Feature : Poverty is Expensive
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| Image: The Conversation |
You are pondering over the title. Aren’t you? Before I write further, allow me make it clear that this is purely an opinion, just like a nose.
Judging from my end, people live in abject poverty. I cannot speak of three square meals. It will be unfair because single meal a day is an issue elsewhere.
An acquaintance once shared a joke with me. It read “behind those beautiful images is hunger and pleas of “send me credit" . Even though I laughed, I also thought deeply about it. While it is true that some people live fake lifestyles, this is the reality for others and it is for even those who pose the fakeness.
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| Homie-spices |
Some people genuinely wear smiles to cover the life they have and their struggles, while others simply want to impress. But this isn't my focus.
I present these brief narratives, to explain my stance on Poverty being expensive.
Sumaiya, affectionately called "Maya", and Ewurama were students at "Life is not fair" university.
Maya comes from a very well-to-do family and Ewurama, from a very poor home. The families of both girls did well to ensure their wards had the best of education.
It's all rosy for Maya, as her parents were business moguls. All she needed was to snap her fingers and her wish came lying flat at her feet. She had no troubles with money, as far as education is concerned.
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| Homie-spices |
It was that time of the academic calendar when each student is required to pay fees.
As usual, Maya's fees had been paid in advance. Ewurama used the little money she had saved from the Hawking she did during vacation, plus whatever amount her folks had raised, to settle part of her fees.
There’s a deadline attached to paying the fees. If it exceeded, students were required to pay an extra percentage of the fees as penalty.
The deadline fast approached and Ewurama couldn't meet it. This meant that, she had to pay a penalty.
She was already struggling to get money to complete the payment, and now she had to pay a penalty atop. “Two trouble, one God”, as they say.
Maya had it one time because she could afford to pay immediately and it that saved her the extra cost for penalty. Ewurama, unfortunately, had incurred extra cost of fees for not having money to pay on time. Her poverty had caused her.
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| Homie-spices |
Second scenario:
Preko and Abu were friends. They began living together in a very small room, about a month ago.
Before Preko joined Abu, he lived with his uncle. Abu and his uncle were at loggerheads so he had to pack out. He then joined his friend. Preko goes job-hunting, and at times, does random jobs.
Preko could go a month without having up to a hundred cedis in his pocket. His uncle called and threatened he will burn belongings of Preko if he didn’t go for them. So, Preko decided to go for the luggages.
He needed to get a pickup truck to go for his stuff. He spoke with the driver and he couldn't afford the amount charged (about 350 cedis), after having bargained..
350 cedis was considered because of the distance between his uncle's house, Kasoa, and where he lived currently in Accra.
He therefore resorted to find a nearby place in Kasoa to keep his stuff so he could later transport them to Accra, when he got money . He ends up paying 200 cedis for the logistics to be moved from his uncle's house to the temporary place.
Later when he got enough money, he went for the stuff and that cost him, 300 cedis. So he spent 500 cedis instead of 350 cedis for the goods..
If he had money earlier, he would have paid the initial 350 that was charged for the goods to be transported to Accra. But he later had to spend extra on the same stuff, because he lacked the money.
Last scenario:
Vero was a very brilliant girl but she had no one to cater for her. She lived with her aunt who operated a drinking spot. Her mother was in the village.
Vero strived very hard to be the best in her class, despite the hardship she went through at home.
She was liked very much, until it was that time of the term to pay fees. The headmaster obviously will sack her, if her fees wasn’t paid .
Her stingy aunt delayed payment and this had taken a great toll on the young girl.
It got to a time the aunt stopped paying fees and so , Vero was sent home.
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| Homie-spices |
She stayed home for a very long time. Her mum asked her to be patient and cope because even if she went back to the village, farm work was what she's going to do. So she should stay and work with the aunt in the pub.
One day, a very rich woman, who was a regular customer at the pub, offered to help Vero out of her situation.. She promised to pay her fees and take proper care of her till she graduated.. Excited Vero agreed to her offer.
The woman informed the aunt and she agreed. The rich woman gave the aunt two bundles 100 cedis notes and allowed Vero to go with the woman.
Poor Vero had been promised all the goodies of life. Somehow with mixed feelings, she obliged.
They set off together. While on the journey, Vero was killed by a gang the woman hired. She used parts of the girl's body for rituals.
News spread and it got to Vero's mum who definitely got devastated and blamed herself for not allowing her girl come back to the village.
She wished she was well-to-do. Now not even the money in the world could give her back her daughter.
She imagined herself being rich - her daughter wouldn’t have lived with the aunt in the first place, for all other things to occur.
Having read these, do you now, agree that to be poor is indeed costly? Many have sold their dignity, conscience, and to the greater extent their life, for money. The poor, indeed, pays a much greater price.
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