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New Direction! - A Short Story. - Literature (3) - Nairaland

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Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 4:06pm On Mar 19, 2015
☺ New Direction Kontinyus...
...were getting him angry and, of course, dangerous.
They had to be checked, and for that had he invited the party executive members to the Governor's House. He was more assured of the privacy of their discussions there; he didn't want to give any room to the ever sniffing press, determined to turn every piece of news against the D.A. They would use the underground hall, the entrance to which he had installed body scanners. He trusted no one anymore - some quotes used by the papers had obviously been supplied by moles within the party. The scanners would ensure that no one entered the hall with any recording devices, not even their mobile phones. He didn't want the case of the neighbouring state's governor befalling him; the man, who was seeking reelection, was caught on tape negotiating with some thugs on their pay after successfully disrupting a rally by the opposition. The audio had gone viral and with news coming from that state, the governor's reelection hopes was in tatters. He couldn't afford same with Chief Umeh. Aside the kickbacks an Umeh administration would provide to his pockets, there was the feeling of fulfillment for successfully choosing his successor. It was even more necessary, as many within the party had objected to his candidature in the first place. He had had his eyes on the Senate, but had decided to allow the current seat holder from his constituency go for a second term, after a signed agreement to step down for him during the next elections. Everything appeared working according to plan until the sudden and vigorous shake-up of the polity by the C.A.
***
The party chairman, Engineer Osagie Adams, smiled as he arose to the applause of other members of the state executive committee. The prayers had just been said and the meeting could commence officially. He cleared his throat.
‘D.A!’
‘Progress!’ Reverberated across the hall.
‘D.A!’
‘Power!’
‘D.A!’
‘Development!’
‘I want to thank you all for honouring this meeting,’ he began. ‘As was communicated to us, the leader of the party in the state, His Excellency, attaches a lot of importance to today's meeting, and that informed his warning to sanction any member of the executive committee who failed to show up; I'm glad we all heeded that warning... Some members chuckled, but quickly sobered up when they observed the unsmiling face of the Governor. He hadn't meant it to be a joke when he made the threat; he had intended to fully bring his weight to bear on any errant member of the executive committee.
‘We all know the times we are in, and like it is said; desperate times call for desperate measures. We can deliver, we will deliver and we must deliver. D.A!’
‘Progress!’
‘D.A!’
‘Power!’
‘D.A!’
‘Development!’
‘With all protocols duly observed, I humbly hand over the baton to His Excellency, Governor Paul Igbobia.’
For the first time, since the commencement of the meeting, the Governor smiled. He cleared his throat and patiently awaited the end to their rapturous clapping. Were they truly excited or were they just playing to the gallery?
‘D.A!’
‘Progress!’
‘D.A!’
‘Power!’
‘D.A!’
‘Development!’
‘I want to thank the party chairman for this opportunity to speak...’ He was once again interrupted by their applause. He signalled an end to it with a raised hand. ‘I also want to thank every one of you for lending me your ears. I called this meeting for one purpose - to stem the turning tide. I am not one that would mince words - the tide is truly turning.
‘You have all been witnesses to the campaign rallies we have carried out all around the state and must have noticed what I noticed: the receptions haven't been as passionate as they were four years ago, the crowds have gradually lessened despite the lure of greater monetary gains than ever, we have been practically struggling when we should be coasting; and the big question is why.’ His eyes ran through the faces of the party executives. 'That question, I will now throw to every one of you: Why?’
The party executives shot glances at one another. The two females amongst them, Mrs Jane Olatunde, the Women's Wing Coordinator and Dr Magareth Ikpehia, the Director of Strategy, exchanged whispers. After some seconds, the Publicity Secretary, Erasmus Ohiokede arose.
‘One thing I've noticed, Your Excellency, is that our people seem to have evolved a new political culture in which they prefer sitting at home to view the rallies on their TV sets than coming out to the fields or stadia...’
‘That's not true!’ Mrs Olatunde countered, shooting up. ‘That's exactly what I've been discussing with Dr Ikpehia; the truck pushers and others doing menial jobs are usually out under the glaring sun during our rallies. Why won't such come for the rallies when they stand to make more than twice their daily profits in the few hours the rallies usually take?’
‘You didn't have to attack me like that to express your views,’ Erasmus began, before being interrupted again.
‘I didn't attack you; I only pointed out the error in your opinion.’
‘But you could have done so in a more civilized manner?’
‘Are you now insinuating that I'm uncivilized? Is that what you are trying to say, Mr Erasmus Ohiokede?’ Her voice had gone up to intolerable decibels.
‘Will you both shut up and sit down now?’ The Governor bellowed. The duo took their seats. ‘What has come over you? Instead of proffering solutions to our present problem, you are here quarreling like market women?’
‘He was the first to call me uncivilized; imagine such rudeness - after living in London for over ten years!’ It was Mrs Olatunde.
‘Your Excellency,’ intervened the Chairman, ‘I have severally warned Mrs Olatunde to desist from venting her spleen at the slightest provocation - now it's a pity it has come to your notice. I would suggest that she excuses us for a while to cool off, she may return when she feels better...’
‘Oh, so it's now about me? I can't understand the Bleep about how you treat women! Must you always be chauvinistic in your views?’ Everyone watched her, dumbfounded. ‘Because I'm a woman, you think you can treat me as you please?’
‘And you coordinate the women? You are forthwith suspended from that position, too,' Governor Igbobia was furious. 'You may now proceed out of this hall!’
To be Kontinyud...

