Rich today, poor tomorrow!
Rich today, poor tomorrow!
What is he doing here?
Dear Editor,
I need the advice of your readers. When I first moved into my apartment in Surulere, I was the only banker in the block of four flats. As my co-tenants moved out over the years, my colleagues who had been to visit prevailed on me to get the Landlord’s agent to let them have the vacant flat. It was really no trouble at all as those were the boom days of banking and a banker was considered the most ideal tenant.
That was how Chinedu, Femi and Oscar moved into the other flats. Everything was ok at first but as the months turned into years certain events at work started having effect at home.
First OScar got a better paying job at another bank and a seniority complex came over him. Before repairs to common areas were done jointly but now he just took decisions. A case in point was how he sacked the Hausa gateman and put in some corporate guards. We just got home one day and strange looking uniformed men were at the gate. They refused us entry until they cleared the issues with Oscar! Furious we complained to him, not only about the cost but also the way he went about it. He shrugged us off and said he would be responsible for paying the full bill if we we could not afford it!
Then it was Chinedu’s turn to act ‘big’ man. He was able to get a huge deposit from a Government parastatal and aside from getting a huge cut, he was given triple promotion. The result was that he became my boss! That would have been okay if he knew the job but he didn’t and so most things he delegated to me to do. I didn’t really mind but it meant that I started staying back really late as I was virtually doing two jobs. When my wife ‘reported’ me to him on this account, the idiot had the guts to talk to me about ‘work – life’ balance. At the end of the year, the appraisal he gave me was so negative, the HR department considered firing me.
Femi who remained calm all this while started spending money like it was going out of fashion. The competition to have the most flashy car and live the most affluent lifestyle started. At meetings of the flat tenants to discuss common issues, champagne was served with chinese food on the menu.
All through this my wife and I kept our head low abd received all the abuses and snide remarks. Then in the space of one week all hell broke loose. Oscar’s bank was taken over by the Government and he along with 500 staff was retrenched. Chinedu was sacked as he had the gall to start chasing the CEO’s girlfriend in the bank. Femi was also dismissed and spent some months with the EFCC.
Suddenly I became the one paying for common services in the apartment. Rents are due and each one has asked me for a loan. I can afford to give them but worried as they may not be able to pay back. On the other hand though they have behaved badly they are my friends and have helped me through my own rough patches. What should I do?
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