Dave sat on the bed in the one-room apartment he
shared with Ben and Charles. They had been close friends since they met in the
university in the city. Even after serving the Nation, they still came back to
the town and decided to stay together as they sought for jobs. With the little
money they were able to save from their ‘Alawi’, they got a one-bedroom
apartment where they stayed. From there, they went for interviews and did other
job searches. They had done that for months but nothing tangible had come
out. The small job Dave got and decided
to manage did not go well. He was treated badly, overworked and yet his salary
payment was delayed. When he couldn’t bear it anymore, he quit the job. Charles
and Ben did little little contract jobs once in a while. With that they were
able to fend for themselves for the few months they had been together. Yet what
they got put together was still not enough for anything tangible. In fact for
over a month, they had no personal cash inflow. What they spent was what they
got from the generosity of family and friends.
“What do I eat now?” Dave
asked himself.
He looked up to
the ceiling and down. He got up and went to the hanger they shared, and began
searching the pocket of all his trousers, peradventure he had forgotten money
there without knowing. On touching one trouser, he felt something that seemed
like money. He was momentarily glad, only for him to check and it was a program
flyer he had folded and pocketed. He was disappointed. He searched the rest of
the trousers but found nothing. He hissed and went back to the bed and picked
up his phone. He checked the chats messages sent to him but there was none that
could solve his immediate problem. He dropped the phone on the bed and lay
down, still thinking where his next meal would come from.
Few minutes
later, Charles barged into the room shouting “Ben! Dave!”
Dave sat up on the bed.
“Guy wetin happen na?” he asked Charles.
“Oboi, we don hama,” Charles said.
“Serious? You don get job finally?”
“Eeehm, wey Ben?”
“Im go im babe house make im know whether she cook.”
“Why? Food don finish here?”
“No be our last supper wey we chop last night?”
“Youdonmeanit.”
“Hunger just dey waya person since morning o.”
Charles went to their food cupboard and checked:
Nothing. He opened every pot and checked; Nothing.
“Na true o,” he said and sat beside Dave on the bed. “Na the meetings wey I dey go since wey no gree
me notice say foodstuff don finish.”
“Even if you know, wetin you for do?” Dave asked. “Money no dey na.”
“Eeeem that one na old story.”
“Wetin you mean?”
“As you see me so, levels don change.”
“Charlie Charlie, where you get the job?” Dave asked. “The oil company don show you love finally?”
“No be them o. Oboi na one politician like that o wey wan come out for
election.”
Dave’s
countenance changed. He was disappointed.
“Wetin im want make you do for am?” he
asked
“Na just normal work wey politicians dey want make guys like us do for
them,” Charles replied.
“Wey be?”
“To dey follow them everywhere wey dem go and do wetin go make them win
the election.”
“Im wan recruit you as political thug abi?”
“If na wetin you wan call am, na im na.”
“You go even carry ballot box on Election Day sef abi?”
“Im never talk that one o but I no mind, if the money plenty.”
“Nawa o. which kain yeye work be that na?”
“Guy, all work na work, as long as money dey
come out.”
“All work no be work o. If them kpab you nko? If fight break out, they
come kill you nko? Wetin you go tell your people?”
“Guy leave that thing. Nothing dey happen?”
“The politician children, where
dem dey?”
“Na yanki na. Before where they wan dey?”
“You see.”
“See
what?”
Dave shook his
head.
“Person wey you wan go fight for, im own pikin dem no dey here.”
“Na the money be the motivation na. Where im pikin dem dey no concern
me. I do wetin dem send me, I collect my money, I waka. Na simple ABC.”
“E no simple as you dey talk am o. Anything can happen.”
“I no mind taking the risk o. Na today person start to dey find work? I
don tire jare.”
“Na these same people spoil country for our generation. In their days,
economy dey well. To even travel abroad no be difficult thing. This one wey
guys dey sleep for embassy now just to go another African country na rubbish
na. Even sef, na oyibo people dey beg Naija people make dem travel come that
time. Those days, as you dey finish school, jobs dey line up dey wait for you
make you choose.”
“But e no dey like that again na.”
“Na wetin I dey tell you. The best thing to do na to make sure say these
people wey dey spoil spoil things no win election.”
“I never even tell you who wan recruit us, you don dey generalize
everybody. You know whether na this man go make things better for us?”
“Person wey wan hire young men use do thugs and to steal ballot box, how
im go get better plan for us? Na im go just win, lock up everybody.”
“Na why I wan collect my own share now o. Why you dey talk like this
na?”
