“MY FOOLISH EXPERIENCE AS AN ELECTION THUG"
A job I was needed to execute only during electioneering era; that is, I and my gang get employed seasonally, every four years precisely.
My name is GEORGE A. N. GEORGE. I am from Yenagoa in Bayelsa State of Nigeria. I am a graduate of PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION (Class of 2007), from NNAMDI AZIKIWE UNIVERSITY, AWKA, ANAMBRA STATE, NIGERIA. I have so many relatives, friends and school mates. Below is the story of that part of my life you never knew. Please read and learn from it as a Nigerian Youth.
It was about 1:15am that night when my phone rang while we were on standby in one exotic hotel in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State (hotel name withheld) where all the rooms were paid down for us, including food and drinks. My phone screen displayed a withheld identity and I knew it was THE BOSS, because that was his usual way. He doesn’t ever disclose his phone number or his where about.
ON THE PHONE:
Me: The boss sir!
Boss: Everything OK?
Me: Yes sir.
Boss: How many soldiers have you?
Me: Three, sir.
Boss: Too damn few for this operation. Your subject is a well protected person. Make it five and do that immediately.
Me: Consider it done sir.
Boss: Better! Now open the gate and receive your supplies in Fourty minutes time. Remember, it must be convincingly an armed robbery. You must confirm him dead before you leave. Under no circumstance should he either survive or escape it. If you flunk this operation, you will not live to regret it. IS THAT CLEAR?
Me: Yes sir.
Boss: Good luck and get your balance after I read his obituary.
Me: Yes sir.
Exactly Fourty minutes later, two brand new Giant V8 Toyota SUV Prado Jeeps drove in and parked inside the hotel. The driver of the first one came out and handed the keys into me without uttering a single word. He immediately joined the other Jeep and they left.
The content of the Jeep:
There was a cash sum of Twelve million naira, seven complete set of military uniforms with ranks, including ID cards, all fake. There were different kinds of high caliber military sophisticated weapons (arms and ammunitions). While we were confirming the supply, the two other additional soldiers I contacted (Kiwy and Chester) arrived. My boys locked the gate and took everything inside. In that operation as led by me, were: GEORJAY (my very self as my friends call me), DALLAZ, SPARKY, KIWY & CHESTER.
The next night was the operation proper. We left the hotel in Yenagoa at 11:50pm for our victim’s residence in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. Our subject was a major Political Gladiator and was also from Bayelsa State. The Boss wanted the operation to take place at the victim’s private residence in Port Harcourt, as that will guarantee a suspicion free one. It was indeed a smooth drive in that tinted screen and blinded number plate Jeep, as we were all military men in appearance. The lowest rank among us was that of a Sergeant. Mine as the leader was that of a Captain. Beating check points on the East-West road was therefore as easy as reading this confession.
We arrived in Port Harcourt at 1:05am. At exactly 1:30am, we forcefully broke into our victim's residence, over powering and killing two of his armed guards who first shut at us, and incapacitating the two unarmed ones. Chester was badly injured from the dead guards’ initial attack. We bound one of them and forced the other to lead us to our victim's bedroom, upstairs. By this time Sparky and Dallaz mounted surveillance at the gate and as well, kept an eye on Chester who was bleeding badly on his left shoulder. The man may have forgotten to lock his door. It was just an effortless attempt, and we were in his room. He was still sleeping. Kiwy had to tap him to wake up and when he did, we beat the hell out of him and collected all his money, laptops, phones and lots of valuables, thereby making it look like armed robbery, before we finally shut and confirmed him dead. To us it was our job we were executing faithfully. We also took all the phones of the guards and killed all of them before we took off back to Yenagoa that night. When we got to Choba Bridge, near University of Port Harcourt, we threw all the phones, laptops and the rest valuables into Choba River and took only the cash of #1.9million with us.
Chester was a student of The Niger Delta University, Wilberforce Island, Amassoma, Bayelsa State. His father use to give him #350,000.00 as his weekly upkeep. A sum I wouldn't be able to earn in six months. We dropped Chester at Amassoma and advised him to claim as a victim of armed robbery, and he did so. We quickly drove back to the hotel and parked the jeep, leaving everything, including the key, locked inside as instructed by the boss. We shared the money and departed. Chester’s share remained in my custody.