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Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 4:17pm On Mar 19, 2015
I intend to do a marathon of updates within the next few days so I could finish this before the elections. I am calling on the moderators to do the needful and move this to the front page.
If there is a right time for political fiction, I think this is it!
Thanks: Seun, Ishilove, Obinnau, humbledByGrace...
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 9:14pm On Mar 20, 2015
New Direction Kontinyus...
'You may now proceed out of this hall!’
She did leave the hall, but after a long hiss that jarred most of those in the meeting. These turned next to the Governor, to see his reaction.
He only smiled, shook his head and said: ‘Women…where did we stop?’
The major decision taken at the meeting was to repay the opposition in its own coin. They had been attacking personalities and misconstruing facts, using the media – mainly the newspapers. The ruling party had to counter this move by attacking them too and lying when applicable, this time using the state owned television and radio stations.
Mrs Olatunde never returned to the hall, in fact, she never returned to the Governor’s house. With her face on the cover pages of many newspapers three days later, her defection to the Congress for Advancement was announced with headlines like: I COULD TAKE IT NO MORE – Jane Olatunde; THE STORM THICKENS FOR THE SINKING SHIP – Mrs J. Olatunde; WOMEN COORDINATOR FLEES DESPERATE ALLIANCE…
*********
The storm generated by Mrs Olatunde's defection soon settled. The campaigns were still ongoing. Many opinion polls favoured the C.A as they continued to drive the nail deeper into the D.A's coffin. Many sinister revelations, attributed to Mrs Olatunde, soon emerged about the ruling party. There were stories on the Governor's support for his former S.S.G being hinged on an agreement reached by them when the more experienced and older Chief Umeh had sponsored him for the seat on the understanding that he would in turn support Chief Umeh's eldest son on the expiration of his two terms. This plan was said to have almost been ruptured when Chief Umeh lost his eldest son to a plane crash the previous year, but that the man had been urged by the Governor to take his son's place, so he could pass on the baton to his second son after four years. What the papers failed to note was that Chief Umeh had only returned to the country at the closing stages of Governor Igbobia's first term in office and had spent over twenty years before that in the United States of America. When the story won't stick, new stories of plans by Paul Igbobia to massively rig the elections soon emerged; to achieve this, the papers claimed that plans had been perfected to bring in thugs in the guise of students on excursion from some neighbouring states. These students, it was reported, would be armed with weapons already purchased and stored in the Governor's House. This plot was to be coordinated by Jim Okafor, the Commissioner of Housing.
The government initially decided not to dignify the rumour with a response, but this the papers soon took up with claims that, having been caught pants down, the Paul Igbobia administration was wishing the people would forget their sinister plot and thereby catch them unawares with its implementation. That was vain wishing according to The Patriotic Voice Newspaper. The people, it claimed, must be made aware of how they were being governed by a cabal that was bent on remaining in power even if it meant destroying the entire state in the process of doing so. In a bid to douse the tension, Governor Paul Igbobia finally came on air after over a week to deny the slanderous insinuations by the C.A. He decried the desperation by the C.A for the seat of power which had resulted in their despicable inability to separate facts from rumours. He pointed out that the said Jim Okafor was no longer a member of his cabinet, wondering how uninformed the papers could be. He concluded by advising the media to always confirm their stories before publishing such, to avoid appearing amateurish to discerning members of the public. The papers bared their fangs again next day, claiming that the response had come too late. According to the Quarterly Herald, the response was so delayed to enable the focusless cabal clear every proof of their evil intentions. They advised the people to remain vigilant as the desperate alliance would never run out of ideas on ways to perpetrate their godless and selfish desires. They however promised never to give up on their drive to keep the people informed of such moves.
Two days after that, the newspapers were awash with stories of Jim Okafor's defection to the Congress for Advancement. According to him, he had seen the light and had decided to join the move to steer the ship of state in a new direction. And a few days more, Mrs Janet Olatunde was chosen by the Chairman as Chief Mike's running mate. He wasn't happy about it - he thought her too wild and loud for a woman, but Sir Maigida impressed it on him that her choice was strategic. She was loud alright, but it made more people hear her; she was ambitious, but that could only work to his favour as she would want to go extra lengths to get them in office; and she had been the Women's Wing leader of the ruling party meaning she would be more experienced at handling the women at the grassroots!
To be Kontinyud...

