Opulence or penury

Indo's note.

Yeah I'm also excited about this new book. I have a lot of drafts and couldn't decide on which to publish first. Yesterday, I chose this.

I hope you will give me your maximum support on this. Its going to be an amazing ride I promise. Thank you in advance.

This book is set in the state of Kano in the country, Nigeria. Any resemblance to someone's life or what happened in the past is a mere coincidence. However, this book is written base on real life situations.

All rights reserved.

Let's dive in...

Kano State,

Nigeria.

2005.

The outside of the house was big and beautiful. There were polices at the entrances, some by the fences with their guns held in their hands. The grand entryway with a sweeping staircase draws you into a voluminous layout for entertaining. On the left, was beautiful water fountain decorated with rockery. Other side have tiny buildings; laundry and guest rooms. Passing the long hallways that were adorned with bohemian home accessories.

Two dramatic stairways lead to the bedroom suites, all boasting sleek en-suite baths, generous closets and wonderful views.

The top-of-the-line chef's kitchen was clad with premium finishes and fixtures including custom white lacquer cabinets, bluestone counters and professional-grade appliances.

Sliding glass doors in the dining area showcase views while opening up the home to even more light and air.

Maids, dressed in uniform roamed about the house in the name of arrangements for the return of his excellency, the governor of Kano state. This was his resting house where his family lived. Not the government house.

Several continental dishes were displayed on the large dining console.

"Are you sure everything has been arranged the way he want it?" An elegant woman descended from the stairs. Her movements; voice, walking and everything screamed royalty. She was from a royal family, so, she doesn't tolerate any sort of nonsense. She's always arranged and does things in an orderly manner.

"Yes ma'am!" The lady in brown uniform bowed while studying the first lady's dressing. She was dressed in an atampa and had so many golden rings on her fingers. The maid wondered if, her fingers don't ache.

"You can go." She dismissed her. The maid bowed again and left. Sabeera had been her maid since before she got married to her husband who was nothing but a rich farmer then. After years, he decided to join the politics which he luckily won at the third contest.

"Maama," Amina or rather Mimi pursed her lips forward and jumped on her mother's lap. Mimi was the only female child of the family so you don't need to be told about how she's been pampered.

"What is it?" Maama asked while adjusting her daughter's scarf. Mimi took a bite of an apple and replied,

"My best friend, Maleekah got a farm yesterday and I need one too." She pouted and looked at her mother.

"What do you want it for?" The first lady, Hajiya Maryam asked.

"I just want to have one and plant varieties of fruits under controlled condition. Baaba will hire some experts and someone to look after it." she shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal or something difficult.

"Well," the screeching of tires and sirens cut her off. His excellency was back from Jordan. She really missed him and hope he will spend a week with her but, that wasn't possible. He had two other wives. She sighed at the thought and lifted her daughter's head off her laps.

"Welcome Baaba!" Mimi ran and hugged him. He held her and twirled her around.

"I missed you so much Baaba!" she whined. Despite the fact that he was a governor, there was a cordial relationship with his wives and children. His excellency, Dr Bashir Sagir was always there for them.

Xxxxxx

Sadiqu came in with a cutlass on his shoulder and some sticks on his arm. He leapt to the side of their storage bin and approached his mother who was sitting on a mat. He checked if the pots were filled to the brim or not.

The water they used for drinking, bathing and cooking was a brownish dirty pond water. They had no other option. The governmental system was deteriorating everyday.

"Why is he vomiting again?" Sadiqu asked his mother who wasn't even paying attention to her sick child.

Bareerah was a single mother of six. Due to poverty, she sent two of the girls to work as maids in the city. Two of the boys were sent to almajiri (children in search of knowledge somewhere but end up as beggars to fend for themselves) school. The rest of, stayed with her. Sadiqu was a twenty one year old gentleman who had finished his secondary school but couldn't proceed. He stayed with his mother and looked after the only farm they inherited from their father. The farm was their only source of income and the only asset they depended on.

"I soaked rai dore leaves and gave him. Hopefully he will recover." She stood up and retied her faded wrapper then began to sweep the little compound. Sadiqu looked at his younger brother who was only six, as he vomit continuously.

"Oh my goodness!" He rose sharply from the wooden chair he was sitting earlier and approached the boy who was now panting heavily.

"Inna, look," he pointed at the floor and Inna noticed some traces of blood in the vomit. She burst into cries immediately.

