I was at the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) this weekend. I did not want to drive, I used the mass transit and while on route from Lekki to Obalende both located in Lagos State Nigeria.
At a bus stop in Lekki, I stopped and entered a green and white intra city transit bus and as we moved along the bus attendant or conductor requested that passengers pay the bus fare.
I had not used public transport along that route before and was not quite sure how much to pay, so I watched closely to see what amounts others paid as a yard stick for my fare. A middle-aged man was on my left and another was at my right. The gentleman on my left offered the bus conductor a hundred (#100) naira note and made it quite clear that was all he was paying for the trip, after a very heated argument, the conductor grudgingly collected the money.
Hoping to replicate what just took place, I quickly brought out my own hundred naira note and offered it to the conductor. Unfortunately the bus conductor refused to be taken twice and screamed that my fare was one hundred and fifty naira (#150) and not a hundred naira (#100).
Immediately the gentleman on my left leapt to my defense and insisted that my fare was supposed to be #100 and told me not to pay a dime more. He got into another heated debate with the conductor after which the conductor turned to me and threatened to disgrace me when the bus got to the final bus stop. The gentleman on my right kept signaling for us to calm down as I sat there embarrassed and confused, wondering how I got into this mess. When the bus came to a routine stop and the gentleman on my left dropped off the bus, my feelings spiraled dangerously from embarrassment to fear.
My pride was also at stake as I could not imagine dipping into my bag to bring out the additional fifty naira (#50) after all the fuss I and the gentlemen at my left who had abandoned me had made but how would I defend myself if the conductor carried out his threat.
It was at this dire point that the gentleman on my right stepped me and asked me quite calmly how much I was to pay and advised that I just pay the fare as demanded by the conductor to avoid more embarrassment. When I offered no response he then asked if I had enough money on me and offered me a fifty naira note to add to my hundred naira. I truly felt humbled that this gentleman who did not look like he had a lot was willingly to make that sacrifice for me a stranger and as I write this I make a quick prayer for him that God surprises him in this season of great expectations.
Point to remember is that one will abandon you down the line while the other will stay right by you till the end so who represented an angel.
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