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Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 10:12pm On Mar 20, 2015
COPIED!
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Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by harjibolar10(m): 11:52pm On Mar 20, 2015
Ohibenemma:
COPIED!
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Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by missterious(f): 6:10am On Mar 21, 2015
Following. smiley
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Cybershow(m): 8:01am On Mar 21, 2015
Ohibenemma:
COPIED!
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bibie01
olanipekuntomi
seunviju
sebak
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na so me don show
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 1:36pm On Mar 21, 2015
harjibolar10:

Present
Thanks for heeding my call. Thou art welcome.
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 1:37pm On Mar 21, 2015
missterious:
Following. smiley
Thanks and welcome.
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 1:38pm On Mar 21, 2015
Cybershow:
na so me don show
Abi O! Let's do this together!
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by princesssusan(f): 5:28pm On Mar 21, 2015
I answered d invitation to A NEW DIRECTION. U‘re doing really great sir kip it up
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 8:06pm On Mar 21, 2015
princesssusan:
I answered d invitation to A NEW DIRECTION. U‘re doing really great sir kip it up
Thanks, madame! You are welcome aboard.
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 8:13pm On Mar 21, 2015
Update 98% ready
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 8:16pm On Mar 21, 2015
New Direction Kontinyus...
...the women at the grassroots!
The D.A had been working too; they had managed to dig into some shady deals involving the C.A's top hierarchy. While they had been unable to discover much about Chief Mike, whose younger years were spent in the far Northern part of the country, they had been able to unravel Sir Maigida's status as a stinkingly rich billionaire. The man had sponsored the elections of two neigbouring state's governors. This had been based on an agreement to be awarded certain percentages of the entire state government contracts in those states over a period of time. One of them especially, an oil producing state, had been pouring billions into his bank accounts until the elections period when the Governor, now firmly on his feet and seeking reelection for a second term had decided not to renew the agreement. It was also alleged that he had sponsored some other political office holders through fronts, but the investigations couldn't ascertain the exact persons involved in this. They also weren't sure if Chief Mike was also a victim of this arrangement. They concluded this was unlikely since Chief Mike was already a made man before venturing into politics. They wondered the reason behind Sir Maigida's pretentious modest lifestyle, despite the huge resources at his disposal, but inferred that it had to do with a desire to appear closer to the masses. All his children were overseas managing his businesses over there. It was discovered that even the times he claimed to be travelling overseas for medical reasons; he was actually going there for business reasons. Most of his party members, the investigations revealed, had no inkling how rich their chairman was.
They would have desired more, but the available facts were enough. These were collated, spiced up and rolled into the first documentary on the C.A titled: RICHEST POOR MAN; UNMASKING THE KNIGHT!
*********
It was a departure from tradition; for the first time since the commencement of the campaigns, the C.A was thrown on the defensive. They had been so used to taking the initiative that it now appeared unnatural having to defend themselves against D.A darts. The D.A wasn’t totally truthful in the narratives on the documentary; some facts were embellished to make them more significant. They had also used gumption in filling in the blank spaces, thus making the allegations sometimes outlandish and incredible. Some of these the C.A tried to pick on, pointing out that the D.A were only trying to grab at straws, anything, to steady their sinking ship. They alleged that the entire documentary was actually a constellation of lies, packaged with enough falsehood to make any right thinking person cringe in disgust. In a published interview on the Quarterly Herald, Chief Oye wondered why the people would trust such a party with their mandate, a party that could go any length in their bid to gain reelection.
‘Only gullible citizens of our dear state can believe that package of falsehood,’ he said in the interview. ‘The script writer wasn’t even wise enough to realize that some of those allegations are outrightly criminal, and a party with the interest of the citizens at heart would have actually gone to the law instead of rolling the tapes.
‘Our people must be informed that those in the Desperate Alliance are only concerned about one thing – which is power. Their welfare doesn’t even come up at all in their scale of preference. They must be forewarned and ready to vote them out come the Election Day.’
This view was supported by many, with various interviews appearing on several newspapers. Mrs Olatunde even went a step further to say that the D.A’s act was only preemptive of the fact that they knew that similar plans by them were being monitored by the C.A; these, she claimed, would soon be exposed to the public. Neither Sir Maigida nor Chief Mike made any public response to the documentary.
‘Don’t bother responding to those hooligans,’ Sir Maigida told Chief Mike when the latter paid him a visit in his office at the party secretariat, ‘the election will hold in less than two weeks and no amount of lies can rewrite the goodwill we have garnered these past months.’
