Our bus heading toward Owerrinta. A soldier was see on the road. As our bus approached the driver has already flagged our #20 note out from
the bus widow for the soldier to see. The soldier saw it and was quick to bring out twou#50 notes as the bus drove near the soldier dashed in the two #50 notes into the driver palm while the driver gave him the #200. What a country where corruption was seen as trend and nobody wanted to see it as anything. The citizens became the Virus ready to disrupt and corrupt the system. Nobody dreamed of becoming different and original. People always wanted to do it because everybody was doing it. It’s obvious that the system of government was bad.Most times I wondered why Nigerian Corps members were given no respect as true Nigerian corps. Because if truly we were corps members, soldiers or any other military officers or Nigerian force would always give us maximum respect us at least to show that we represent Nigerian corps. I was in that bus returning to Aba. I was always disappointed to put on that corps uniform 6/7 or 7/7 yet a soldier or police officer or Nigerian navy would stop navy’s to intimidate the driver and stretching hand to tax the #100, #50 and shamelessly collecting #20. This was exactly why we didn’t believe the country was going to he developed in five decades time. I was always dissatisfied with the rate of corruption in Nigeria. Those corrupt acts were a disregard and disrespect to the country’s pride and dignity.
Create your future if want to predict it.
The worse of it was that they were bold doing this. Not fear that we Corps members could report them because they knew that if we did we were wasting time because the top were not better in any way. And the country itself had changed her name from Nigeria to corruption. The Nigeria citizens inflicted the Virus into the system and the top government leaders, those in power contracted it and spreading to the entire organs.
It was my first time a soldier was saluting me while I was in a bus traveling back from Imo state to Anambra state for my January clearance. I was about collecting the money from the driver hand. The driver was already showing him #200. Immediately he saw me, I felt disappointed at himself I guess. Ajuwire you dey this bus wey driver come carry this heavy load?” he said. I believed that was the offence he said the driver committed. I didn’t understand how the offense would attract fine of #200 instead of cautioning the driver. That explained how corruption the system was. He said this to me with smiling face while the driver’s hand was still hanging.
I understood he was ashamed of collecting the money in my presence. He was looking at the money but couldn’t collect it before me. “Ah! so you still wan collect am kwa,” I said surprisingly. I never knew when i spoke the pidgin English. Then the soldier withdrew his hand and ordered the driver to go. I saw a time when a soldier respected a corps member and forfeited #200 bribe. I knew he regretted his lost and refusal of that money. The act of stopping drivers and collecting money from them when they went against traffic rules and law was irritating. This actually encouraged drivers to misbehave. Not keeping road rules any more. Because they all believed that it would cause them money. I realized that if you talked you would die if you didn’t talk you would still die. So k believed it was high time someone stood to talk and die.
It was January clearance. I came that 6th January straight from the village, I called simeon the CLO ABBA to bring my clearance at the local government. I knew how inconvenient it was on me, though Chris told me, early but I told him that distance from Ideato south to Anambra is 1hour 30 but was surprised to my journey from Isiekenesi, Afo ukwu where I boarded a bus going to Onitsha by 8am. Surprising before they could full the bus with passengers it was 9:30. We arrived at Onitsha by 12pm. I entered another bus to Njikoka which couldn’t leave on time because it was waiting for passengers to full bus. I was impatient, but couldn’t come down even when others were going down to enter another bus. SDG had their clearance by 2pm. After the clearance my eyes opened. Where would I sleep? Besides I had to spend like two more days to travel by weekend to Owerri where my immediate elder brother was residing.
What you don't want is what always comes to you.
I Went to the family house. I couldn’t believe what I saw. We were full in one room. Twelve corps members. This was batch C1 and C2. I had never experienced this before because it was like coincidental that I always travelled when new batch would come. I wasn’t present when C1 passed out from camp, I travelled to my brother’s house where I spent two weeks. Then C2 passed out of camp when we had gone for December Vacation. So, it was populated and this crowded in the family house because it was January clearance, all the batch A,B,C were present for clearance. It was so because I believed none of them batch C1 and C2 had looked for accommodation neither had they paid for any apartment.