"It's high time we sell off some part of our farm in order to take Wali to the hospital in the city. We can't watch him die, Inna." He cleaned the beads of sweat that formed on his forehead and head out to find someone who's willing to buy the half of their asset.

Once out, he became heedless. He doesn't even know who to approach. Then he remembered his uncle, Malam Habu. So he took the route to his uncle's house.

"Are you sure that's the right thing to do?" Malam Habu asked his nephew, Sadiqu who came to seek for advice concerning the farm. Malam Habu threw a meat in his mouth and licked his fingers before he spoke.

"You don't need to find someone, I will buy it." The last part of the sentence left Sadiqu dumbstruck. What was that supposed to mean? If his uncle could afford to buy the farm then why can't he give him the money even if it was in form of loan? His uncle was so merciless.

"Stop looking at me like that, I'm going to take a loan and buy it. Let's go!" He stood up and rolled the mat he was sitting on, into a cylinder and called a boy to take it inside his house for him. Sadiqu was quiet all through. He wondered if the man had an iota of pity in his so called heart. They walked in silence to the farm.

"Oh God! What is this?" Sadiqu sighted a bulldozer by his farm. He ran fast to the acre of land and noticed that, all the grains he intended to harvest the next month were gone. What the hell was that?

"Excuse me," he stopped in front of the moving, destroying vehicle waving his hand in the air. The driver, brought the bulldozer to a halt and jumped out.

"What is wrong with you young man?" A man that was almost the age with his uncle asked him while wiping his face with his shirt. He lit a cigarette and puffed a smoke.

"Oh no wonder. You're drunk I see. This is my farm! Who gave you the audacity to come and invade it? What is your alcohol telling you?" Sadiqu roared. He fanned his face with his palm as the reeking smell of cigar was disturbing him. Annoyed to the core, he pulled the cigar out of the man's lip and threw it away. The man raised his hand to slap him.

"Don't you dare!" Sadiqu held the man's arm and released it downward with great force. The man didn't do anything afterward because he knew he will be beaten up mercilessly by this well-built young man. Sadiqu turned to talk to his uncle but saw no one. The uncle had ran away.

"Salahu! What are you waiting for?" Mimi wind her window down and yelled. Sadiqu didn't even bother to look her way.

"Hajiya, I'm sorry! The owner of the farm is here and,"

"And what?" She opened the door of the car and stormed out fuming like a tigress.

"I want this farm and I must have it!" she yelled atop her voice. Sadiqu swerved and studied her as she typed some digits in her phone.

"Okay Baaba, but you should have come," she frowned.

"Clear this farm into a fine land or you loose your job!" she fired at Salahu. He got under the wheel and began to clear off the debris.

"You should have apologize, perhaps I will change my mind," she rolled her eyes but Sadiqu didn't say anything. He was just trying to figure out if he's in his right sense.

"Ops ops I forgot. Sorry okay? Those living in penury hate to apologize but, I think its high time they give up and accept the fact that, the opulent ones are a hundred steps higher than them." She put on her goggles on completion of her words. Sadiqu's heart boiled in anger.

"You're proud with power, status and opulence. I can't do anything because of this but know that- the all seeing will avenge for me. I'm suffering from penury but... You shall come to realise that, power, status and wealth are nothing. I can see you're nothing but a daughter of a thief!" Sadiqu pointed his finger at her and left dejected. He can't cry in her presence. He made his way home to tell his mother.

"Oh wow, he's a cripple. No i mean a leper...what a pity!" Mimi busted. Sadiqu stood in track. He was in pain, so deep but he chose to leave without saying a word.

It wasn't his choice to be physically challenged. His left ankle was kind of slim and his foot was twisted. This was because of the situation they lived in, in their state. He was infected by polio at the age of four due to lack of immunization and vaccination.

Just as he left, all she could see when she close her eyes was his face as he called her father a thief. What was that for? Whatever was it, she wouldn't change her mind. She wanted that farm and nothing would make her to change her mind about it.

In fact, she will make sure she snatch away their house.

She hissed and stormed back into the car.

"Take me to the park, I need some fresh air!" she instructed the driver.

Xxxxx

Sitting by the roadside on a hot evening was what young jobless men of Rimin gata were fond of doing. They would sit for five hours straight mocking people that are passing. If there's any news circulating in the village, they will discuss it there and even add lies to it.