Chief Mike hoped so. He had lost some weight in the course of the buildup to the election; he had spent billions in the process, rebuilding a new image of himself. He had been forced to donate to courses he didn’t believe in, he had had to start attending church regularly despite his mind always being elsewhere while there, he had left his business to an assistant – giving himself more troubles as he now had to double-check figures to be sure his staff were being faithful to him. He had had to retain the services of Jide and Alamu for much longer than usual; he had even had to smile at them where he would have formerly barked. He had done all of these just for a new direction he wasn’t too sure of. Promises were easy to make, but he was yet to make a blueprint towards achieving them. There were a few ideas, but he wasn’t sure of their workability, not when he wouldn’t be solely in control of the state like it was with his business. He had the House of Assembly to contend with, there was also the efficiency of the various commissioners in question. And a substantial amount of government contracts had to go to certain men who had no worthwhile capacity to boast of!
Though he didn’t voice it, he had found himself believing most parts of the documentary. Wasn’t he made to sign such an agreement as Sir Maigida was being accused of? Wasn’t he convinced to agree to it by Sir Maigida himself? How sure was he that those men weren’t actually figureheads for Sir Maigida? He had expected the chairman to come out clean on his innocence, but the man had rambled about other things before advising him not to be bothered by the documentary. Ezekiel was bothered and he was, too. The young man had conducted a sample opinion poll the previous day, just like he had been doing all along, and had discovered that the documentary was already causing them to lose ground. He didn’t like that; not when the elections were so near.
While the contents of the documentary swayed the opinion of some, a lot more saw it as a vain attempt by a party that had failed in her obligations to the people to shore up some sympathy and secure more votes. They found it unconvincing enough, with some affirming that nothing could stop them from going in the new direction at the polls. Anything, these ones asserted, was better than the Democratic Alliance. They argued that it was another sign of a lack of direction for the D.A to concentrate on Sir Maigida when he wasn’t even a candidate in the election. This was the view held by Jimmy as he drained some bottles at TonyMontana Bar.
'Dem think say we be fool? Which kain film be dat wey gorment cook for us?' The way his speech slurred, one could tell that the alcohol was beginning to have an effect. He was on his third bottle.
'No be film, na documentary,' corrected his friend and drinking partner, Barcanista. Barcanista was still nursing his first bottle.
'No be television dey show am?'
'Yes, but it has been voiced on radio too.'
'As far as television show am, na film, forget English my guy,' Jimmy insisted. Barcanista knew better than to argue with him when he was tipsy.
'Okay,' he said.
'Yes, that film na nonsense stra-te...stra-te...em...strat...'
'Strategy.' Barcanista came to his rescue again.
'Thank you, haha, my guy, if dem like, make dem show wetin dem like, my vote na for the new diresion, haha, my guy...'
'But have you asked yourself what this new direction really is?' He tried to reason with a half-drunk.
'New is the opposite of old, na the diresion wey new I dey vote for, my guy. Nothing fit change am.'
'Na so, my brother,' said a man at the other table. From his bloodshot eyes, Barcanista inferred that he was in a worse state than Jimmy, but his speech wasn't slurred. 'Dem no do anything, yet dem want make we vote for them.'
Taking cue, the man's friend laughed: 'The road to my house done bad for years, motor no dey try near am if e no wan sink. Na new direction sure pass O!'
'Friends, have we really asked ourselves what this new direction is?' Barcanista tried again. 'I like the personality of the man, Chief Mike, but he has been all promises, nothing beyond promises.'
'Promise and fail...?' Called Jimmy.
'Is a sin!' Others chorused.
Barcanista realised that he was greatly outnumbered, and by persons who weren't ready for any form of logical reasoning. He looked at his almost empty bottle, his wristwatch and then at his friend. 'Jimmy, time done reach to dey go house O.'
'Seven done already nack?'
'Dumbhead, it's twenty minutes to nine.'
'And I be wan take just one more bottle O.'
'That's true, you go take am tomorrow.'
Barcanista signalled at the barman, who came to their table. He made sure his friend paid first before paying for his own bottle. Then, getting beside Jimmy, he gently pulled him outside, to his car parked under a tree beside the beer joint. He settled him into the passenger’s seat, closed the door and ran around to get on the driver's seat. After one more glance at his friend who was already beginning to doze off, he started the car and backed into the road. While they both worked as clerks in the Ministry of Works and shared a two bedroom flat, he had bought a car over a year back and was getting married in a few months; all these, while his friend still required loans to scale through to the next salary. Jimmy found great joy in shifting the blame for his condition on any other thing but himself. It could be his low level of academic attainments or his family's low position on the social stratification ladder or the misfortune of not being born in the United States or some witches from his father's house that were bent on destroying his life or some lady friend specially programmed to suck him dry or, in the present case, the incumbent governor.
To be Kontinyud...