“I no do, hooha.”
Dave lay back on
the bed.
“Nawa for you o. I carry better
opportunity come, you just dey fall hand. Guy, you dey dull o. Instead of to do
something take help yourself as job no dey, you say na vote you wan go vote.
Oya na.”
Charles was
visibly disappointed in Dave. He got up to remove his trouser.
“If this one na job, I no want abeg.”
“You are a lazy Nigerian Youth.”
“Say I no go do agbero for politician, if na im make me lazy Nigerian
Youth, I like am like that. Say I use my PVC go vote candidate of my choice, if
na im make me lazy Nigerian youth, no wahala.”
The door opened
and Ben entered.
“Why you dey enter like this?” Dave asked him. “Person dey pursue you?”
“Guy na hunger dey pursue me o” Ben said. “Una cook anything?”
“You keep foodstuff for here?” Charles asked. “Your babe wey you go see no cook give you?”
“Why you dey attack me like that na? You no know say everywhere tight.”
“Yet your guy here dey misbehave.”
“Wetin Dave do?”
“I tell Charlie say I don get my PVC ready,” Dave said. “sey I go use am vote who I want on election
day. Na im the guy dey para o.”
Ben burst into
laughter and sat on the bed. Dave and Charles looked at themselves.
“You say you wan do wetin?” Ben asked Dave, touching him on the
shoulder.
“I wan vote the candidate of my choice.”
“My brother who vote epp? The
ones wey we dey vote since, e dey count?”
“Thank you my brother,” Charles added. “Something wey dem go still rig.”
“Me dey find connection to work with politician sef make I collect my
own share now now. No time.”
“You are in the spirit meehn,” Charles said.
“Both of you are not serious,” Dave said and lay on the bed. “Even if na to just satisfy my conscience, I
go still vote. I no go sell my vote, I no go sell my conscience join.”
“Even sef,” Ben continued, “if
the candidate wey you like come win, im go still forget the people, forget you
join, just focus on im family. So bird wey dey for hand better pass two wey dey
for bush.”
“Your head dey there,” Charles said.
“Both of you are the problem
we have in this country,” Dave said. “Is It not high time we stood as youths
and demanded our right?”
“You don dey blow grammar abi,” Charles said.
“Guy leave that thing,” Ben said. “Man must wack. As I dey H now, who wan cook food give me?”
“Exactly. As I dey broke now, who I wan call make im give me money? Na
my papa wey dem dey owe pension for many years abi na my mama wey never collect
the chikini salary wey dem still dey owe civil servants on top?”
“I understand how you feel,”
Dave said. “Me too dey feel am. As I dey
find job, na so my elder brother wey get Masters degree too dey find job. But
the issue now na which way Nigeria? Na like this we go dey dey? Time never
reach make we stand as youths come do wetin we suppose do? Dem say youths na
the leaders of tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow wey no wan reach,”
Charles interjected.
“Exactly. We suppose make the
right decision now and take charge of our tomorrow.”
“If you mean say make I fashi this plan wey dey ground come follow you
go vote, you fail am o.”
“Guy, anything dey ground?” Ben asked Charles.
“Yes oo,” Charles answered. “Na
wetin I been dey yan Dave before im come dey talk off point off point.”
“Tell me na. Wetin dey?”
Charles told Ben
about the opportunity.
“Charlie my man!” Ben shouted and shook Charles when he was done. “You
for tell me since na, you go dey tell Dave”
“I think say na guy man like us,” Charles said. “Im just dey dull like draw soup.”
“You no well o,” Dave said, laughing. “I no dey do. No be by force.”
“But come to think of it,” Ben
said to Dave. “For the first time in our lives, we will be gaining from the
election. Last election wey I vote under
rain, with fight sef, they still rig am. Money, I no get. Even person wey dem
use rigging put, im no do anything. People still dey suffer. So wetin be the
gain?”
“Abi na me wey my own candidate win,” Charles said. “im forget the people; no infrastructure, no
jobs for youths, no plans for education. Upon sey I get conne, to access am
come dey hard. Person wey humble before election come lock up after im win.”
“Guy reason am na. I no go like make we miss this opportunity. You know
say we don come a long way together. I no go like if I dey drive motor
tomorrow, you go still use leg dey waka for road.”
“Good Samaritan,” Dave said.
They laughed.
“But seriously,” Ben said. “Think am na.”
“Hmmm,” Dave sighed.
TO BE CONTINUED……
(c)2018. Nedu Isaac
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