Biola lifted up both hands and buried her face in her open palms as she sat in the passenger’s seat of the Mercedes Benz 200 V-boot her husband drove. This car is close to 20 years old and her husband actually bought it off their landlord who had used the car for close to 12 years before selling. The car by now has become very old and required frequent repairs and upkeep. They were at the mechanics again and her husband Sunday was again trying to wriggle out of paying Moshood their regular mechanic for another repair on the car. ‘Moshood you know now, I no get money now, I go settle you big time when next I come’, she listened to her husbands plead. ‘But Oga Sunday, you owe me more than 55,000 naira, this is another 6,000 naira work, because of you all my spare parts supplier have stopped giving me parts unless I bring money, this one wey I help you fix now, I promise I go bring the money today and Oga Sunday you dey give me just 500 naira out of six thousand’ Moshood the Mechanic lamented. ‘This is bad o, e no good at all, how you wan make I survive if everybody dey do me like you dey do me? I no happy o! If I know say you no go pay, I for no do your work’ Moshood continued to lament. ‘No worry Moshood, I say I go settle you, I promise; by tomorrow I go give you everything.’ Sunday replied as he entered the car and started the engine. He engaged the gear and drove off even as Moshood continued to speak. As he aligned with the main traffic on the major road off the untarred road leading to his mechanic’s workshop, he grinned to himself and felt he’s played smart. Again got Moshood to work for him, without him paying so much. In his mind he has no plans of settling any outstanding. The money in his opinion is too much; why would the mechanic want to charge so much? Can’t this mechanic work for free at times considering the frequency of his visit and repairs carried out on his old car? Sunday, Biola began to speak, are you sure you’ll pay Moshood this money tomorrow? You promised and I personally think you’ve been very unfair to him. He would tell you the cost of a job from the start, you will agree and afterwards refuse to pay, that in my opinion is bad for your image and reputation; it’s not fair. Better pay his money tomorrow because I know you have it. ‘Please shut up; Sunday replied in annoyance, what do you mean by that? I’m a man of integrity I only hate to waste money; I don’t just spend my money anyhow, money is hard to come by these days and I’m not going to waste it on any greedy mechanic’, Sunday spat. You call it waste? Biola replied, if not for Moshood, this car would be long off the road; he has earned his money and more annoying is the fact that you have refused to buy a new car. You have more than enough in your account to buy three brand new SUVs, you will not; you’d rather drive this jalopy and worship the millions in your account. Biola retorted in disgust. Look at you, look at us, we live in the worst part of town, our house is the worst and the dirtiest, all our electronics are fairly used, our clothes fairly used, everything we have and buy is always the cheapest and the worst quality in the market; all you ever consider is the cost of this or that, everything for you is too expensive. Sunny you have so much money, millions in your account and we live like paupers just because you’re too afraid to spend, you love money more than yourself. ‘Sunny I’m tired of this scruffy way of living. This is our fourth year Sunny, fourth year since we’ve been married and looking for a baby, instead of you to spend money so that we can go to specialists and address whatever the issues are, you said we should keep praying, that they would only eat our money that it is God that gives children, your mother is stressing my life over this childlessness and you’re too stingy to care about how I feel’. Just a hundred thousand to spend on tests and checks, you think it’s too much and you have close to 46million in your account. Biola continued to lament and shed tears as they drove along the way home; Sunny ignored her and just kept whistling. After a while he turned on the radio and began to sing ignoring his wife. It was a very hot evening and the fumes from the exhaust of other vehicles kept pouring into the car as the AC had packed up a long time ago, Sunny kept driving through all the noise and smoke and dust, whistling along to the Edo song being played on radio, he didn’t care one bit as he drove his rickety bright yellow Mercedes Benz 200 V-boot through the streets of Lagos to their satellite town residence. Three weeks later Sunny was again on his way home, he was pretty late this time around as he was held up in traffic on Third Mainland Bridge and at Iyana Oworo, usually he would leave his shop at Idumota early to beat all the traffic, but a customer promised to bring him some money that evening so he decided to wait till late for this customer who eventually failed to fulfill the promise claiming he was held up in traffic. Sunny had to stop also as usual at Anthony to pick up his wife who usually waited for him at the bus stop as her office was at Anthony, so they would drive home together all through Apapa-Oshodi express to their residence at satellite town. It was around 9:30pm and as they drove over Oshodi fly-over his car