DIARY OF A CORPER — EPISODE 10: CLEARANCE GONE WRONG

Life isn't always rosy. Sometimes, it can be unexpectedly cruel.

That morning was our monthly clearance—the day corps members were required to report to the local government office for biometrics.

I was in Batch B2, so our clearance was scheduled between 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Bassey and Taiwo were in Batch B1, whose time was 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m.

One thing about clearance was that the officials hardly ever kept to the schedule. Whether you came exactly at your assigned time or an hour later, there was a good chance you would still meet people waiting. Because of that, I had formed the habit of arriving late.

So, as usual, I left the house around 9:30 a.m. and got to the local government office just before 10:00 a.m.

The compound was already buzzing with corps members. Some stood in small groups catching up with friends they hadn't seen since the last clearance. Others complained about the queue, while a few clutched their clearance slips like they were about to write an examination.

As I walked in, I spotted Bassey.

Except... he was still standing there.

"You're not done?" I asked.

He sighed and shook his head.

Apparently, corps members had been instructed to come along with a photocopy of their acceptance letters. Some corps members had been avoiding their PPAs altogether, so the officials decided to compare everyone's acceptance letter with their clearance slip to confirm they were actually serving where they had been posted.

Unfortunately, Bassey never got the information.

Without a photocopy of his acceptance letter, he couldn't complete his clearance.

"I didn't even know they asked us to bring it," he said, clearly frustrated. "Who announced it?"

"They didn't post it on your CDS WhatsApp group?" I asked.

"I don't know. I didn't see it," he replied, still clearly frustrated.

I sighed.

A few other corps members were in the same situation, trying to explain that they hadn't heard about the new requirement. But explanations didn't seem to carry much weight that morning.

Standing in front of them was Mr. Tony.

If you served in our local government, you knew Mr. Tony wasn't someone you wanted to argue with. He wasn't rude for the sake of it, but once he made up his mind, convincing him otherwise was almost impossible.

One after another, he sent people back.

No photocopy of your acceptance letter, no clearance.

Simple.

Bassey pleaded with him once more, explaining that he genuinely hadn't heard the announcement, but Mr. Tony remained unmoved.

I kept my distance.

The last thing I wanted was to get on Mr. Tony's bad side.

Then Bassey remembered that Femi had mentioned he would be resuming late that morning after obtaining permission from work. His only hope now was that he was still at home.

He brought out his phone and called Femi.

"Guy, are you still at home?" he asked.

Luckily, Femi hadn't left yet.

Bassey explained where he had kept the photocopy of his acceptance letter and begged him to bring it along on his way to work.

Thankfully, Femi agreed.

Relieved, we thought it would only be a matter of minutes before everything was sorted. Once Femi arrived with the photocopy, Bassey would complete his clearance.

I went ahead to do my clearance. By the time I returned, Taiwo was standing with Bassey. I waited with them so we could all head home together.

Waiting wasn't exactly enjoyable. Lokoja sun was in one of its usual moods, beating down on everyone without mercy.

Some corps members had abandoned the queue to hide under the few trees in the compound, while others used face towels, bags and even their clearance slips to shield themselves from the unforgiving sun.

Thankfully, I had my sunglasses on. Abeg, skincare is expensive.

Several minutes later, screams filled the air.

What was going on?

Almost immediately, people began running towards the gate.

Someone shouted.

"Trailer! Trailer!"

Another voice followed.

"There's been an accident!"

Within seconds, the once-busy compound emptied. Corps members, officials, the vendors under the trees, and even passers-by rushed outside the gate to see what had happened.

Taiwo, Bassey and I exchanged glances before hurrying after the crowd.

People were talking over one another.

"A trailer hit an okada!"

"It happened just now."

"There was a young guy on the bike with the rider."

"God have mercy..."

Then it hit me.

Femi!

He was on his way with Bassey's photocopy of the acceptance letter.

Before I knew it, I was pushing through the crowd, one prayer repeating itself in my mind:

Please, don't let it be Femi.

 

End of Episode 10

To be continued…

 

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Next: ➡️Episode 11: He's Alive