The Day I Raced With The Army In Bariga
According to the army, “who no go, nor go know”.
The evening sun was shining like it will be its last time on this planet. That was even the least of my worries as a new person in Lagos trying to familiarize myself with the environment. As I walked round Bariga, you won’t believe what I went through that fateful day.
Before I got lost, let me formally introduce myself. My name is UP BLUES not CHELSEA BLUES, from Ogbe Nkpulaku in Ogbole Ogume, Delta State. I am 20years of age and the last born of family of 10, plus father and mother making up a football team.
Growing up in this kind of family in a village, one would not need a prophet to tell one that things were difficult for us. I remember vividly a day before I travelled to Lagos. When my Mum cooked rice and we all have to eat from the same plate. If I have a better name to call it, I would have called it “FIGHT TO EAT” because with our calculation we all knew that the food was not going to be enough. That was how we were living. Those who lived in the village will know better. But being the last born, I enjoyed every moment of staying with my parents until the day my parents decided that I will be going to Lagos with my uncle to stay with him. “HOUSE BOY IN THE MAKING”.
The journey day to Lagos, a day I will never forget in hurry. It was on Saturday May 6th, 2014, around 4: 30am. I was surprised I have virtually finished preparing for the journey an unknown if it was an act of excitement or being punctual. Around 6: 30am I was already in the park with uncle Uche.
Now I remember why I woke up so early. My uncle told me, he would not want to miss the first bus, that if he misses the first bus because of me, he will not take me to Lagos again. Who does not want to go to Lagos? Knowing full well, that I didn’t want to miss the chance of going to Lagos, that prompted me to get ready so early.
As we journeyed along Ibadan-Lagos express way, an accident occurred; I will never forget that accident that I saw with my two eyes. That accident that we could have saved lives… but didn’t. That accident that occurred years ago but it’s still in my memory as if it was yesterday. A wife that had three children, a six year old boy, a two year old girl and an eight month’s old boy, full of lives and prospect. They went to pick their father in the airport, who had recently returned from a business trip. He got picked and was heading home. On the way home… that’s when the tragedy happened.
They were driving on the freeway, everything was fine and the family was happy, one need not sing, if you are happy and you know… to see that they are happy, until they had to turn in a curve… There was a truck going on high speed like Dangote truck drivers, if you have passed those Aboki drivers you would know better. Not only that, the driver was drunk and at that moment he turned the curve at a high speed and landed on top of the family’s car. This is why I love USA because over there the police always smell driver’s mouth to know if he was drunk. Ask Wayne Rooney what happened to has drivers license. The mother didn’t have a seat belt so when the truck hit them; she flew through the window and landed miles away. What happened to the husband and children? They got stocked inside the car. They were alive and asking for help. We stopped our car and about to come out to help. You won’t believe what happened to our car, all of a sudden our car doors refused to open. I managed to break a part of the mirror in my side and jumped out with so much bruises on my body and the most challenging of it was that, the rest of the people in the car were as fat as a cow. I want to help the children and the six year old boy saw me, he said I should grab him. He extended his small arms for me to grab. I held his hand and I tried to tug him out, little did I know that he was stuck to his body chair, I could not get them out.
The father was telling me in a dying man’s voice to get his children out, first before him. My nerves were at no end. I was trying, I really was, but with the kids crying and the man mumbling, I couldn’t focus at anything. The kids and the man had survived the accident but were trapped inside the car. The only question running on my mind was how to help them out. I don’t know how it hadn’t occurred to me to unbuckle the body seat but I was too busy trying to get them out, that I guess, it had not just come to mind.
In my confused state, I looked back towards our car to know the state of things, it was then that the car doors got opened and they got out with speed of light to assist me.
Suddenly, the tires got burst making me jump and let go off the kids. I had to jump a bit away from the whole car. I was about to go back to unbuckle the seat belts to get the kids out, but that was when the car exploded. It went up in flames with the family in there alive. The man screamed for help and the kids cried out in pain. I had to see how they were being burnt alive. I heard their scream; it was a terrible sight. A sight and memory I will never forget.
What happened to the mother? She survived with a lot of injuries, broken ribs, a broken leg and arm and a concussion and seeing that the family got burnt she said like our Lord Jesus Christ, “it is finished” and she gave up the ghost. In midst of this, the drunken truck driver ran away after committing such a wicked act on a family. That was when I remembered our ex-first lady’s saying “there is God”. I witnessed everything and it will never be forgotten in hurry.
That was what I saw on my way to Lagos, fast track to that fateful day, the evening that the sun was shining like it will be its last time on this planet. I was strolling round Bariga Street to familiarize myself with the environment, forgetting that this is Lagos that does not accept all things like the village. You don’t urinate anyhow, you don’t break traffic light, you don’t cross the road close to an overhead bridge e. t. c and that of putting on anything that have resemblance with army uniform and this is where my problem started
I was putting on an army singlet which is popularly known as camouflage. When a hilux of soldiers passed me and stopped in the front, some of them came down and were coming towards me with a mixed feeling on their face. Whether to make me feel they were not coming to hurt me or not, it’s only God that knows. As they approached, one of them brought his hand inform of handshake as if we were friends. That was when it doned on me that I was in trouble. Having gotten that signal, I withdrew my hand and took off and they chased me as if I was one of the Boko Haram boys.
The chase was very hot, that I started feeling my heart was about to fall out but I dared not stop even when I saw my uncle I passed him because, like the comedian Goddon’s would say “No man goeth to war and entangle himself with the thing of the world. ” Halleluiah Amen. As we ran round Bariga, people gathered and watched the way we ran live race show; one need to see me that day. I even heard some people praying for me fervently so that I will not be caught; if not sorry would be my second name. We ran round for more than three hours until I ran into a wedding party. Trust Yoruba people with attendance to party, the party was so full even the invitee could not see the couples. That was the day I knew I could win Usain Bolt if I competed with him, trust me.
That was how I entered the multitude disobeying the Bible verse that says “don’t join the multitude”. That was how I ended the race with the army officers. Thank God I started the race and finished the race without being caught. If not who would have reported my story?
