Vultures of the North-East

 ‘Move over here Ladi, you are not supposed to stand behind me when I need you in front to be handing the materials I need here.’ I said to my house help, when I felt her standing beside me, while I bent over the dining table writing more placards. With not a word from her mouth I felt a hand on my back, and in both shock and anger, I quickly raised myself to ask just what was wrong with the young lady. 

‘So it’s you?’ I said, with great relief when I saw myself staring into Tahir’s eyes. ‘I was just about to lose my head, wondering what made my house girl so audacious.’ I explained.

‘I know, since I was here when you asked her to move to the front. I actually planned to startle you when I saw you bent on the table, totally absorbed. I felt quite tempted and my original plan was to tickle your love-handles, but I feared scaring you so much that it could lead to something disastrous.’ He answered, smiling.

‘Something disastrous like what?’ I smiled back.

‘Like you jumping up in shock and breaking your old bones or simply having a heart attack, you know, any of the reflex responses you are likely to have when you think it’s a stranger that has the audacity to tickle you.’ He replied.

‘And may I know why you felt like startling me? What made you have the urge to do some mischief this morning?’ I queried.

‘Well, it’s a weekend morning. I expected you to take things easy and just be pleasant company to me but what did I see? You working your heart out writing some placards. I realise the Ladies’ Parliament work is your biggest priority in this house. Ever since you sent Little Bint to boarding school, you have done your best to transfer the time you used to spend on her to your beloved NGO. As for the old guy next door, well you simply believe I can fend for myself, don’t you?’ He complained.

‘I’m sorry, I didn’t realise you need that extra time. I just wanted to write all the placards I promised to take to the demonstration this afternoon, before it’s time to make your breakfast. That’s why I jumped on it the moment I came downstairs.’ I apologized.

‘You are having the demonstration today? But what is the rush? I thought all you need to do is to watch out for the next time people use their smarties to record videos instead of helping victims, then you’ll organise a demonstration against it. Why so soon?’ He asked.

‘But we are not demonstrating against the smart phone video enthusiasts, no, this is an urgent thing that came up because of recent happenings in the country. We are demonstrating against the vultures in the North-East.’ I explained.

‘Vultures in the North East? I’m sure you don’t mean that literally.’ He observed.

‘No I don’t. Like you are well aware, recent discoveries have shown that many influential people have been feeding fat on the funds meant for the resettlement and rehabilitation of the poor victims of insurgency in the North-east. While the poor victims wallow in poverty and homelessness, exposed to the elements and their kids out of school, some heartless, highly placed individuals can only think of making gains out of their pains. We are therefore going to demonstrate and call for their heads. After the demonstration we will call a press conference and urge the government to spare no one who has a hand in this atrocity. As you can see’ I lifted the placards to show him what I wrote on some of them, ‘we are calling them by name and asking the government to prosecute and jail them just to show that the days of naming and shaming are here.’

 To be continued.