When any of them has a penny on him, he would stop a girl that sells groundnut and buy it for the clique. If it was maize season, they will buy it and break it among them. They agreed that, eating while gossiping makes the gossip juicer.

"I heard that, late Malam Mamman's farm had been snatched!" The man that talked earlier, took a bite of his sugarcane. From the way he's swooning his head, the sugar cane was sweet and juicy. His friend on the other edge of the bench looked at him.

"I heard that, the sugarcane in the farm has almost finished growing when they cleared it off." The other seep his sugarcane. Another one with an afro hair, took a palmful of groundnut into his mouth.

"No, it was a groundnut farm not sugarcane." He protested. The third person burst into laughter.

"What are you laughing at?" They asked angrily.

"Calm down guys, the farm is mixed. Wheat, maize and millet. Not sugarcane or groundnut" he explained but they paid him no heed.

They were all youth who started school but couldn't continue. They all stopped at either primary school or secondary. The government wasn't helping at all.

There was no electricity, no education, no good health system and worst of all_unemployment.

"That's your worries. I'm disturbed about not proceeding my education!" Another stood up, kicked a stone and left while insulting the government.

Xxxx

"Daddy, I want a car!" Fiddausi fidgeted with her fingers. Her father, a cashier in a government owned company adjusted his cap and cleared his voice.

"Jannah, you have to understand this. I'm a mere cashier and my salary is only two hundred thousand. I have to pay for your school fess_ you and your siblings. Cater for your needs and all. I can't afford a car now but pray for me to get promotion okay?" He gently explained to her and luckily she prayed for him and left with no worries on her mind.

"Wifey," Alhaji Umar looked at his wife's angry face. Her switched off the TV and settled on the two sitter cushion. She shifted away with folded arms.

"Tell me what is it?" He worriedly asked.

"I told you I need three hundred thousand to attend to my needs but you refuse to pay me heed." She raised her eyebrows and rolled her eyes. Alhaji Umar removed his eyeglass and cap.

"I think I've told you this before,"

"Excuse me please," she stood up and raised her left hand at him.

"If you know you're not going to give me let me know." She put her hands in akimbo style and tapped her foot continuously.

"Where do you want me to get such amount that exceed my salary?" He hushed. Sadiya smiled and sat down.

"You're a cashier. Use your brain wisely! Taking a hundred thousand per month will not be a big deal, it is not even going to be noticeable. God will not ask you of it, because it's part of your hardwork. You are not paid the way you're supposed to be paid Alhaji." She peered into his eyes and continued.

"You have three daughters who are yet to be married. Have you forgotten that you've not finish paying off the debts you collected on Amal's wedding? Do you want to be collecting debts to celebrate your daughter's weddings? No is your answer I bet. If you can't add a zero to the digits of your salary at once, then start it slowly. Be adding a hundred thousand each month. That will be enough for everything. You can save up for the kid's wedding. Take Nazeer out of the country to study and everything." She shifted from her sitting position to where he was.

"What do you say? Mind you, this is not stealing. It is called tactics." She smiled. Slowly, Alhaji Umar started nodding before a wide grin appeared on his face.

"That's why I love you Sadiya. The apple of my eyes." She smiled shyly.

Xxxxx

"Father, review this please."Dr Muhseen, the eldest son of the minister of health gave his father some papers.

"What is this Muhseen?" He frowned and took a sip of coffee. Wherever he goes, there's a flask of coffee with him.

"Just a signature from you will approve the project. People are suffering in that region father. We need at least ten hospitals," Muhseen spoke with full respect but still got a hot glare from his father.

"Father, it's people's right. The government promised them that, before the election. So, since you're appointed as the minister, I think you should help if not, by Allah, you will be asked about this on the day of judgement." The father smiled.

"Is that all?" Honourable Bala asked.

"Yes fath..." Muhseen was cut with a hot slap.

"Stupid boy. What do you know? Now find your way out of this room." hon Bala hissed angrily. Muhseen mumbled an apology and left. He would come back the next day until his father understand the truth.

"David! David!" Hon Bala called out loud and David ran to his call.

"Fill up the coffee flask and be fast about that," he beat the table as he grew impatient each passing second. His coffee was so dear to him. It's an anger quencher to hon Bala.

"Yes sir!" David, the chef hurried out to obey his master's command.

_______

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