WHAT THE NANNY GOAT TOLD HER KIDS (CHAPTER 6)

 

CHAPTER 6

 

‘MAMA BEN,’ MR RANSOM HAD STARTED, wondering how he would frame his case properly, ‘please, your sister, Madam Cash …’

‘Which sister?’ the woman swiftly had responded. ‘Ah, in this market I have no sister o. My brother, sister, father and mother is my money. With my money, I pay for my transport from home and also to go back. With my money, I buy my market.’

She had handed Mr Ransom a chunk of crisp notes for the sacks of produce she got from him. Done counting and carefully putting it in the big pocket of his frayed jumper and seeing the stout woman struggling to get up from the bench, he had attempted saying something: ‘Please, don’t go yet. Is Madam Cash sick or she’s not in the business again?’

‘I’m buying and paying you people and you’re still asking of Madam Cash? I hope she didn’t give you all kopnomi to eat?’

That got Mr Ransom laughing out loud though his lips were heavy to mention to the woman here that her former partner, Madam Cash, had actually owed him and others and he was seeking ways on how they could get their money back but he decided to plod on with his chat. ‘It’s not about her buying things from us.’

‘It’s about what?’ Mama Ben asked with a bland face that made Mr Ransom wonder if she had not heard anything about the debts.

‘The last time she came …’

Mama Ben quickly interrupted the Fufu Sellers Union leader. ‘She owed you too?’ she had curiously asked.

Mr Ransom nodded in the affirmative.

‘It’s good for you all, greedy people,’ Mama Ben said, obviously gloating. ‘You people were hiding your fufu from me and keeping it for the biggest bidder in town. I’d come and give you money for what I’d go sell and make a little profit. But you’d refuse to sell and keep it for someone who’d promise to pay a bigger price but carry off your fufu on credit. I was wondering in which market she was selling her own.’ Mama Ben gave a long throaty laugh to scorn all the greedy sellers of cassava flour.

‘Please, Mama Ben. Don’t look at how long the snake is and set fire to it. Please, help us.’

‘Oh, Oga Ransom. It’s not only you who can use the proverb o. Me too can. It’s changing conditions in life that make the crayfish bend. Please, don’t expect me to forget so soon all Madam Cash and you people did to me last year.’

Mr Ransom quickly realized he could be fighting a losing battle with the appearance Mama Ben’s face had suddenly taken. He looked at the frontage and saw the suppliers were listening and peeping at them as it was their arrangement that Mr Ransom approached Mama Ben (who they said knew Madam Cash well) to help ascertain her true situation and probable way of getting their money back. Mr Ransom quickly stood up and hollered the names of the fufu suppliers within earshot to come.

As the first fellow rushed to meet them, he quickly ordered all the others to be immediately informed to meet him.

As they trooped in with the astonished Mama Ben just gazing at them; Mr Ransom still standing, gestured wildly, saying: ‘Anyhow you can – crawl, cry or rub her shins – please, start doing it so we can all beg Mama Ben to forgive us and help inform us of how we could get across to Madam Cash to get our money back.’ They all smiled initially at Mr Ransom’s antics but he quickly added: ‘This is not a laughing matter. Madam Ben is angry and accusing us of selling to Madam Cash while denying her our fufu last year. So please, you better start right away begging her.’

‘But do I lie? Everyone here last year was avoiding me like I was some rotten fufu. So if your sweet-smelling rose is now hurting you, it’s all good for you. What business has Mama Ben with that?’

They all screamed and started begging seriously.

‘When you sold your fufu in your bedrooms to Madam Cash so Mama Ben would starve and die of hunger, was I there to guarantee if she didn’t pay, I’d pay?’

‘No,’ in unison they sadly replied.

‘Did I say if she runs, I’d help take you to her house?’

‘No,’ they replied again.

‘Then you people are disturbing me o. Wait for Madam Cash. When she comes, whenever she’d come, all of you would get your money from her.’

The pleadings became overwhelming and Mama Ben not too long softened but told them she would need to get her facts right before guiding them on how to follow up.

