People come from far and near to buy meat, garri, plantains, cocoyams, yams, fish, crabs, crayfish, oysters and many others edibles in these villages markets!
Because of the commercial activities in these villages, the police makes a brisk business in the roadblock. Many of the commercial vehicles overload their vehicles with goods and since they knew that it is an offence, they come down to settle the police before passing. Daily, the police makes fortune at this roadblock!
At a time, their activities was reported to their Superior officer and he began to monitor them by paying an unscheduled visit to the checkpoint. On such a visit, he checks all their pockets for money. Woe to any officer whom a large sum of money is found in his pockets!
Because of this the policemen at the roadblock device a tactics. Behind the roadblock is a thick forest with mighty trees! They bought a wide and deep plastic container with a cover. They hid it behind a tree. Whatever money they got, they keep it inside. Then came a time of crisis between two of these villages. A lot of gunrunners began to supply weapons to the two warring communities!
Because of this, the crisis lingered on for a very long time.
And so the authority deployed a detachment of soldiers to this very roadblock to check the movement of arms into the villages. Most of the soldiers were deployed directly to the warring communities. Only seven soldiers were deployed to the roadblock to join the police. The soldiers sat down while the police did the collection of money.
In the evening when they are to handover duty, all of them would go to where the container is and open it in the presence of everyone of them and share the money amongst themselves, But later, the police saw it as a cheat for them to do the collection only for them to share the money with the soldiers. And so, towards the evenings, when they are about to handover duty, any of the police who takes money to keep in the container would pack a substantial amount from the money and hide it far.
When they had shared the money in the container and the soldiers gone, they would quickly bring out the ones they have hidden and share it among themselves. After all, monkeys can't be working and bamboos are eating!
But very soon, the soldiers found out secretly what the police are doing! And they decided to beat the police to their game. One day, they have a huge amount of money because that was the day after peace was brokered between the two warring communities and they lay down their arms!
For the first time after about a year, commercial activities resume in these two communities again!
That was why they got a huge amount of money that day.
Now, towards the evening hours, one of the soldiers with a motorcycle told them that he wanted to go to a neighbouring village to buy palm wine. When he had gone far, he parked off the road and trust soldiers when it comes to sneaking! He crawled through the forest down to the roadblock and moved to the container. He took a big sack along and he emptied the whole money into the sack and placed the container back in its position and covered it.
He crawled back to his motorcycle and rode off!
He gave the sack to the lady who sells the palm wine to keep for him. He told her that it contains his property and nothing should come closer to where she keeps it.
He then rode down to the roadblock with a keg of fresh palm wine which they all enjoyed!
Then, came the zero hour! The hour when all of them usually go into the bush to share the money.
On getting there, the police opens it with much enthusiasm because that was the day they made the highest money. But alas, no money!
It was like a miracle or better still a horror movie that is not real!
They continue to stare at one another as to what is actually happening? Where is all the money?
Then the soldiers pretended to be angry. They told the police that they are the ones who usually go there to keep the money; which means they have to account for the missing money. But in all these, the seven soldiers knew what they have done. The police then begged them to exercise a little patient with them that when they received their salary at the month end, they would from it give them their share. The police finally received their salary. They took from each of their salary to pay the soldiers.
Meanwhile that day, after closing, the soldiers went to the woman's shop and collected the money which they shared among themselves with each of them getting a whooping amount that could be up to their salaries of two years then!
The police smelt rat! They suspected that the soldiers may have something to do with the missing money because for years they have been keeping money there, they had never lost a dine! They then decided not to be posted together with the soldiers again. They formed another roadblock far off from the soldiers.
Now with the police gone, the soldiers found it difficult to stand on the road to collect money from motorists.
They then found a young man of about twenty years of age. They gave him a camouflage T-shirt and a cap. He stands on the road to collect money for the soldiers. He became very proud in his area. He moves around with pride putting on the camouflage T-shirt and cap. He talks to people with impunity! Like the saying that "When you give a local man uniform, he becomes a problem to his community". Some of the community's elders went to the young Man's mother to complain to her about her son's attitude. They told her to caution him.
But she became angry with them. She said that the villagers were jealous because her son was chosen to be among the soldiers. She asked them to go and drown in the sea because her son was already a soldier. She went and told the soldiers about all that the villagers are saying. The soldiers came to warn the villagers.They said that the villagers should know that the young man is a soldier and that means his mother should be respected and treated with dignity because she is a mother of a soldier man. When the soldiers had gone, she told them that she has been vindicated when she referred to her son as a soldier because the soldiers themselves have confirmed it.
She began to mock at the people with the following song:
As E dey pain dem, E dey sweet us! As E dey sweet us, E dey pain them. Fools! Your useless sons are not even fit for common voluntary organizations such as boyscout and MAN' O WAR BAY. Whether they like it or not, he is already a soldier!
The police reported the soldiers' and the boy's activities to the military authority. The head of the military then beams his searchlight on the activities of the soldiers at the roadblock by paying an unscheduled visit to the roadblock regularly. One day, he was in his car coming towards the roadblock when he ran into a chaotic traffic jam! He enquires from motorists on what was causing the gridlock. They told him that it was as a result of the military roadblock. He got down from his car and walks down to the roadblock only for him to see this young man collecting money from motorists.
He asked him if he was a soldier man to which he says he was not. He asks him where did he get the camouflage T-shirt and cap from. He said that they were given to him by the soldiers for him to collect money for them. He turns towards the soldiers who were all presenting their arms in a general salute! They denied knowing the young man let alone to have given camouflage T-shirt and cap to him to collect money for them. He then commands the soldiers to fire him since he is denting the image of the military.
In a second, they open fire on him and he died flat!
Now, when the commander of the army had gone, the soldiers went to the young man's mother. They told her that as being a soldier man goes with dignity and pride, also does it go with death. They told her that her son died in a crossfire with enemies. That is, he died in an active service to his father's land. She asks them when would the government pay her, his son's gratuity as a force man who died in an active service. They told her that he is an unknown soldier because his name hasn't been sent to army headquarters. That means he was pre-korofo. That is suffer-suffer for world, zombie of no recognition!
She collapsed on the macadamized thoroughfare and the villagers burst into what they called, "He who laughs last, laughs best. As E dey sweet us, E dey pain them. Omo, as E dey pain them, E dey sweet us!"
THAT IS THE END OF THIS STORY!