The Boss called me up at 6:00am and I told him all was perfectly done, he was celebrating. I now told him that one of us is badly injured. The boss shouted and said “I am not interested in that and I don’t want to hear it. How dare you mention that to me? Let him die if he wants to. As a matter of fact, I paid you well for it. Mention that to me again and forfeit your balance. Nonsense!” The boss dropped the call. I couldn’t call him back because one of the rules say; “No one ever tries to contact or visit the boss EXCEPT it is absolutely necessary. He does all the calling”. Besides, no one knew where the boss lived or even had his phone number. Run into the boss in an ordinary day for a problem of twenty thousand naira, and the boss will say he is broke and needy too, that is, if at all he will speak to you or act like you guys have ever met before. So I just stayed put and waited for his call concerning our balance.
Two days later, the boss called me up to come for the balance. I went to the agreed location and the boss kept to his words as usual. He was playing a recorded version of the news and with a smile, bringing his phone close to my ears. He was so fulfilled that his major obstacle has gone down for good. He opened his car trunk with a remote control key and asked me to carry the money to my small car, which I did. He then offered me a congratulatory hand shake. While we were shaking hands, his other phone rang. He picked the call and spoke briefly, then shouted "Oh my God". He quickly jumped into his jeep and drove away menacingly, leaving me there speechless and confused. I got into my car and took off too.
When I got home in my hide out, Dallaz, Sparky and Kiwy were waiting for me. We took the money inside and decided to check on Chester at the hospital. On arrival at the hospital, VERY INTERESTING, SURPRISING AND UGLY TOO! Behold the boss and was seated with a woman beside Chester. What are you doing here? The boss shouted. We were speechless like Michael Jackson. In my heart, I was like; “so this is where he was called up from, and that is why he zoomed off like that”. The boss stood up and went outside, into his car. It was not the same car he drove earlier. He switched it. He was that thorough and swift. I asked Chester who that man was and he said they were his parents. By this time the boss was in his car. His wife did not know what was going on, everyone else did. She may have believed that we were Chester’s friends from school. She was cry bitterly in pity for her lovely son. She later went out to know why the boss dashed out like that, but the boss covered it up pretentiously. That was the day I knew that the boss ever had a family. He has never ever shown any sign of someone that has a wife, let alone, children. His family was too precious to him and animals like us must be kept far away. I was shocked.
Chester, in pains and slight confusion, managed and whispered to me, pleading with me not to lie to him, because he saw the drama that just took place now. He asked me, "Georjay, is this the man we worked for?" I found it very difficult to respond, but I couldn't lie at that point. So I said yes. He also asked if I have collected the balance, I just nodded my head and told him that his share is intact. He begged us to leave immediately for his mum’s sake. Just then, his parents came in. His father, not knowing I had already told Chester everything, and still keeping his wife in the dark, said to us; “young men, please excuse us”. We went out got into the car and drove away.
One hour later, the boss called me and he was mad on the phone. He was insane. I mean he was in zany. I do not know whether he was out of his mind or his mind was rather out of him. He threatened to deal with me with the last drop of his blood, for corrupting his son and staining him with my filthy condemned life. It was like fire and brim stone pouring out from his voice. My cell phone was hot in my palm. In his words; "For luring my son into a life of thuggery, armed robbery and death ventures with your miserable life, I will clean your ass as part of the mess you have caused me and my family" I couldn't say anything. In fact, at that point, I realized how filthy, empty and foolish I have been as a thug and a killer. I realized that I am not even a human being in the eyes of this Politian. A hundred of me and my friends put together cannot equate one of his child. I have lived a life of emptiness, foolishness and modern day slavery. I felt so imbecilic. I wished I could just drop dead.
I want to use this opportunity to advise Nigerian Youths. Experience, they say is the best teacher, but take it from me, experience, as good as it is, is a very slow and wicked teacher, because it teaches you correctly, but when it is too late. As I write this the boss is now an enemy and a hunter of my life. He has paid other gangs to kill all my friends, just to cover his back. They are currently tracing me day and night. Meanwhile, he has sent his lovely and important son (Chester) to London for his studies, while I am here ducking bullets. I am now a lifeless fugitive, a vagabond, all because of one man’s political ambition. The same man now wants me dead. What an irony? Even a piece of handkerchief is more of a valuable than my life. What a regretful life?
Now the elections are around the corner. The questions I want to ask you reading this story as a Nigerian Youth are these;
Are you going to learn from my experience, or you want your own experience to teach you? Will you learn now that it is early days yet or you will go on until it too late?
Will you throw your life away like a piece of paper because of one man’s political ambition, while his own children are in the best universities abroad? I wish that you will have a rethink.
Please be more interested in learning from these mistakes of mine, than thinking of where I may be right now because that will not add any value to your life. Just take the story and ignore the teller.
If any politician wants you to be his thug, just request that his son should join you and watch out if it will be a deal, and if not, ask him why.
DEAR REDER, PLEASE LEARN FROM IT.
SHUN POLITICAL THUGGERY!