began to jack and wouldn’t respond to the accelerator; consequently the car stopped and wouldn’t start. Sunny came out of the car and opened the bonnet, smoke and steam oozed from the very hot engine as the radiator water was boiling, the car was overheating. With the help of some folks he pushed the car down the fly-over and pushed it off the road to a nearby bus stop. He got into the car again and tried starting the engine, at the point not only did the car not start, he heard some clanking sound from within the engine. He didn’t know what to do, it was so late, and he wouldn’t leave the car there so he decided to call Moshood his mechanic to come help him out. As Moshood’s phone began to ring, Sunny remembered he hadn’t paid him the money he promised three weeks ago; in fact he had completely forgotten; now he needs Moshood desperately; he would think of what to say and do to convince Moshood to come and help him out that night. After ten phone calls, Moshood decided to pick the call. Sunny told him about the situation and also told him he had about 100,000 naira in the car so Moshood can also come for his outstanding immediately, on that note Moshood decided to go help Sunny out and also collect his money. At about 11:30 pm. Moshood had sorted out Sunny’s problem. The engine definitely had serious issues but Moshood being very familiar with the car knew what to do. Moshood drove Sunny and his wife Biola all the way to satellite town and wanted to head back to his own home at Ojota that same night. Moshood then asked Sunny for his money and as usual, Sunny started telling stories. ‘I actually thought I had the money in the car, I remember now I left it at the shop, I’m so sorry but I promise I’ll bring everything tomorrow’ Sunny began to plead. Moshood smiled; ‘no problem’ he said and started walking away. ‘Come and take this 500 naira for your transport’ Sunny called out after him, ‘Don’t worry; I have money for transport, thank you, good night’. Moshood replied Moshood walked out of their premises, Sunny smiled to himself, Biola was very upset and embarrassed. ‘Sunny, you’re so wicked, a man comes to do a job for you this late after all the disappointments and you’re happy he’s not collecting even transport money from you? You’re not a wise man, I’m ashamed of you’. Sunny ignored her, began to whistle, wound up the glass of the vehicle as only he understood the technique on how to do this and walked into the apartment ignoring his wife. 11am the next morning, the bad news reached Moshood, he got a phone call from his panel beater friend, Sunny and his wife had been in an accident that morning; the break of the car failed and they ran into a parked truck by the express. The car was a total wreck. Sunny fractured an arm but apart from that was okay, his wife Biola however was still in intensive care; she was unconscious. Immediately Moshood heard the news he felt very bad, he didn’t mean for the accident to be that bad, in fact it’s surprising they got as far as the main road before the break failed, his plan was just for the car to hit a wall or a culvert or tree, not a truck on the express! Moshood felt really bad and guilty. 8pm that evening, Sunny went to see the doctor again for news about his wife’s condition. ‘I have some news for you sir, the doctor began to speak, your wife is conscious now and stable but unfortunately you lost the baby’. ‘Sunny was confused, what baby are you talking about?’ He asked confused. Your wife Biola was pregnant, she was six weeks gone, you didn’t know? She was pregnant but as a result of the accident the impact made her lose the baby. Sunny’s head began to spin. Is Biola aware? He asked Yes, I told her, the doctor confirmed. Sunny began to shiver; we lost a baby? After four years we lost a baby? He jumped off the chair and ran to the unit where Biola his wife was supposed to be resting. He got there and his wife was gone. He looked around, checked and asked the nurses around. One of them who was just reporting for duty confirmed he saw a woman walk out feebly out of the hospital and boarded a cab; she wondered who she was and where she was going. Sunny ran frantically towards the gate of the hospital ignoring his aching arm. He didn’t see Biola, he brought out the phone and began to call; her phone was switched off. Sunny looked at the skies and the ground, clouds had begun to gather quickly in readiness for a heavy down pour, the wind was becoming stronger, he heard the sound of a distant thunder after a flash of lightning. He was sweating, confused and distressed; ‘I’m in trouble, big trouble’ he said. Ladies and gentlemen, being stingy and selfish can at times have very dire and unexpected repercussions. The reason why we work hard and have money is to provide maximum comfort for ourselves and our loved ones. The worship of money can reduce any man to a non-entity. Can cost you the best life has to offer and put you in big trouble. Indeed the love of money is the root of all evil, Ladies and gentlemen, I beg spend that money. Think it, do it, achieve it and be the ultimate, it’s all in your mind! Till I come your way again, same time same station, this is Muyiwa Afolabi saying, Goodnight tonight.
Posted on: Tue, 01 Apr 2014 11:19:32 +0000
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