It was almost a month before Mama Ben confidentially informed Mr Ransom that the defaulting buyer was still in business but was buying from a new and distant location. She told him the day, time and attitude they would take to recover their money from her.

 

*

 

Mr Ransom along with two other union leaders, after a meeting of the leaders and members of the union in his compound, took it upon themselves to travel down to where they were told they would apprehend Madam Cash. Perempe, who had planned to follow, was begged by concerned members (and almost everyone was) to stay back as he felt really aggrieved over Madam Cash’s conduct and everyone thought if the two met face to face, the situation could turn explosive which would certainly anger Perempe to do his worst. Mr Ransom clearly put the burden of recovering Perempe’s debt on his own head and promised that he would do all that was necessary to collect everyone’s debt except he did not just see the woman with his two eyes. With that concession, Perempe gave his blessings to the Fufu Union debt recovery team.

All agreed to contribute parts of their money to offset the fares of those travelling and acting as their representatives. Before the close of the meeting that day, intensive prayer was offered for a safe journey and the total success of the team in getting from the runaway trader the different sums they were owed.

When they returned in the evening of the next day from the mission, Grace watched everyone coming into the compound from the corner of her eye, pretending to be busy chewing the cud.

The loudmouthed Mr Ransom was bragging, chewing bitter kola and sipping the local gin, popularly called akaikai.

‘When we jumped out of the bus, Madam Cash was shocked to see us. We bounced towards her and I shouted at the top of my voice, “So woman for our good, you decided to treat us badly like this? Today, you must give us our money. You thought we won’t know where you’ve run to? Don’t you know it’s food people would hide from you but not words? You have finished running and we are now catching you. Today, today, today; you must give us all our money!”’

The union members, who sat down or stood where they could see and hear their leader speak, were agog.

Mr Ransom went on: ‘I didn’t stop. I told her, “You have traded long enough with our money – everybody here and back home wants their money!” Everyone around, including her driver, just stared at us. She thought of how the ground would open and swallow her up. But I was getting ready to embarrass her more. The people around quickly surrounded us and asked what was the matter. I told them since she had brought her basket of shame to the open, I’d just join her and throw in more dirt.’

Grace saw excitement bursting through the seams of the members’ faces. But because they were not sure if everyone’s money had been collected, they hung with trepidation like a groom with his bladders bursting right at the start of the priest’s benediction.

Mr Ransom sipped from one of the free cups and put it back on the stool so others could have their turns, cleared his throat and resumed his tale. ‘When Madam Cash saw our eyes were really red and we were bent to get every kobo she owed us, she started pleading for us to understand. I told her we would understand only if she just paid us our money. We told her we were not interested in any police case if she just complied with our simple demand.

‘If she thought the stream was just playing with the crab, I brought the list of those she owed and the total figure she must cough up or else, I showed her the two hefty men with me, that we would seize her goods. I started asking for the youth president and the road to the palace of the clan head. I also threatened if our time was wasted, we’d send someone to call the police.

‘She begged but seeing we were not changing our stance, the cash with her she gave to us and begged she’d come down here to pay off what was remaining.

‘I quickly took what she gave, pocketed it well deep in my shorts, belted my trousers again and started dragging her to find any way she could give us what remained.

‘I made it clear we had no interest to revisit her or the village and there was no assurance the people down here even like her again.

‘The youth president was informed. He came and took us to his place where Madam Cash realizing the pond was darker than the river, called her husband on the phone who arrived with the exact sum that offset all she owed. We both bought drinks for the youth president but I’ve returned intact with all your cash.’

A rousing ovation welcomed Mr Ransom and his aides back.

After expenses incurred were accounted for and deducted as agreed by those that were owed, Mr Ransom shared the remainder with the respective owners.

Perempe was so pleased and impressed that he bought a big bottle of akaikai, more bitter kola and kola nuts for everyone to partake in. His parting words from the Ransoms’ compound that evening, the cocks crowing and the goats bleating, were: ‘I thank Mr Ransom who prevailed on me not to again soil my hands. You’re a worthy and capable leader of the Fufu Union. Thank you, sir!’

Everyone clapped heartily, went around embracing one another and then gradually retraced their steps to their different homes.