1 Like

Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Cybershow(m): 1:52pm On Mar 22, 2015
Ohibenemma:

Abi O! Let's do this together!
Oh Yea We R Gona Move Together.... Am Fully Here......

1 Like

Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Fembleez1(m): 7:33pm On Mar 22, 2015
Following, thanks for the invite!. smiley
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 7:44pm On Mar 22, 2015
Fembleez1:
Following, thanks for the invite!. smiley
It's my pleasure...

1 Like

Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by harjibolar10(m): 7:51pm On Mar 22, 2015
Sir! You are doing the right thing, at the right year, right month, right week, right day and probably the right hour

This is the kind of a story I like to dey read, and here you are, feeding me with it

Chief Maigida, God will see you ooo, this governor should let go of all those shit and focus on how to convince their people to vote for their party once again



Please Oga, whats the name of their state yen naa?




Y9u are doing a great work here ooo
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 9:15pm On Mar 22, 2015
harjibolar10:
Sir! You are doing the right thing, at the right year, right month, right week, right day and probably the right hour

This is the kind of a story I like to dey read, and here you are, feeding me with it

Chief Maigida, God will see you ooo, this governor should let go of all those shit and focus on how to convince their people to vote for their party once again



Please Oga, whats the name of their state yen naa?




Y9u are doing a great work here ooo
Thanks, sir; glad you think this is coming at the right time too.
The state's name? I still dey find am too O! Surprised I never put am for the whole story, so far!
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by m003: 12:22am On Mar 23, 2015
Ohibenemma:
COPIED!
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present
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 9:28am On Mar 23, 2015
m003:

