Dear readers,
My name is Kofa. I’m from Togo. I once lived with my parents in Togo but, things later went wary for me. I’ve been living my life hoping that one day; things will get better for me. But, as days succeed days, my hope is getting slimmer.
It all started when I was in primary school in Togo. Primary five precisely. I was trekking back home with my friends one afternoon after closing in school. There was a bush part which we usually follow to hasten our trip back home. I remember that my parents usually warned me not to follow that path alone and I never did. But on that afternoon, it wasn’t only me. We were up to fifteen that walked together so it made me feel safer as I thought no one would dare kidnap fifteen kids at ones. We even had a secondary school boy among us so, I felt totally safe. Little did I know that we weren’t just enough to be kidnapped.
On our way, we saw two hefty men in suit. They leaned on a parked bus ahead of us. Before we knew what was happening, two other men were dashing behind us. We started running and the men in suit came to our aid. They told us to quickly enter the bus so that we could escape. We naively followed their order. They drove us towards another silent bush part where we saw many students running for their lives. Once again, the men in suit rescued them and joined them to us. Meanwhile, we also met a group of students in the bus. This process repeated itself until the bus was filled up. Those two men who were chasing us were the last to enter. That was when I knew what was happening. I also saw the panic looks on my other’s faces. And so we started to scream for help but, those men threatened us to keep our mouths shut and so we complied.
We spent two nights in that bus Eating just bread and water. Before we knew what was happening, we met ourselves in an unknown city. I wondered what on earth was happening to me. Not until I was ushered into a food canteen and was asked to drop my load and start working did I know what was happening. I cried aloud and was beaten till I cooperated. That was the last time I saw my friends. Only God knows where they were taken. I managed to ask the people I was working with where I was. They told me I was in Saki in Nigeria. There was no way for me to escape. I thought.
I worked hard in the canteen for two years without pay. Whenever I request for my payment, they would tell me to wait until the people that brought me came back. They didn’t actually come back until two years later. That was when my managers (the two men in suit) came and took me to another place. They promised to help me save my money until I was ready to go back to Togo. I told them I was ready but, they said I can’t be ready on my own will.
This time, they took me to a big house as their house maid. I was shown my room and another life started there. The owner of the house owned a school. Whenever she goes out, I always sneaked to the window side of the classroom to listen to the teacher. I knew the class I was back in Togo so that was the class I always visit. Whenever those students promotes to the next class, I usually promote with them. When it was time for me to go after two years, my madam pleaded with my managers to let me spend two more years.
I wanted to refuse because of the way the woman always maltreat me but, I didn’t because I had a rethink about how I’ve been gaining in the classroom. I thought that I might never have that chance again. So, I agreed to stay and endure all the bad treatments. There was an English teacher who liked me so much. He doesn’t chase me away from the window side like some other teachers do. Whenever he asked question in the class and no one is getting it right, he usually make reference to me from outside to answer for the class and I always answered. If he gives them some exercise to do in class, I always do mine outside and also assignments. Then I submit my own to him whenever he’s free. I also partook silently in their exams and he marks it separately for me.
When it was another two years, I knew my managers would come soon so I sneaked away from that house. I thought I could make it to Togo on my own but, chance didn’t come my way. I met with some guys who were students in a college of education in Oyo state. They usually give me their clothes to wash and as we got closer they realized I’ve been sleeping around the street so they took me in. They encouraged me to read hard and write GCE. They donated money for my GCE form three times but, English and literature in English was the only ones I had distinction in. I failed all others woefully. Right now I’m still in the struggle to pass my GCE which I know I’ll pass someday.
Having been introduced to Facebook, I tried so hard to meet my friends who were captured together with me but, to no avail. I can’t even remember their names or their faces. I thought to myself that the only way to know them is through the common story we shared. That’s why I’m publicizing this article.
I don’t even know if any of them has chance to education like I did. All I want is to meet them so that we can all go back to Togo and save other innocent people from falling victims.
Dear Iyanda readers! Please forward this article till it gets to the right hands.
