₦airaland Forum

This her benevolence was out of place. I decided that the way to repay her would be to continue to be dedicated and faithful to my job.


In November, I was on my routine visit to Ms. Morgan’s store at Agege when I saw a woman that looked like Madam Becky coming out. She immediately stopped and removed her sun glasses. She was the one alright.

“Is this not Tayo I’m seeing?” she said.

“Good afternoon, madam. Yes, it’s me. It’s nice to see you again.”

To my surprise, she rushed at me and gave me a bear hug.

“Oh, I’m so happy to see you,” she gushed. “I misplaced my phone and lost all the numbers on my contact. That was after I left the residence at Ogba. I’m really happy to see you again.”

“I’m happy to see you too, madam,” I said, although I doubted if that was really true.

“Oh my God.” She hugged me again. One would have thought she was the chummy aunt I had not seen for a very long time or something. She quickly brought her phone.

“Give me your number, my dear. Give me your number.”

I gave her the number and she flashed my phone. Surprisingly, I still had her number stored on my sim.

“Alright, Tayo,” she went on zealously. “I will be giving you a call. I will definitely do so.”

Phew, what a woman, I said to myself after she had gone. The same woman who said she never wanted to see me about four years ago was the one ostentatiously hugging me.

Later at home, I decided to fry the frozen chicken I had bought in the store. I could cook well and, many times, I cooked my own food at home.

I was still frying the chicken when my phone rang. It was from Mr. Yemi Bello, one of the friends I had made in Abuja. Yemi too worked for Mrs. Abdulahi.

We exchanged normal greetings. “Na wa o, is it that you’re very busy with your new work. Is that why I’ve not seen you, or heard from you?”

I chuckled. “I’m sorry, but you know life in Lagos could be hectic.”

“Lagos? Who’s talking about Lagos?”

‘But, I’m in Lagos. Since June, I’ve relocated to Lagos.”

“Lagos? Are you not working for the Honourable Speaker?”

“You’re mixing it up. I only worked in the office of Mrs. Abdulahi, the former deputy speaker.”

“God! Are you not working as media personnel to the Speaker?”

“No. I’m in Lagos working in the private sector.”

“Gosh! Why didn’t you accept the Speaker’s offer?”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know about any offer.”

Sorry, madam.
Such is life.

Forget him, forget the matter and move on with your life.

One hopes this regime's policies will not finish all of us in this country.

It has been from one anti people policy to another.

It's the Nigerian mentality. They don't want to let go of what they should let go.

It's unfortunate.

One hopes the cabinet reshuffle will bring about positive things.

So far, the cabinet has achieved little or nothing.

How sensible is this?

The one that gets pregnant is arrested
But the one that impregnates goes free.

I ask again; how sensible is this?

The woman didn't do well.

If you don't want to marry the man again, then return his money.

With all due respect, you are wrong sir.


Must the office of the First Lady be opened?

If you want to get a coordinator, must it be your daughter?

Why are Nigerians so self-centred like this?

In Donald Trump's voice:

Et tu te Melania!

This must be a joke.

First lady is for the wife of the President or Governor.

There's no way the title is bestowed on a daughter.

Or, is he going to marry his daughter?

Interesting.


I don't even know who is more of a liar between the two of them.

It's like a kettle calling pot black.

How young girls get pregnant on purpose, abort to look sexy

In a disturbing trend that has swept through certain social circles, some women are resorting to a shocking method to achieve the coveted “perfect” body. Pregnancy, once a sacred journey toward motherhood, is being manipulated for vanity—used to gain weight in all the “right” places before being terminated after five months. This exposé by GODFREY GEORGE uncovers the chilling lengths to which some go for the sake of appearance, delving into the pressures of beauty, societal obsession with body image, and the haunting consequences of this dark, open secret

Silence. Longer silence, followed by shock. Dr Sina Ajidahun, a physician, looked utterly thunderstruck.

“You mean young ladies would get pregnant and abort the pregnancy just so they can put on weight? This is madness!” he blurted out in dismay.

Promising our correspondent that he would conduct his own findings, Saturday PUNCH embarked on a deeper investigation to uncover the truth behind this shocking claim.

After hours of scouring microblogging sites, X (formerly Twitter) and TikTok, several leads began to surface.

These led our correspondent to a quiet town in Delta State, Ukwuani, where many respondents confirmed that the trend was indeed rampant.

