5 minutes

5 minutes after this picture was taken, I used 700 naira to withdraw 4500 from a POS stand. It would’ve been a thousand naira but that’s another story. It didn’t help that I had exactly 4,500 in my account so I had to leave with 3,800. I watched as the POS lady called the car dealership and said to hold on, that if things go well today, she will get the 2015 camry model instead.

She looks at me sad trying to calculate how I’ll spend 100 naira a day till next salary and as if to make me feel better, she says “hmmmm my brother, it’s just manage that we’re managing in this country o. Things are so hard. My neighbor POS — she points at a pos stand with a lexus parked in front — just finished doing thanksgiving for that car and they only shared one meat per plate. If things were going well in this country, a car like that deserves at least 2 meats but we thank God. Now I want to build house with the help of God and my POS business. I’m hearing now that cement is 4200.” She pauses to collect 2000 for someone that asked for 10k. “Something of 1200 before o, what exactly is this country turning into? This is why we need to vote. These leaders will just wake up in the morning, wear agbada and think of new ways to punish us”.

She continues, “Like now as you came here and I collected all your money, do you think I enjoy it? No but that’s the situation of the country now and we’re all trying to survive even though these leaders want to kill us all”.

I listen to her for 5 more minutes, “business is slow today o. If not for this house and car that I didn’t know i was going to build until 5 days ago, shey I would’ve been resting now”.

Next person walks in, “Madam abeg give me 10k” “Oga your money na 2500”.