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Just in time part 4
‘I quite understand the situation you are in’, David said as they approached her house, ‘The situation as you have described it is quite difficult. But I wish you did not have to leave your parents’ home on a sour note. If I make a suggestion, I would ask you to wait for just a few days, and try not to react to any provocation. If the situation gets worse, then of course you can leave.’ ‘Well, I agree with you. I will take your suggestion. Hopefully, they will leave me alone to make my own decisions. ‘Esaaba, I have never forgotten about you. Is it possible for us to start our uncompleted project?’ ‘You have a way with words, David. Uncompleted project. Well, I have told you my current status. If you don’t have any skeletons hiding in your cupboard in Denmark or in your hometown, then I am ready to listen to what you have to say.’ ‘I made friends and went out with a couple of ladies, but I never entered into any commitments, and I don’t have any cupboards anywhere. Maybe you and I will buy some cupboards, and store some interesting things’. ‘You did not tell me where you are working.’ ‘Ah. I was offered a position here at the local office of Eurofood, the company that gave me the scholarship. And I have been penciled in for some teaching at the Department, so hopefully I will be seeing you often.’
Esaaba went back to her room a much different person. She sat on her bed again, and this time she wiped her mental slate clean, and said a quiet prayer asking God to confirm if this is the relationship He planned for her. She felt thankful that she was able to forgive her parents and Beesiwa for treating her so badly. They certainly meant well, but they certainly went too far to have tried to force a husband on her. She enjoyed a deep sleep and woke up well rested.
Soon as she had arrived at work the following morning, Marian called, and wasted no time to ask questions. ‘Esaaba, so what happened yesterday after I left the two of you alone? Esaaba broke into uncontrolled laughter. ‘Ei, Esaaba’, Marian continued. ‘See how you are happy. You can’t even talk. David will have to pay for this.’ ‘You did well, Marian. We had a great evening, and we will be seeing each other.’ ‘I’m happy for you two. I pray that everything goes well. David is a great guy, and I’m happy you found each other at last.
Esaaba saw notification of a message from Stanley Forson, and she opened it. It was short and not friendly. ‘Good morning. Now that I have told you about the circumstances under which I made the marriage proposal and gave you the ring, I withdraw the proposal, and would like you to return the ring to my parents. Thank you’. Esaaba’s reply was also short, but polite. Thanks for your note, Stanley. I agree that my parents were wrong to have bullied you into making the proposal. I am very sorry for the inconvenience. I will return the ring to your parents’ home this evening. I will call them now and inform them. Thank you’. Stanley replied, to her surprise. ‘On second thoughts, please don’t call them. Just wait till I tell you what to do with it.’ ‘I’m sorry Stanley. After the insulting messages you sent me, I don’t want to keep anything of yours. I don’t need to call your parents. I will send it to them now.’ ‘Can you please wait, even if for a few days, Esaaba? I’m really sorry. You are a really nice lady, and beautiful. I have had too much to contend with since coming to Handover. If you will kindly give me a little time, I will clear my head, and we can restart. I think we have the basis for a really good relationship’. Esaaba replied after an hour. ‘Stanley, your ring is on its way to your dad. It should be there in a few minutes. Sorry, I cannot wait. I’ve put your indecision and your insults behind me. I wish you the best’.
Soon after she sent the message to Stanley, Baaba called. Esaaba answered, ready to exchange verbal blows with her sister. But to her surprise, her tone was much different.’ ‘Big sis, I want to apologize for what happened yesterday. Mom and Dad should never have done what they did, and I should not have supported them. Please forgive me. I am truly sorry. I called them a couple of minutes ago, and they are very sorry. They are really afraid that you will carry out your threat to leave the house, and I want to plead with you, don’t leave. They have promised never to interfere in your relationship issues again. Please!
‘Don’t worry Beesiwa. I’ve put it all behind me. I’ve forgotten it all. No hard feelings. I’ve turned the page.’ ‘Really? What happened? What has changed so suddenly?’ ‘I will tell you everything later, but I have a visitor now. Let’s talk later. Esaaba looked up and said hello to David. ‘Good to see you, David. I wasn’t expecting to see you’. ‘Well, after what we discussed last night, I thought I should come and see you, and if possible, take the discussion a little further’. ‘Thanks David. If you will give me a few minutes, I will make a few arrangements, then I can go out for an hour’. ‘No, I will go to the Department and wait till lunch time, then I will come and pick you for lunch. If it’s okay with you’. ‘Yes, certainly. I will be waiting.’
David and Esaaba were inseparable from then, and after some month’s courtship, he proposed. Esaaba gladly accepted. ‘You came at just the right time, David. I had just had a bad quarrel with my parents and my sister, and was about to leave home’. ‘You were saved by the bell’, David said. But perhaps it was just the right time for us to meet.’
By Ekow de Heer
THE typical itinerant salesman in Sikaman is a herbalist. He is normally a slim macho with the capacity to perambulate the expanse of area covering the triangle of Accra-Tema-Ashiaman. In short, he can walk a total of 60 miles a day, marketing a product that cures every disease, including poverty. 