“This is no news at all. As far back as 2009, when I was in SS2, I heard of this method for gaining weight. We even had a clique in every class set, which would help you with all sorts of tricks on your weight gain journey,” shared a slightly slender woman who gave her name only as Ada.

“Please, don’t capture me in your camera,” she begged, guiding our correspondent, who had traveled down to her hometown on this knowledge-seeking mission. “People know me here. If word gets out, I may be in trouble,” she added, nervously waving at an older woman frying garri nearby.



Banging body madness

There has been a growing craze in recent times for women to sculpt their bodies into a specific ideal, leading many to resort to extreme and often dangerous measures.

From undergoing deadly body reconstruction surgeries, mostly performed by quacks, to consuming dubious ointments and concoctions purported to increase hips, buttocks, and breasts overnight, the lengths some women go to achieve the ‘ideal body’ are staggering.

Yet, perhaps the most bizarre of these methods is the pregnancy-for-weight-gain strategy.


Among the most heartbreaking was the case of a 19-year-old girl from Badagry, who was schooling in Benin Republic and had undergone four abortions just to look plump.

“What she told us when her parents brought her was that she had only had four abortions, but from our assessment, it was likely more. She said it was peer pressure, explaining that everyone was doing it, and her boyfriend forced her into it if she didn’t want the relationship to end,” the physician revealed.

After several attempts to stop the bleeding failed, and with sepsis already setting in, her family rushed her to another private clinic, where she eventually died.

“The tragic part was, yes, her breasts were fuller, but by the time she left this hospital, she had become very thin and ‘unappealing’ to the eyes,” the doctor added with a mix of sadness and frustration.

Another distressing case was that of a single mother who nearly lost her life after undergoing two abortions in five months.

Her elder sister, noticing that something was wrong, brought her to the hospital in time to save her life. When asked why she had done it, the young woman explained that her friends had tried it, and it had worked for them, and they convinced her that the effects would become permanent after the third attempt.


“That’s three abortions in one year! That is absolute insanity!” exclaimed the doctor, her voice thick with anger as she described the dangers of undertaking such a risky and dangerous procedure just to gain weight.


Source: https://punchng.com/how-young-girls-get-pregnant-on-purpose-abort-to-look-sexy/

She sat opposite me. “Let me go straight to the point. I have been blessed tremendously in the last months since you were in charge of my business; and even in the last few years. In appreciation, I’ve made a buffet and invited you over.”

I smiled radiantly. “I feel honoured, madam.”

“The honour is mine.” She stood up. “Come on, let’s move to the dining-table.”

We moved to the designated place. It was indeed a buffet. I could choose between jolof rice fried rice and pounded yam. There was also ‘efo riro’ and ‘egusi’ soup.

I indeed enjoyed the meal. We returned to the seats in the sitting-room. After that, she asked the maid to bring the red wine.

She toasted and we drank. Much as I tried not to stare at her beautiful legs, I found it difficult.

“Maria!” she called. The house maid answered and came to the sitting-room.”

“There’s a folder on the bed in my bedroom upstairs. Bring it.”

“Yes, Mummy.”

After the maid had handed the folder to her, Ms. Morgan opened it and brought out some papers. “I have some documents here that I want you to have,” she said stretching her hands towards me.

I got the documents from her and quickly went through. It stated that I had the status of a partner in her business. It also stated that I had a stake of a cumulative ten % interest in all the profits she made from her business.
I was pleasantly surprised, to say the least. Mentally, I knew that would translate into several millions of naira.

“Madam, this is too much,” I said.

“It’s okay, Tayo. You deserve it.”

I stood up to give her a deep bow.

She smiled. “Oh, come on, Tayo. You deserve more that.”

“You’ve always been so benevolent to me,” I said. “I pray the almighty Lord will reward you abundantly.”

“Amen! And the almighty Lord will reward you too.”

In my heart, I really appreciated her goodness. There was no doubt that Ms. Modupe Grace Morgan was God-sent to me.

I stayed for several more minutes as we took the wine and chatted. I observed that there was something about the way she looked at me. I must be fantasizing. How could I imagine that Ms. Morgan was giving me a loving look?

No, it was not lustful. Neither was it coquettish, like Madam Becky’s case. I could not really place it, but that was the way Busola was looking at me before I made overtures to her.

In any case, it was too early for me to take a lover. I lost Busola just about ten months ago. I must stay off any love affair. That day, as I drove back home, I kept thinking about Ms. Morgan. This her benevolence was out of place. I decided that the way to repay her would be to continue to be dedicated and faithful to my job.

