Few weeks ago, I was driving on Apapa-Oshodi expressway and stopped
briefly under the Ilasamaja Bridge to pick a call. Suddenly, a Danfo bus pulled
up beside me, the bus conductor jumped out and landed by my side. I thought I
was about to be robbed!
However, the conductor had other plans...
'Oshodi Oshodi Oshodi o...'
I heaved a sigh of relief and breathed deeper, then I saw a guy I'd
known for long. Years of separation couldn't play on me any trick. He was one
of the brightest guys in our class back then, and had won for us a couple of
Inter-School competitions.
He was of a modest middleclass family that valued education and when he
says a word is 'adjectival proverb' or 'future present past participle', we
dared not argue because he was usually and always right.
Always ahead. He had a way of mentally working out complex mathematical
equations without writing. He was a silent threat to the 'booboo' teachers and
would sometimes challenge their answers' which later earned him cold hates from
some of the teachers. Gbenga was that hot and was named one of the most likely
to succeed in our class.
'Oshodi…Oshodi…Oshodi oke o…' He continued.
I pushed out my head from the car and 'holla' his nick name.
'Gbengene!'
He was shocked. Only his old allies would call him that name, I guessed.
He looked intently at me and then screamed. I came out of the car and we hugged
fiercely, like old thieves, gallons of his sweat rubbing all over me, but I
cared not. I was happy to see my old friend.
‘Viko ómó'lòpè, what’s up? O ti sha-pra-pra gan o...'
He hailed loudly in street parlance. We however couldn't talk as he had
to get back to work, and his driver 'oga' was blaring the horn angrily. So I
took his phone number and watched him go adoringly.
Gbenga ran back to the moving Danfo bus, jumped in and clung tightly to
the door as if his entire life depended on it. He gave me a parting smile and
flashed a decolorized teeth supposedly darkened by excessive marijuana smoking
and deepseated apathy to dental hygiene.
God, what happened?
I stood, rooted to that spot and sadly watched him disappear into the
fast moving Lagos metro.
Then came flurry of emotion.
I cried.
As I drove on, I flashed back to another flip-sided slice of life that
made me conclude afterall that life is nothing but a scam.
I was on Admiralty Way in Lekki and stopped at AP/Tantalizer Junction to
shine my shoe. I was admiring the Aboki doing his work with much passion when a
black Range Rover halted suddenly behind me and the screech of the tyres made
me dive for safety.
God forbid bad thing!
While on the safer side, I glanced back to see the idiot behind the
wheel, then I saw a familiar face. 'No! Haba! It couldn't be him' I argued
within me, then wiped my face for a clearer vision. The loser was still there,
smiling stupidly. The face rang a louder bell, and of course, I remembered him.
'What in hell could Bala be doing inside this Range Rover?' I queried
myself.
It is tragic to be dumb, and a tragedy to be stupid, but it is an
incurable curse to be both. Bala was dumb and stupid! His parents were
extremely poor! That, conjoined with his non-existent academic performance
which affected his confidence and social life, he was simply termed a failure
and had severally been assured he wouldn't amount to anything in life. He
agreed, and we all agreed with him. So we treated him as nobody, a scumbag.
‘Well, maybe Bala had finally fulfilled his destiny and become a driver
as predicted' I concluded, grinning sheepishly.
What a stupid miscalculation!
Balarabe, the dullest guy in my class was the proud owner of the R2.
Back then, this guy could not even write a decimal point with a bottle, but now
signs cheques with gold pen and cruises posh SUVs all around Lagos. We hung out
at The Sailors Lounge and he told me how he reinvented himself. He attended few
crash courses, changed his orientation, worked with a shipping company in Apapa
Wharf, became hardworking and brutally honest. His boss loved him and mentored
him in shipping and importation business until he started his own company.
Wow!
Balarabe!
A CEO of a Shipping Company!!!
Bala!
A scum of the earth?!
I couldn't sleep that night as I kept musing over Gbenga and Bala.
