Yaa Hojah
“The joy of motherhood is to see her child married and give her grand-children then she is considered blessed and also remember a woman has a life span in the morning she blossoms and in the evening she withers. Bring us a suitor since you rejected the five men your father show you.”
Ada
“I have heard you mommy I am going to do it; my hussy will come the soonest.”
Ada with her friend Nyima
“You are under great pressure to marry since you have rejected the 5 suitors your parents showed you; what are your plans?”
Ada
“I have a fiancé we studied together in the U.S”
Nyima
She became excited for her friend;
“Bring him now strike when the iron is hot I am jealous of you.” She advised.
Ada
“I cannot bring him now he is doing an assignment which will take months until he is ready I cannot hurry him into anything but why are jealous of me a young girl like you?”
Nyima became skeptical about her friend when she left she soliloqued;
Nyima
“I don’t believe my friend is she telling me the truth?” Then she added;
“All our youths have travelled for greener pastures and we are not allowed to be married from the neighbouring village.” She lamented.
Ada
She continued her story;
“We were dating for 3 solid years he studied Petro-Engineering he is my type, handsome and understanding moreover we are friends.”
Yaa Hojah
She was eavesdropping and became upset after realizing the gap between her only child and herself she protested;
“My only child how could you hide your plans from me?”
Ada
“I am sorry mom it is not like that when we were in the U.S Ifangbondi shortened Ifang proposed to me and I’ve accepted he is a Petro-Chemical Engineer.”
Yaa Hojah
“When is he coming for introduction giving out ‘Guru’ Kolanuts?”
Ada
“He will come the soonest by God power.”
Yaa Hojah
“Ada! O Ada! You are always full of surprises we’ll welcome him when he comes my daughter.” She hugged her daughter and became very happy.
The Chief
He is with his Committee of Elders two are already present discussion starts;
Alh Mustapha
“Let us allow the Women Mediators who visited us and we insulted them that move was wrong had we allow them by now Peace between the two villages would have been established.”
Deputy Chief
“Abomination! How can you say such a thing? How can Women bring Peace to our ancestral land? Do you want to make us a laughing stock of history?”
Pa Frumose
“What Alh. said has some grain Chief let us give Peace a chance and let me tell you women are very good with mediation equal with the men and they persist until they reach their goal and no one knows our children can fall for each other.”
Deputy Chief
What the gentle-men said infuriated the Deputy and he took offence;
“There are some spies within us we have to be very careful I swear by our ancestors if any one betrays us he/she will be thoroughly dealt with.”
Chief Nyanko concurred with him to the amazement of the two elders.
“Let Kerrgumak’ Chief come begging upon his knees.”
Deputy Chief
He fueled the crisis all the more;
“God will punish all those who are prophesying that our children would marry each other.” Then he looked at the two elders and hissed.
Chief Nyanko
“We have been at the receiving end for many years now it is our turn to pay back all the atrocities meted out to us. We are different now no longer helpless we fill the Executive, the Legislative, and most of our sons and daughters are in the Judiciary and the Press our sons and daughters have successful businesses our Town is more prosperous than theirs Allahuakbar! Yalla Aji Magala! Allah Warata!”
Alh. Mustapha and Pa Frumose looked at each other then Alh. Mustapha posited;
“Our people say ‘su Nyirim halate ganaw lune nyow’ (if the fatherless looks back everything becomes ugly.) Let bygones be bygones it my candid advice.”
Chief Nyanko
“I am disappointed with both of you how can you reason like that do you want me see you as traitors of the village? Don’t try my patience the other side of me is worst. Our people say the river would not bring down the forest trees. We have to live by example of what we preach.”
The two elders were shut up and they kept unto themselves until the session concluded and they returned back home.
On their Way Home
“Why do we want to fuel the feud? In war we are all losers.” The other concurred.
Pa Frumose
He warn Alhajj;
“be very careful I am afraid all eyes are on us especially you.”
Ada with her Friend Nyima
As they strolled in the village an Elder in the Committee passed by Nyima greeted him but Ada hissed which surprise Nyima she asked;
“But why didn’t you greet him? He a Committee Elder in your dad’ Court?”
Ada
“I don’t know his name but he is among those elders who are fueling the feud and being liars to my dad.”
Nyima
“His name is Pa Ensa I understand from my dad that he is a stranger even though his parents and him spent almost a 60 years at this village all his children are born here and his wife is also an indigene of this settlement. They all have voters card and they were voting since the First Republic but when they vote for the other side they are victimized so they hid or support the power that be all the time.”
Ada
“There is so much corruption nowadays until people know themselves and their rights the status quo will never change but changes gonna come, things are changing at least people are talking unlike before when they were mute.”
To be Cont.