I baffled at the condition. Gosh, I had to share one bed with three corps members. We breathed in to one another, touching body with one another, one them even placing her leg on my body, I knew it was unconscious anyway but I was uncomfortable . It was quite unfortunately that I wasn’t married, if I were married I wouldn’t have been experience this, I thought to myself. That was self scorning because my expression and wishes weren’t going to manifest or come reality that moment I was in deep mess. I said to myself, hope you had to adapt to any situation you find yourself. This is your cross, carry it. You want to serve, here is NYSC for you not your father’s pleasurable and convenient house where you have one room all by yourself. After this thought, I admitted that I really had to face it.
I did my clearance on 6th which was on Tuesday, I reported in school on 7th. I had to give resumption exercise to my students.
I knew I wasn’t going to come on Thursday because it was for first CDS of the year. On Thursday I went for CDS returning to carry my bag decided to withdrew money at Union bank which was a closer bank to Exe alias junction where the RCCF was situated. I boarded same bus with Chris from Njikoka to Union bank, we jumped down, he walked me into the bank turned to go, “I want to pick something that someone dropped for me,” he said. I was surprised because I thought he was going to wait for me since he knew I was travelling that day.
He left, I withdrew money very fast because the people who were before me decided to allow me withdrew not because they saw my corps uniform but because they saw I was in a haste. I recommend Anambra for this, most of Anambra people are very kind to stranger. Once they saw you on your corps uniform or noticed you are a corps they felt pity for you as a stranger. That was how compassionate they felt for me that day. I walked down, to stop at Chris how to inform him of my departure. Immediately I entered the gate I saw one fair corps member, immediately I saw her in front of his door, i didn’t care if she was pulling off her shoes or putting them on, I whispered to her, “where is Chris?” she pointed at Chris as Chris came out. She couldn’t talk but mopped to see my next reaction. I came to tell you that I had successfully withdrawn, I have to be on my way now,” i said and walked away.
The incident really shocked me and kept me wandering for so long. How could boys be like this, could it because, I wasn’t ready to give in so fast the other day that we returned from our clearance, that made him to decide to go for another? But it was early that i tried to resist him that day doesn’t mean we can’t be close friends or more than friends.
Allowing emotion to crowd your sense of reason is the beginning of your failure.
I died the thought of Chris. I had a lot to worry about, when I was at Owerri, I had to think of when my parents would return home at Aba and inform me so that I could come to activate my account to start enjoying my four months allowee. I doubted how time was flying. Vamp that we just left few months ago we had spent four months already. I was drying up. My brothers and parents refused to spend a dime on me anymore, their reason was that I was relenting on activation of my account just to eat from their pocket. Everybody seemed to be interested in me spending form my allowee and not relying on them when I had a source of income.
I tried working it out in Owerri, went to GTBank, they were still asking for same documents that GTBank at Awka requested, I left it pending. The bank ask me to go write my name and publish it on the newspaper, bring National Identity card, court affidavit, EEDC current bill. I flamed up when I heard the customer service say to me to publish my name on the newspaper before the can change my name from Hope to Hopeline. "Isn't Hope and Hopeline Mbadugha my name? What kind of I am doing my job, it's bank policy, they are the requirements you must present." It was then that one of them ask me to go provide my National Identity card bearing Hopeline and not Hope, court affidavit and EEDC bill.
Great thinkers change the world with their positive thoughts.
Nigeria is a country where the people in government and authority are concerned and busy chasing shadows. The suspiciously investigate and verify genuity but when the see one worth investigating they blindly fall victim of the crime. The corps who are supposed to be fighting crime, support crime to fill their pockets. Read also, Why everyone was a victim of CoronaVirus pandemic
Fight against corruption and bribery because those eat deep into the fabric and terminate the peace and dignity of our country.
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