Chapter 3. Akwàbá.

Ecclesiastes 9:4 NIV_ Anyone who is among the living has hope. even a live dog is better off than a dead lion!

'Akwaábà' means 'Welcome' in Ghana but I was not feeling welcomed, it was a welcome to pain and suffering.

It was around 6am when we got there and were brought down with our bags.

I felt so horrible with pains and injuries all over my body.

They made us sit and took photos of us, then asked us to release all our properties to them which we all did.

We were locked up in an empty office turned to jail with some other Nigerians. My eyes went to the beach at the back outside and I thought about how water is the only thing free on earth. Trees are destroyed daily, animals killed and humans punished for not living according to a certain law created by few people.

Looking at the beautiful beach, thinking all these reminded me of a certain song by Fela Kuti:

"Water no get enemy, water e no get enemy".

It explains how neutral and peaceful water is.

Ndidi offered me gala to eat and I shrugged it off.

I didn't know that that will be my last time seeing gala, the delicious sausage roll which have saved a lot of Nigerians from the perishing hands of hunger.

"Chale⁶, bring am make we chaw please" other inmates begged Ndidi which he gave them.

A guy walked up to me and asked how we got arrested which I explained, then he told me he has been locked up for three days and has no plans to pay them again. He was arrested leaving Ghana to avoid Lagos traffic cause of Christmas celebration. And the majority of Nigerians with us were all Igbos.

At night, a new Commander arrived and asked if some of us were willing to pay. They started with six hundred Ghanaian cedis and few people paid while the rest of us pleaded for a reduction.

Three hours later, another officer came, he promised to release ten people willing to pay five hundred Ghanaian cedis and over twelve people agreed and left. Despite few people being released, we were still much in the mosquito infested room.

Finally, an immigration officer who Ndidi has been pleading to, called us out and told us the Commander has agreed to take our four hundred Ghana cedis cause of me. I was surprised because I just got into the country and don't even know anyone yet.

We were ushered in his office, he smiled at me then began to address us.

"Everyone locked in that room will pay at least five hundred cedis but I decided to get your junior brother out cause of the way he greeted me when I walked past in the afternoon, it was my junior colleague who told me he had a senior brother, so I decided to give you a discount. Now the Ghana border was closed because of the election that will happen soon that's why you people were arrested. Well, I don't want to release you then stories about this comes up in the media." he said looking at us while we assured him it will never happen.

He signed out bail and asked us to fill the form, make payments and leave.

We thanked him and left his office. Payments were made, we picked our properties and as we left the immigration headquarters, we were being waved farewell by other inmates.

In front of the immigration headquarters we boarded a thirteen sitter bus that was going to Accra, the capital city of Ghana.

Aflao to Accra was a long ride and we settled a lot of police officers on road.

It wowed me how Ghanaian Police officers recognized Nigerians with just one question.

"Where are you coming from?" A police officer asked Ndidi after checking the driver's trunk.

"I'm from—"

"Oh you're a Nigerian, please go and sit down here." The police officer pointed a spot asking Ndidi to come down.

It took the intervention of few women and the driver before the Police officer accepted the twenty cedis Ndidi offered.

Nigerians are a big catch for security officials in Ghana, I didn't feel welcomed and was starting to regret my coming.

Ghana and Nigeria shared something similar and that was corruption.

I reflected on everything that had happened, then I slept off.

I woke up two hours later and we were still in the bus, on the road, I had thought Accra won't be far from Aflao but I thought wrong.

Accra made me remember Lagos, especially the toll gates which brings tears of how innocent protesters were killed for asking to end Police brutality in Nigeria. I murmured a silent prayer, asking for their soul to rest in peace.

It was morning when we got to Accra and seeing the place occupied by Nigerians called 'Circle', will make you feel at home. I grabbed our bags as we continued walking.

"Tobe, we are going to another park that will take us to our final destination." Ndidi said as we walked along until we got to VIP bus station. It was a long ride to Suyani, where started my story.