The naira is weak because there is weak effort to make it strong. Efforts so far have only brought hardship.

The hardship is as a result of insensitivity of the government to the plight of the masses.

Government is inconsiderate. This is unfortunate. However, it is not too late for the government to rethink some of its policies.

"Let me come around to your place, Ma," I quickly said.

"No, don't worry. I'm already on my way there."

She had my address but had never visited my house before. Several minutes later, she drove inside the compound. I left my flat to quickly go downstairs to welcome her. Then we walked up to my flat.

"It's a nice place," she said as she briefly surveyed the area.

"Thank you, ma'am.

I ushered her into the sitting room and asked her the drinks I could offer her.

"No, thank you," she declined. "I just wanted to know your place," she declared.

"It's a honour to have you here. You're welcome."

We talked about this and that for some minutes.

"Aren't lonely? You're living here all alone? Don't you feel lonely?"

I grinned. "By August, one of my cousins is coming around for holiday. At least I will have company for a while."

"But the holiday will be over sooner than later, all your lonely days will continue. Anyway, the place I offered you is still there, when you change your mind."

She got to her feet. "Let me be on my way. Before I go, I have a little something for you."

She handed a big brown envelope to me. "That contains documents and the key of a Honda Civic car I'm giving to you. The car is in my residenceheart. Find time to come around to take it."

I was pleasantly surprised at this. "Thank you so much madam. I really appreciate it." She was indeed always generous to me and I was always appreciative.



Every month, I sent money to my mother-in-law to take care of my children. I realized that I was not actually spending much on myself and had a lot of money to safe.

I remained the private person I had always been. I neither went to club nor socialize. I neither drank nor smoke. Even now that I was back to being single, I made running after ladies an anathema.

About three months after I came back to Lagos, on a Saturday morning, Ms. Morgan gave me a call.

“Can you come around to my residence by five p.m?” she asked.

“That will be no problem, madam.”

She had bought a duplex in Ilupeju where she now stayed. I got to her residence by ten minutes to the time. It was not unusual for her to ask me to come to her house, so I didn’t think much of it.

The moment I stepped inside her house, I knew there was something different about the visit. As the maid motioned me to sit and wait for her in the large sitting-room downstairs, the aroma of food hit my noise. The smell was coming from the dining section of the large sitting-room. Ms. Morgan soon came to join me.

That was the first day I would see her in bum shorts and spaghetti top. The image of Lawyer Becky came to my mind.

“Good evening, madam.”

“Good evening, Tayo. How’s everything?”

“Fine. Everything is going well.”

She sat opposite me. “Let me go straight to the point. I have been blessed tremendously in the last months since you were in charge of my business; and even in the last few years. In appreciation, I’ve made a buffet and invited you over.”

Always have a backup plan. Let there be options or alternatives to the plan. If there is Plan A, there must be Plan B.

Do not put all your eggs in one basket. It is profitable to be wise.

These two men should behave themselves.

It is unwise for the two of them to engage in public altercations.

It is a shame.

In 500 years' time, people will be saying the same thing.

Real men of God don't need bodguards.

It is bodyguards that need men of God.

Intimate gadgets are unnecessary.

Humans should do without them.

Human history has always been about the powerful benefitting at the expense of the less powerful. The powerful have always resisted sharing their power and its benefits. Certainly their resistance will continue to be the main obstacle to achieving universal safety, dignity and fairness. However, throughout history, when the less powerful have demanded more power from the powerful, the powerful have gradually conceded it; so we are optimistic.

We are optimistic also because there is something in human nature that compels most of us to get up every day and do the best we can for our families, for our group, and for ourselves. Responding to that impulse day-in and day-out through history has resulted in slow but steady improvement to the human condition. That process should continue to serve us well going forward.

In life, the permanent thing is change. Tough situation is not permanent. As our people say, No condition is permanent.

Things will change for good. Things must change for good. Cheer up.

Life is full of challenges. Life is whimsical. No one is insulated. Even the rich cry.

One must not give up. One must rise, just as the sun must rise. It is better to see life as a half-filled bottle than half-empty vessel.

The sun must rise again.

Vision

Vision is important all along. This is mind projection of what is desired to be achieved.

Work towards realizing your vision. However, your vision should not be utopian. Do not build castle in the air. Be as realistic as possible.