Pay Back Time

They gathered in the room there with anger written all over their faces that drips venom just like their words. The leaders of about three tribes. They couldn’t understand why a tribe that is the tinniest of unions that made up that entity should be the one objecting to their agreements. This is the third time they are meeting in secret, knowing fully well that their meetings are illegal and that what brought them together is, an illegal objective too.

“We have gathered again as before and we must not vacate this room without reaching a compromise no matter how illegal or what sone prefers to refers to it. Enough should be enough from that people” one leader from the largest tribe among the gatherers stated.

“ We are here because we believe that what that tribe is objecting and what they are presenting as excuses were faulty and we believe that they are intentionally tarrying to concur with us because they believed that continuous delay favors them with whatever plans they have. Not as if we know they are saying the truth and we gathered to fight the truth right?” leader of the second largest among the three quipped. 

The third concurred with him. The first speaker eyed them weary wondering if they are not on the side of the absent tribe. He was wondering if they are going to be able to pull this trick off on the two. Then, he decided to try another trick. Since those with them are showing signs of being truly confused.

“ This uncertainty will persist if we do not act decisively to end it. Those guys are not reasonably lots waiting for them to come around, you might wait foreverer. Time to be serious”

“How had we not been serious for months now, how do people get serious outside what we had been doing?” leaders of the smallest group asked.

“Time to interfere anyhow with what is happening in that tribunal and end it all smartly”

The secret meeting continued for another two and half hours before they reached consensus.  

The nocturnal figures transformed once again into what they are. Chameleons in living daylight. Law bidding, due process loving and peace-loving citizens not wolves they were.

The man they rigged out of his winning is from a Christian family. The elder brother and sister were reverend priests and reverend sisters and they knew he is not interested in voodoo moves or superstitious moves. They persisted that the election tribunal should use other related issues to settle the case if they found the truth hard to establish. Idol swearing was what they agreed upon.

Everyone has prices, it will be a herculean task to figure out what the tribunal chairman's price is. They sent emissaries to his house twice a day for courtesy call on his wife. After the fourth call, the wife reciprocated the visit before the court's next session.

"If you are asked to swear with Bible or Koran that you are sure all these objections you introduced here were the truth to the best of your knowledge, would you do that?” one of the judges asked Mr. John the man representing the party they rigged out.

“ Why not? Heaven and earth, Christ and Mohammed would bear me witness”

"Funny how we use those two names for granted knowing fully well that they won't come after us. If you are asked to swear with the idol in your village, would you do that?”

“ I am sorry, I can't. I am a Christian not a pagan. I can't go that far”

“You see exactly what we mean. You see why we had been at this for almost nine months now with nonsense objections reigning the day. People are playing with God claiming to be religious and not pagans. What we are debating for almost ten months now and calling Jesus and Mohammed is that we don’t have respect for the two knowing they won't come after us if we use their names in vain. Time to play grow up and stop disturbing ourselves and the nation. Shouting Mohammed and Jesus each sitting is not helping. Do you know how many Mohammed and Jesus names we have recorded here from people’s words since this case started?”

Mr. John turned towards the Tribunal Chairman.

“Your Honor, I used this name in addressing you and I meant it as it sounds. With due respect. Why do you want to throw this respect to the dogs by this allowing this insinuations and blasphemy to go on in your court?”

“ How do you mean to the dogs, blasphemy and insinuations? Answer the questions. Would you or wouldn't you? ”

“ I mean your honor, we had been using holy books since the white man era, why oracles and idols in the villages this time in our history in public? Are we moving backward or what?”

“Since white man era?- you mean you are yet to know that your so-called holy books were white man oracles and idols handed over to you? We are”

The debate went through in that fashion for that day and all went home agreeing to go and meet with their parties and reconvene in two weeks time.

At the party secretariat, the party leaders at various levels had gathered, waiting for Mr. John that came five minutes late. Refreshments had always been number seven in the items of the meeting even a kid of two knows that offhand. Famous 'item seven' that most target before joining their meetings. Mr. John was surprised that it was what his party decided to start this crucial meeting on. Why move seven to one and vice versa? It did not take him two minutes to realize why.

“We have captured them. They practically shot themselves in the foot with that their suggestions. Some in their camps religious enough to regard what their parties suggested and forwarded to the tribunal chairman as blasphemous have on their own forwarded all the information we need for this case to us and even agreed to forward what they are now discussing as they gathered like us to us afterwards. They are in plate and documents form here. Written and voice form. So, we are celebrating in advance, Mr. President. Join the show”

That President there elicited smirk from Mr. John and he eyed his national chairman before lowering his voice to address him.

“ Has it ever entered your mind that we might be the one they are playing here?

“ Is like you are not paying attention well to me. I said voice and written form. Here inside this envelope is your copy. You would recognizeed all the voices in there and then see first hands what conspiracy is”

“Dramas are staged, voices and recording had been subjected to the same ordeal for close to a century now. Desperate people can go to any length”

“ If they are dumb enough to suggest swearing before deities in their villages or wherever it would be, to the extent of vibrating as we have them in the tape here. Stop given them respect they don’t deserve. What’s glittering here is right carats. Drink up Mr. President ”

Mr. John quietly excused himself and went home to make important calls. If what he was told is true and what he was holding is authentic, it should be time to start acting as Mr. President he was being addressed as already by his party. Time to fix those that had been fixing him for r long.