I don't know who used send me message sometimes, I just know that I used carry my big head inside matters wey no suppose concern me sometimes. Now, how I take become Corper Liason Officer, I still dey try calculate am. But first, make we rewind...
It all started on a sunny Thursday morning, wey sun tear my head, and I was on my own, you know, pacing around and smiling like a mumu. Everybody don sabi me as that guy wey dey everly follow hin babe talk from morning till morning. Na so this fellow comrade, the Corper Liason Officer of my PPA (place of primary assignment) at that time walked up to me and said...
"Olujay, hwfa you na. I don dey shout your name since morning, you dey smile like wetin I no know. Na you go be the new CLO."
"Hwfa, babe, let me call you back abeg." So I could listen to the person talking to me. And that's how somehow, somehow, I turn new CLO."
But then, something had happened. I wasn't the first to be reached out to. There had been a couple of others that had been contacted, and they declined. Everyone but me seemed to understand the assignment and the wahala inside it but me. Because, I too dey follow my woman talk. Nothing wan concern me for that PPA.
There had been many issues on the ground that made us as the serving corpers uncomfortable, but no one really ever says anything because no one ever listens to us. I knew about them, but I agreed to become the CLO because I felt I could serve just fine. I was used to it already, as I had served as the class governor at my university.
Everything had been chill and alright, until a certain day that the "too calm and collected CLO" showed them the lion and fire in him.
You see, we are entitled to certain privileges wherever we serve. Here, however, there is nothing like that. We do not get paid by the school, and neither do we get anything to incentivize the ton of work we have to do every now and then. But then, the school wants us to serve with all of our hearts, bodies, and minds.
A meeting was held, and the majority of the meeting was to berate us totally. The more annoying thing was that this so-called meeting was impromptu, and we managed to gather ourselves there even though we were only informed an hour before. That one no mean much sha, na the talk talk be the koko.
The school authorities said so many things that made us, those present at the meeting, to be really agitated. But then again, no one was going to say anything. I no wetin enter my blood that day, na so I stand up start to dey talk. I felt the need to really enlighten these people about how it was for us on our own and how inconsiderate they were being to us, despite being paid absolutely nothing.
If I am correct, I think I spoke for about fifteen minutes or more. I was so dehydrated for most of the time ehn, chai, but I said, "today na today, all of us go hear am." I tried to remain respectful and careful with my words, but I no send oh, I talk my mind and possibly the minds of my fellow corpers and our grievances.
I mean, I knew deep within my heart that I just dey rant for my papa and that they would only hear and not do anything about our complaints, but I needed to do what was necessary at that point. I think, to some extent, the talk entered them and did something.
It may not have seemed like much, but it's one of those things that I felt was necessary. I am not even a man of so much speech in such situations, but I had already learned certain things about expressing and communicating with people from books I had read and simply applied them to the situation.
PS: Para para means to be in a state of vexation...
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Inspired by the Hive Naija Weekly Prompt | Edition 32