By Habeeb Olokooba
My first trip from Ilorin, Kwara State to the Seat of Caliphate wasn’t that promising.
Though I didn’t know the length of where we were traveling, we spent the minimum of twelve hours in the vehicle. What I learned to be one of the fastest trips of that range. “if it’s not fast nko? We would have arrived the next day ba?” I had thought.
Well, my name? Let’s leave that for another day. Try and learn from the humorous tale I am about to air.
I’m not from a rich family but we ain’t suffering either. Though the error I regretted making as a jambito, remains the fact that I traveled down from Ilorin without buying foodstuffs. I was fed with the illusion of getting cheap food in Sokoto.
I left my hometown with the total sum of N50k, a token given by my dad to cater for my foodstuffs.
Fast forward to the main day. I made friends though from other departments, we still get along at the Jubril Aminu hostel where we all reside. We all were still fresh, like we were all still new to the environment of UDUS.
Ade (not real name) splashed the news that he knew where iPhone X can be purchased as low as 120k. Me with my secondary school innocence, vehemently rejected this and termed it “Impossible.”
“Well I don’t have to argue with you on this, the wise ones say, seeing is believing,” Ayo said to me.
“If only you will do the honor of following me to Hajia Halima market, maybe by then you will believe the relevancy of my words.”
I replied, “It’s a big lie, I will board Keke (tricycle) now and we will all see.”
In a few minutes, not less than eight freshers were in the tricycle I boarded with my own money. In the next thirty minutes we were at the Hajia Halima market. Where a variety of phones are displayed. I must confess, but I came across phones few of which I knew existed and many that I’ve never seen in my life.
So we went to price the phone we all came for, and was shocked to realize gadgets were actually cheaper in Sokoto.
Well that’s not even my story. I’m talking of the event that made ‘Sapa’ my best friend for a very long time. I sighted the iphone 6 and inquired about the price, but my brain couldn’t take it when the vendor said it was just 34k. I immediately made a transfer of the funds without even negotiations, I couldn’t believe my ears, so I bought the phone out of my foodstuffs money which was supposed to sustain me for at least six months.
But I spent the money out of the nervousness I couldn’t withstand. I couldn’t believe I would just have an iphone just like that.
For me then, it was a dream come through but my friends aren’t seeing what I saw, or maybe I was too blind to reason from their own view.
Before I realized I erred, my friends kept eating behind my back without calling me. All the change I had left couldn’t afford more than just two rolls of ‘coco pops’ and a few mudus of garri which couldn’t last me for more than a week if I was to survive by it everyday.
To cut the story short, I survived the tough times, but it was never an easy task. I guessed that was the price for being foolishly naive. Learn from mine. Peace out.
Note: The identity of the student in question is not revealed for fear of pointing fingers at him.
Share your jambito story with Habeeb Olokooba
Phone number: 08083542618
Mail: olokoobahabeeb@gmail.com