So I concluded.
The race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor riches
to men of understanding, nor favour to men of skill; but time and chance happen
to them all.
It is truly not over, until it is over.
Reinvent yourself, change your attitude and let honesty be your watch
word.
God will change your story for the best as you go out this week in Jesus
name.
Barcelona cruised to their second straight victory under new boss Ronald Koeman as they continue their preparations towards the new season.
The Catalans enjoyed another impressive performance at the Johan Cryuff Stadium after beating Girona in their second test game this preseason.
Brazilian forward Philippe Coutinho was found the back of the net first in the 21st minute after tapping into the net from close range after a beautiful build-up moments before the goal.
1. Do not offer lift to anybody at night for any reason whatsoever. You may be
fallen into a trap.
2. If you were robbed and any of your property is taken away by the robbers,
you should report the incidence within minutes, because if the robbers are
caught and your property is found with them, without your report at The Police
Station recorded, you will be deemed to be part of the robbers and may be
charged and prosecuted as an Accomplice!
3. Do not buy used phones or laptops, except you are buying from a known friend
and you have ascertained that he was the previous User, as it could be a
product of theft, armed robbery or kidnapping, if so and you are arrested, you
will be dealing with a case of armed robbery or kidnapping. Also do not buy
vehicles from vendors, until you check the registration details at the National
Vehicles Registration Database to know the actual owners, or you ascertain that
the Customs Papers are genuine, it could be stolen, robbed vehicles or a product
of a kidnapping operation.
4. Do not leave Credit Alerts on your phone. Delete them immediately, it could
make you a target of kidnapping in some circumstances or an easy way for
fraudsters to empty your account.
5. Do not disclose your location online, it could make you an easy targets for
assailants.
6. Do not give anybody, no matter how close, your phone or sim to make calls or
allow people to put their sims in your phone to make calls, instead offer them
airtime or your battery. If the person is wanted for a crime, you could be a
soft target for the Police to get to the person.
7. Do not respond to strange persons, telling you about NNPC Contract, PHCN
Contract, or errors in your accounts, they are fraudsters.
8. Do not ever stay in the midst of a mob, if any body dies from the mob action
and you are apprehended at the scene, you will become a Murder Suspect!
9. Always watch your rear through your side or inner mirror while driving to
ascertain if you are being trailed, if yes, drive to the nearest Police
Station.
10. When flagged down by security agencies, be calm, polite and communicate
with them in good English. It helps. If at night put on your inner lights
before you approach them, it shows you have nothing to hide.
11. Do not allow anybody to use your account or email for a third party
transaction and do not transfer money for people indiscriminately, because you
could be a soft target for the Police to get to the Person.
12. Do not use ATMs at remote places at night, you could be robbed or
kidnapped.
13. Do not use an ATM Machine that shows Microsoft Error or any other error
covering the screen, it may have been programmed by Yahoo Boys to siphon your
money.
14. Do not give testimonies in church or at an occasion with details of you
making money or acquiring priced assets, you may acquire a kidnapping value,
the Church is a mixed crowd and venue of an event is not a safe place.
15. Keep details of your financial dealings away from your domestic staff and
security details. what you say or do in their presence, they are also with you
to spy on you.
16. If you have Security Details, be careful what you say or do in their
presence, they are also with you to spy on you.
17. If you worked in a Government Establishment or Multinational, be careful
what you relate to your colleagues, Government may have spies in every
Government Body and Major Company in Nigeria.
18. Be careful what you say on the phone, write on text and social media
messages, every conversation is being monitored!
19. Always keep your outside light on and the light inside off at home when
sleeping. It confuses robbers and other assailants.
20. Be careful what you communicate on Messenger, WhatsApp, or phone calls.
They could easily be used as evidence against you by the Law Enforcement Agent.
If wanted to make a classified communication, do it by WhatsApp calls. It
cannot be recorded as it is an encrypted, end to end communication.