present
You are welcome!
Update coming within the next hour.
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 10:59am On Mar 23, 2015
New Direction Kontinyus...
*********
There were soon rumours flying around that the next documentary would be on Mrs Janet Olatunde. In it, according to the rumours, her activities while in the D.A would be x-rayed and people would get to see her for who she really was - an egoistic, deceptive and corrupt person, who wasn't fit to manage a home, not to talk of an entire state in the capacity of a Deputy Governor. This, it was claimed, was the reason why she was no longer in her husband’s home, and why she used her surname, Olatunde. Her eccentric outbursts were said to be resultant effects of her drug addiction, a vice she was alleged to have gotten into while in the United States. Though a mere rumour, it elicited instant reactions from the C.A. The chairman, Sir Maigida, described the planned documentary as a show of shame, and the last kicks from a dying horse. Professor Imonikhe described the D.A as a party which was yet to discard its irritating habit of victimizing the female folk; he called on all women to reject through their votes a party that planned to humiliate one of them through absolutely baseless contortions, capable of breaking homes and ruining societal peace. These views were reechoed by The Patriotic Voice Newspaper, in an editorial titled: 'THE RULING OPPOSITION"
And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him (ACTS 8:32).
At a time like this, with the people set to go to the polls, it is pertinent to ensure that the right choices are made. But, like the Ethiopian eunuch in the above cull from the bible, how will the masses know the right choice, except they be guided? How will they be able to separate the wheat from the chaff? How will they make the right decisions in the midst of so much falsehood from an alliance of desperate and focus-less individuals?
It is no longer news that, in their desperate and selfishly guided bid to cling unto power, the D.A launched an assault on our collective sensibilities in the form of a poor package of lies they called a documentary. It is no longer news that in their estimation, they thought such a diabolical plan could stop the daily increasing acceptance of the C.A as a worthy alternative. It is refreshing to note that the people, so fed up with the Paul Igbobia's maladministration, are now ready to move in the new direction. It is refreshing to note that they have refused to believe the lie and are determined to dump out the desperate cabal currently in power through their votes.
However, we must remind the people of the fact that these devils will never give up; this is why they have moved their poisonous fangs onto the C.A's deputy governorship candidate, the indefatigable Mrs Janet Olatunde. That, in their belief that the woman's place is in the kitchen, they frustrated her out of their party is not enough; now they must move to ensure that she never attains peace in the C.A which welcomed her with open arms. Is this the kind of party an ambitious woman will support? Would our ladies with the great potentials imbued in them, and who make over half of our total voting population support such a party? A party that believes your entire value starts and ends in the kitchen? The choice is yours.
But, why has the Desperate Alliance adopted such a stance? Why have they made personality attacks their stock-in-trade? Aren't they supposed to be telling the people what THEY HAVE ACHIEVED and what THEY INTEND TO ACHIEVE? Or could it be what we suspect, that they are learning fast to be an opposition party - a terrible one at that? Then, that would be really pitiable, for they are still in power - though temporarily. We encourage them to learn fast, for that status would soon be theirs.
We hail the ruling party...sorry, the ruling opposition.
It was a working method, as the D.A soon discovered. While they weren't sure of the extent of impact made by the documentary, they were satisfied with the mere fact that it was making an impact anyway. The many attempts at rebuttals by the C.A hierarchy and the papers of the documentary's content at the expense of all else was gratifying enough. Now, their focus was more on defending themselves than being always on the attack. The rumour on an upcoming documentary on Mrs Olatunde had been on the suggestion of Dr Magareth Ikpehia; the Governor had been the most surprised when such a suggestion came from her. He had even contracted a team of private detectors to monitor her movements and home, as he had been warned that she would still be in contact with Mrs Olatunde, who was said to be her closest friend in the party. Her suggestion and personal involvement in the circulation of the rumour had truly confirmed to him that in politics, there were no permanent friends or enemies. There was actually no more time for such a documentary; the election was only a few days away. Considering the frenzy the rumour had whipped up, he would have strongly considered such a production. He was yet to confirm the drug addiction angle, and he was still going to; he could imagine the media war and possible social unrest arresting Mrs Olatunde was going to generate, but such wouldn’t move him once the drug use, which was illegal, was confirmed. The D.A was holding its final rally the next day, a rally at which his speech would focus mainly on the contents of the documentary on Sir Maigida. If only they had more time for the documentary on Mrs Olatunde!

To be Kontinyud...

1 Like

Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by TiffanyJ(f): 6:40pm On Mar 23, 2015
Thanks for inviting me and I'm so sorry i came late. Will definately read your work
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by harjibolar10(m): 7:21pm On Mar 23, 2015
Oga contunu tha good work oo

Thou I see them postponing the election, still yet ah go follow am till the end




Thanks for the update
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 7:34pm On Mar 23, 2015
TiffanyJ:
Thanks for inviting me and I'm so sorry i came late. Will definately read your work
Better late than never. You are welcome. grin

1 Like

Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 7:36pm On Mar 23, 2015
harjibolar10:
Oga contunu tha good work oo

