MY JOURNEY TO KENEMA WITH A STRANGER

                         

MY ENCOUNTER WITH A STRANGER ON MY WAY TO KENEMA CITY

A FICTION

By: SL News Blog, Ibrahim Sagestine Gandi and Ngor Samba

On the government bus, I was traveling from Freetown to Kenema.

I was sitting near a man who pretended to be really pleasant. We had some polite banter, and thankfully for me, he claimed to be a fan of the same football team as me. He had to buy me food, expensive food, when we stopped at Moyamba junction for people to take some munchies. 

He went into great detail about the properties he owned in Kenema, including two powerful residences, one of which he claimed was absolutely unoccupied. I was even more ecstatic because I assumed I would be sleeping in his house to avoid paying hotel fees.

My assumption came to reality after he assured me one of his residence to stay as much as I could. Upon reaching Taima Junction, he received a call and it was an emergency call for him to return to Freetown with immediate effect. I further asked him what the problem or issue behind his U-turn? All he could ask for was a financial assistance from me in order to rescue his sick mother from a sudden heart attack. I felt too bad for him and I was really desperate to render him my support as he has proven to be kind just by offering me a place to stay for the first time meeting me. I send him some money through my Afrimoney and later gave him cash of five hundred thousand Leones. I told him to reach me back if the need arise. He thanked me for my kind gesture and gave the direction of his residence in Kenema with one complintary card for his care taker before dropping off. I gave him my complimentary card too for further communications. He left for Freetown right away and promise to reach me in due course. My journey continues! Upon arriving Kenema, I tried to reach the care taker on his phone, but to no avail. I called several times but the phone was switched off. I also try to reach this friend of mine but his phone was switched off too. So, all I could do was to ask for the community he directed me. I went there and you can't believe what happened next.

Upon description and giving details of his looks, the people I met were dumbfounded because the person who fits the very description I gave had died a week ago through a vehicle accident which he was involved in at Taiama junction. Baffled at this point, I didn't want to believe what was going on until I was shown a picture of a person who look exactly like the one I have made friends with earlier. Whilst stuck in my greatest astonishment, I received a call from a man who claims to be a caretaker of a house and asked where I was. I gave my locations and about 10 mins, a dark tall man arrived and said he was asked by his boss to take me to his house and provide lodging for me he further apologize that his phone was missing and about 3 hours ago and that his boss has to call his wife and gave him my number. I tried the number of his boss and he told me he has just arrived in Freetown but was experiencing network problem on his way. The caretaker told me that the house was a new in the area and that his oga was not familiar in the area. That was when I believed that humans can look exactly alike sometimes because the picture I saw earlier was a different person.