22. Read documents very well before you sign.You are bound by what you sign. Do
not allow any police man, investigating officer or security agent to force you
make any statements. Insist on seeing your Lawyer. By the New Law -ACJL, they
will oblige you, never make a statement for any reason that will implicate you
as you could be on your way to jail.
23. Having exotic dogs like Alsatians, Rottweilers, etc, not local dogs easily
wades off criminals and alert you on the communication Assailants.
24. Always have enough credit on your phone before sleeping, never sleep
without airtime on your phone* in case of emergency.
Please share this with your friends so that they can be informed.
German amateur team Ripdorf was ripped apart as their opponents found the back of the net seamlessly.
Ripdorf watched from the sidelines in safety as their opponents SV Holdenstedt II converted goal after goal in a game which eventually ended in a mammoth 37-0.
The controversial game got complicated when Ripdorf president Patrik Ristow raised alarm that their opponents who played against Eddelstorf a week earlier had contact with a player who tested positive for coronavirus.
Although the SV Holdenstedt II squad later tested negative for the infection, Ripdorf players complained that the stipulated 14 days had not passed since the first contact.
Ripdorf proposed that the game be postponed, but the plea was rejected by officials despite that SV Holdenstedt II’s first team players all excused from the game due to coronavirus fears as well.
Forced to either play or face a hefty penalty for abandoning the match, the side decided to take the field while respecting social distancing protocol.
COVID-19 continues to disrupt football matches. Photo Credit: Getty Images
Holdenstedt were therefore left to run rampant while their opponents watched on from a safe distance, scoring goal after goal in the absence of opposition.
"Several players on our second team told us that they would like to avoid contact with SV Holdenstedt players to be safe," Ristow later explained to AZ.
"Also because the 14 day incubation period had not yet finished. The Holdenstedt first-team game was cancelled, the second team game unfortunately was not."
The supporters have been barred from gaining access to watch their favourite teams and players since coronavirus was declared a pandemic in March.
And this has taken a toll on all football clubs, not just in England, but across the globe as their revenues have been greatly affected.
However, as part of plans to start easing the fans into the centres, the league chiefs are said to have agreed with Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden that about 1,000 spectators be given access at 10 venues across the three divisions.
The 30-year-old defender who is currently on the payroll of French League Two outfit FC Sochaux-Montbeliard will now go on isolation for the next two weeks.
His younger brother, Paul, also missed most part of Manchester United's pre-season preparations due to the same reason.
Messi Must Pay €700m Release Clause To Leave Barcelona – La Liga
~1.3 mins read
La Liga has dashed Lionel Messi’s hopes of leaving Barcelona on a free transfer by stating his release clause will have to be paid if he is to leave the Nou Camp.
Messi notified Barcelona this week that he intends to walk away from the club by exercising a clause in his contract that allows him to leave for free at the end of each season.
Even though the deadline to exercise the clause has passed, Messi’s lawyers believe Barcelona should honour it as the season had to be extended because of the coronavirus pandemic, Sky reports.
However, LaLiga have now bolstered Barcelona’s stance, with the club insisting that the clause has expired and the only way Messi will be allowed to leave is if his €700m release clause is paid in full.
A LaLiga statement on Sunday read: “With regard to the different interpretations (some of which are contradictory) relating to the current contractual situation of FC Barcelona footballer Lionel Andres Messi that have been published across various media outlets in recent days, having analysed the player’s contract with the club, LaLiga would like to clarify the following.
“The contract is currently valid and contains a release clause which is applicable should Lionel Messi decide to trigger the early unilateral termination of the contract, in accordance with article 16 of Royal Decree 1006/1985 of 26 June, which regulates the special employment status that professional sportspeople have.
“In compliance with the applicable regulations and protocol that apply in such instances, LaLiga will not carry out the prior visa-release process for the player to be unregistered from the (Royal Spanish Football) Federation if the sum in the aforementioned clause has not been paid beforehand.â€