Thou I see them postponing the election, still yet ah go follow am till the end


Thanks for the update
Thanks for reading...Why you Kom dey predikt na? You be Newspaper or Prophet?
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by harjibolar10(m): 7:50pm On Mar 23, 2015
Ohibenemma:

Thanks for reading...Why you Kom dey predikt na? You be Newspaper or Prophet?
Ah kuku no be any of the afformentioned... Don't mind me shaa

I was just carried away by this your tory ni Jaree


Oya, drop me an update ooo
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 8:47pm On Mar 23, 2015
harjibolar10:

Ah kuku no be any of the afformentioned... Don't mind me shaa

I was just carried away by this your tory ni Jaree


Oya, drop me an update ooo
LOL! Update ready, but my BB's battery is down. That should be till tomorrow.
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 2:47pm On Mar 24, 2015
Update here and now...
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 2:52pm On Mar 24, 2015
New Direction Kontinyus...
*********
The elections were only two days away; Chief Mike was in his campaign office flanked by Mrs Olatunde and Ezekiel. Sir Maigida and some executives of the party had just left. They had stopped over at his campaign office while returning from their last rally. Sir Maigida and the other executives were going to the party secretariat where they would be expecting Chief Mike and Mrs Olatunde later.
Chief Mike felt spent. In the heat of the denials associated with the documentary on Sir Maigida and the rumoured one on Mrs Olatunde, he had had to meet with the Elite Market Women’s Association, the Entrepreneurial Group, Fashion Designer’s Association and some other groups whose names he couldn’t even remember. He had felt like one being remote-controlled as they led him from venue to venue. He had made many promises, some of which he would forget as soon as he left a venue for another. He had noticed Mrs Olatunde’s vigour all the way and had wondered if the rumour about her use of drugs wasn’t true after all. Florence would have been tired for long already. His wife had made it clear severally that she couldn’t be going around with him on his campaign rallies and had only attended one so far. It wasn’t same with Mrs Olatunde, she would want to be at every rally and could remain standing for as long as was required. She could talk at length whenever presented with the opportunity, sometimes doing so until she was reminded of the time. He couldn’t be too sure she wasn’t guilty of the use of narcotics.
‘I can assure you that we will still win this election, sir,’ Ezekiel said in reply to a question. ‘We may have lost some ground most recently due to that documentary, but I don’t think there’s much cause for alarm.’
‘That had better been the case; I think I’ve been sensing some dissatisfaction from the crowd recently…’
‘I sensed it, too,’ Mrs Olatunde chipped in, ignoring the glare from Chief Mike who wasn’t pleased to have been interrupted, ‘that was why I disallowed that man in a red shirt from asking a question. I suspected that he was planted there by the D.A.’
‘Ezekiel?’ Chief Mike said, sounding like he never heard her. Mrs Olatunde pouted and looked away.
Ezekiel suppressed a grin. ‘That’s true, sir; and that has been because of the documentary on Sir Maigida. But the documentary was wrongly timed; many voters, especially in the rural areas, are yet to hear about it and there is no likelihood of them doing so before the election. Things could have been a lot more difficult had such a documentary emerged earlier.’
Ezekiel’s words gladdened his heart. They also meant that there would be no opportunity for the D.A to inflict further damage. Chief Mike eyed Mrs Olatunde, he knew she disliked the manner he had brushed her aside, but she also had to know that he disliked being interrupted when talking. The election was only two days away; he felt a pump of adrenaline as he thought about this. Only a few hours stood between him and a probable change in status. His Excellency!
They were at the party secretariat an hour later, with Sir Maigida pointing at some bales of customized wrappers, bags of rice and gallons of groundnut oil, meant for distribution same night when the Publicity Secretary of the party ran into the hall, halting breathlessly before Sir Maigida.
‘What’s the matter with you?’ Sir Maigida asked. Chief Mike was already in the rear of the group, looking around for possible escape routes should the secretariat be under attack. Sir Maigida was under no such fear, he was sure of the efficacy of his charms.

*
*
*
To be Kontinyud...

1 Like

Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by Ohibenemma(m): 3:01pm On Mar 24, 2015
Now, what do you think has happened? Your replies, please. Update later tonight...
Re: New Direction! - A Short Story. by princesssusan(f): 6:38pm On Mar 24, 2015
I guess diariss fire on da mountain

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