The door-to-door herbal pharmacist advertises his product by word of mouth. He has nothing to do with the Food and Drugs Board (FDB). After all, his concoctions do not feature on FM stations.
Those herbalists who cannot walk to propagate the herbal gospel, liaise with drivers of mass transportation and their mates. They are, therefore, given the chance to sell their products on Benz buses that ply the routes.
Normally, the herbalist starts his sales message with a prayer and Bible study. He asks the passengers to bow down their heads in supplication to God the father, the son, the Holy Spirit.
When a herbalist asks the passengers to close their eyes and bow their heads, Moslems on board naturally feel offended. They feel that the herbalist has no right to assume that every passenger is a Christian. They think such an assumption is an affront to Islam.
So a Moslem on board will raise the hand for a point of order. He’ll remind the herbalist that it would be in his own interest to mind his language.
“Be careful the way you address people in a public place. Not every person here is a Christian,” he’d state assertively.
Of course, the herbalist will promptly ignore him, but would all the same “watch” his tongue. Who knows whether or not the Moslem brother is inspired by Quoranic zeal to defend the tenets of Islam to the hilt?
When he starts saying, “Wallahi!” and “Inshallah!” it could be the beginning of proclaiming Islam as supreme, a point which must be driven home with talibanic precision.
So the herbalist must tread carefully lest he steps on fire.
The herbalist could even add a measure of mirth to it all, by announcing that Christians on board today have very interesting company on the journey, but that should not detract from the business of the day.
The Moslem brother will weigh the words carefully and offer a wry smile.
He must be careful the occasion does not degenerate into the use of semantics and proverbial oration to deride his conviction that public utterances must be mindful of religious sensibilities. He has made his point very clear and expects that it is taken in good faith in the interest of a peaceful journey.
The herbalist will now open the New Testament and preach salvation, stating clearly that salvation can come only through Jesus Christ and NOBODY else.
The Moslem brother will now start twitching his moustache. The visible and almost revolutionary reflexes of his upper lip can be an indication that sentiments have begun superseding reason, and the outcome could well be tragic now shift uneasily in his seat.
The time has come for him to also express his right to the religion of his fore-bears. He’ll put his hand into his pocket and rise to his feet. The time has indeed come!
This article was first published on Saturday, September 9, 2006
When the cause of a particular problem like sickness, disease, sudden illness, a social issue etc. are not known, it stands to reason that resolving it becomes a huge challenge.
Citizens would understand the government when public announcements are made to the effect that government is trying to find a solution to the issue, even though it is taking a while for it to be resolved because citizens are rational beings.
On the other hand, if the solution to a particular issue is known to everybody but the government for whatever reason, is dragging its feet in resolving it, citizens become frustrated and begin to lose trust in their leaders.
One such issue is the heavy traffic along a section of the Kasoa – Odokor road. A short stretch of bad road between the traffic light at the Weija Government Hospital and the entrance to the entrance of the overhead that leads to the N1, is the cause of the problem but nothing is being done about it, day after day, week after week, month after month. Thus is clearly unacceptable.
Another issue that requires urgent attention is the lack of pavements along a lot of streets in parts of the various Municipal Assemblies. Exercise is a prerequisite for long life and healthy living and for those of us who it has become a way of life, this issue of people putting up structures right to the edge of the drains beside the roads, are making life difficult for us.
We are compelled to walk along the roads, putting our lives at serious risk. Pedestrians should never be compelled to compete with vehicles on our streets and roads. Roads and streets are made for vehicles and pavements are made for pedestrians. That is the norm. Any attempt to normalise a situation where pedestrians are mingling with vehicles is insanity.
It is the road regulations that makes it so and therefore district or municipal assemblies are to take responsibility and ensure that spaces for pavements are not encroached upon. Citizens have rights that must be protected by their leaders and making pavements available to pedestrians, is one of them.
When we hear of teachers having sex with students, it appears it is something recent. It is not a new phenomenon. It has been there since Adam. Perhaps this issue is getting much attention due to the proliferation of social media. It was an open secret in times past when Teachers were in relationships with female students and some married them immediately after completion of school.
Some teachers were also known to be having unholy interactions with female pupils but due to the times that these acts occurred, human rights issues and the awareness around it, allowed such unscrupulous teachers to get away with their crimes.
Now we are in a different era and so a Headmaster is now in hot waters. He is alleged to have raped about 19 female students and as usual, some officials tried to cover it up and are also in hot waters and their actions or inactions in the matter are under investigation.
Why the man has been allowed to roam freely without being arrested is simply mind boggling. It appears that the law applies differently, depending on who you are. This issue came to public attention sometime in August this year, yet the police had not arrested or invited this man for question regarding the rape allegation.
It has come out that he is a Constituency Secretary of the ruling party and the question in the public domain is that, is it because he is a political figure that is why he is still walking around without questioning? I believe in the rule of law so let us hold our breadth and let the proper thing be done.
The police must however be seen to be active in this matter. God bless.
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