Loyal Royalty

Her accent pointed to her root and Mr. Chima had little problem placing her. The dark brown mohagony table she sat behind it looked to him like the type you see in federal politicians' offices. Broad with files and computer taking the lion's share of it. The lady behind it is something else too. But he wasn't focusing on that although, he had a lot in his mind that needed settling. He became aware that they were seizing themselves up. Then her speech was that of admonition and reproach rather than seeing him as a victim. From the look of things, it is obvious to him that she had heard of his problems and was even expecting him sort of. It's funny how someone becomes famous or notorious with few selected strangers or geographically with thousands. That is what Mr. Chima has become.

He had been having problems changing his address on his electricity bill. There had been a typo on its address section for long now and many offices were under the force he was surprised how they gained such influence over a state not only his city. Many offices had been refusing attending to him on that minor account. Cult followership is gaining a dangerous dimension that even the government is powerless to act against them. Major offices are under their influence in the city. The group had remembered him and from the look of things was under the influence of foreign forces. 

To get any important document now, you need to process the application with your electricity bill among other national documents. Mr. Chima had been turned back from many offices in the past due to a typo on his address and he has spent two years changing address that takes any illiterate three months to achieve. If his file after submission doesn't magically disappear from the office, one or three reasons will surface to delay its processing. At times the staff handling it would go on AWOL indefinitely and after months if he or she did not ask you to process a fresh one to start the round of stories again, "I am no longer in that section" would be his reply. It's not even a hidden thing that the security apparatus was openly threatening offices willing to process his documents. Even the same office which corrects the typo. They declared open war that had no provocation excuses but only influence.

Why the cult will remember him to that level is no longer all that strange to him as it was years back. They seem to be in the habit of reigning anyone who entered the city in and bring him to submission. That is what Mr. Chima had found depressing. "Why are tout allowed to be running riot all around the city?" he had asked many who threw their hands up in the air in resignation. On his part, it seems as if their task were to cripple him financially, make him submit through starvation and frustration. 

The siege on the city and its offices was a strangling one. A kind of the blind leading the ones with sight. Illiterates against educated.

They had circled all the offices he had entered and the electricity firm and planted their members there or forced some staff to be their members but they must have underrated the power of email and journal keeping. The head office was not in the same state and some staff there were not under the influence of any cult and didn't know Mr. Chima. That was the medium Mr. Chima utilized as his weapon against his enemies. While he was engaging them within verbally, he fights with emails without. The firm had been Ignoring his emails for a long time, then they started sending replies. 

 " What is .... On the paper they gave to you?" Mr. Chima would look up the information and answer.

 "What is ..... On the paper they gave you?" Mr Chima would look up the answer and reply.

"What's..... On the paper they gave you? Mr Chima would search and search without success. 

"There's nothing like that on the paper"

   They would throw in the wrong questions to test his honesty. 

After asking questions that are based on finding out whether he is serious and needed to be given their times, they considered him a course that needs their attention.

    It was pandemonium when the group that showed up landed un-announced in his city offices without prior sign of any kind. After figuring out three staff that made them take that journey, they focused on them and weighed really down on them.

Demotions, threat of sacks, salary reductions, and made to sign fresh employment letters with them with impeding clauses here and there in tiny letters. 

They gathered the staff of the firm after work that evening and went to work talking and reading the regulation and their rights to them. Reminded them of what they had the right to do or not:

"if you want to be loyal to the firm and serve the people, you are going to sign a fresh contract if not, you have a months to pack your properties and join your master, whoever, wherever their office is let us alone to serve our masters. Am I communicating?"

The chorus was tantamount to the 'Yes Aunty' you hear in primary school when such a question is directed at those kids. It was deafening. The woman that addressed them from her demeanor, wasn't a joking type. She supervised their signings and fingerprinting.

After changing and sending the three staff to their remote offices with instructions to their new bosses on what to look out for in them and report weekly to the head office, it was as if they were praying for them to misbehave again and to be kicked out of the door in grand style.

They, from head office, had sent a replacement of The three from their city, from look of things, the three didn't know initially where they were heading to that was how Mr. Chima came to know Janet who replaced one of those processing files in my city office, and after a few more meetings, with his problems solved, he developed another problem this time around, a pleasant one but problem nonetheless.

This time, he is not bitter enough to use email addressing any ahead office his time, he is the head, the heart, and the leg office of this his firm and only reports to a lady who reports to him too. The whizzing sound he hears these days anything he hears her voice is not that of cult or rejection but that of loyal royalty.