudest or who has the latest gist. He hissed and entered his room unnoticed.
He emptied his pockets on the bed to know if he could afford to buy lunch or skip it and wait for dinner. He would have spent his money on lunch if he and Lola were on good term but she was still pissed, so it was better to let her be for the time being. He counted his money and realized he had two hundred and fifty naira. Better to wait till evening before eating, he concluded. A paper was lying on his almost flat mattress and it drew his attention. He wondered if it was from his pocket or he left it there on his way out. Either way, he spread the paper and read.
GET AKINDELE AREMU!
“What?” he screamed. He had been initiated? How? When? Where? He asked the room. “Wow!” he screamed and attracted one of the full housewives who slipped her head in the room to ask whats up. Bones dismissed her with a wave that nothing was wrong and quickly destroyed the paper when the woman left. He calmed down a little. “if I’m to get Akindele Aremu, then which party initiated me?”, he mused. “the opposition party, right? If yes, how would they pay me? And GET AKINDELE AREMU didn’t give details, what was there to be done? Kill him?”
“Whatever!” he said as he paced his dingy room, “let the world know that I have arrived, Lagos must work for me too!” he laughed.
“Election is in two weeks, let’s do this!”