COINCIDENCE?

On Friday at Radio Univers, Franklyn and I had begun to work on out story about street children in Ghana. Around noon, I got a call from Razak (the GM of Radio Justice in Tamale) to say that he was headed over to the university. Franklyn wanted to go and take our lunch break, so we went to meet with Razak and headed for lunch.

As we were walking through the campus to Legon Hall to eat, we passed a woman sitting down with her baby. While the sight of a woman sitting at the side of the road with a baby is common, it is not a regular site on the campus. As we continued walking and talking, my attention stayed on her. By the time we reached the corner I stopped and I drew Franklyn’s attention to her.

As we had been walking by her, I had a sense of distress in my heart. Franklyn asked me if I wanted to go and speak with her. Together we walked back to see if she was okay. As we approached, we could see that she was crying.

She didn’t speak English, so I didn’t understand her, but Franklyn did.

Apparently she had left her money in a taxi, which was two-hundred thousand cedis (about $25 Canadian) that she had to start a business. She said that she was sitting there waiting for a taxi driver that said he was going to meet her there, but he had not shown up. As she talked she continued to cry. He child sat in her arms with a very indifferent look on his face. The baby was dressed in a yellow basketball jersey, some shorts and a few gold bracelets. The woman was in some traditional fabrics.

I didn’t have much money with me, but I offered her 10,000 cedis. Franklyn also added 10,000 cedis. We also told her that I would give her the 200,000 cedis on Monday.

As we left, she still had tears coming from her eyes.

Later that evening, after work, I headed out toward the road. Along the way I was thinking of the situation when I noticed two big vultures land in a tree, and I got a bad feeling. They seemed to be looking at me, and I got the feeling that I had been deceived by the woman. I continued to walk wondering, and then near the entrance to the university was a young boy standing there crying. I asked him what was wrong. He told me that his brother took his money, and said that he was waiting for someone who had not showed up. Right away, I could see that his crying was feigned. I told him that he would need to talk to his brother and I left.

The woman who had been standing there had not said anything to us. We had passed her by about 50 metres before we went back. Even after we left she still sat there discouraged. Of everything, that is what made me uncertain the most. We had given her 20,000 cedis, which by tro tro could get her to and from any destination in Accra. We also told her that she would get the money that she lost on Monday. Still, she sat there with tears still falling.

I don’t know if the boy at the entrance was a coincidence, or a common hustle. It was a sad thought that she might not be telling the truth (it wouldn’t be the first time). I was feeling taken advantage, and then I just laughed. It really wasn’t such a bad situation. I just thought to myself, ‘people’.