FRAUDSTER I was with her when her phone rang, and as a perfect gossiper I refused to allow her privacy in receiving the call. She then put the call on loudspeaker, that I may even hear the conversation clearly. I got confused, but before I could think deep of what could be happening, the voice continued. “There was a ghastly multiple vehicular accidents along the Lagos/Ibadan Expressway, and we’ve rushed the survivors to the nearest hospital.” She burst into tears, chanting “My god, oh my god…,” but while she continued in her crying exercise, the voice in an undisturbed tone continued its speech. “On checking the phone of one of the survivors, I saw your name and since she had no call credit I decided to call you with my own number. Kindly send airtime worth one thousand and five hundred naira to me so that my superior can give details of the victim and the hospital location.” Shaking like a vibrator, she replied in her teary voice “I will send it in few minutes, may God bless you sir; I hope the fellow is in good condition?” “Oh he is stable, but the hospital demands that we deposit a certain amount of money before care can commence. Please send the airtime so that you will be able to speak to my superior fast.” And the call ended. She started dressing her nakedness. Drawing her bag to her side she removed two thousand naira and was ready to leave me. So I asked her: “do you have anybody who travelled”? She flared up, saying “F.M., you are so callous; the officer said that the victim has my number on his phone contact, how am I to know who exactly travelled? Please let me get the airtime so that I can know what’s really happening.” Now angry myself at the situation, I told her to call the officer with my own number so that she could get the necessary information. At first she didn’t reason with me, but after further persuasion and explanation she accepted my offer. She took my phone, dialed the number which had called her just a couple of minutes earlier and the same man picked it; though he couldn’t figure who was calling him. She introduced herself again, and the Officer quickly responded that she should send the airtime to get details. Something is fishy here I thought, so I took the phone from her and spoke with the ‘Officer’. “Hello sir, we couldn’t get airtime. Please kindly give your phone to your superior so that he can give us the necessary details”; I requested. He refused to put our call to his superior, insisting that we should send the airtime, even if it would just be seven hundred and fifty naira worth. I then told him that he was a fraud, and that he will surely die of a fatal road accident within three days! He responded that I am crazy, and disconnected the call. It was now established that it had been a fraudster at work. She was panting heavily, she said she had been scared initially and lamented: “Hmmm. Fraudsters are now using anything and any means to dupe people”. I didn’t care about the incident anymore, for it was a fun spoiler; so I drew her to myself that we could continue from where we stopped. She said she was tired, I thought: she can’t be tired now…. Who is ‘she’ self? You are asking me. Forget it. Listen to the message and not the messenger. Get the act, not the actor. Culled from my book: Moving Thoughts
Posted on: Sat, 03 Jan 2015 14:57:18 +0000
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