Magnitude
Frank Edejoro Miller
©
Copyright 2024 by Frank Edejoro Miller
|
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. |
Clifford
Deji is the
only sane madman and living dead man I know. He turned to that man
because of the war in Libya in 2014. That war was a curse to some
persons, and also a blessing to others. It was a curse to those who
lost their lives, their homes, loved ones, or properties. But the war
was a blessing to some group of persons, who lived thousands of
kilometers away from Libya.
Clifford
Deji wanted
to be one of the benefactors, so he traveled to Libya. Fortunately,
and unfortunately, he took his younger brother along for double
blessings. And that was where it happened. He did not turn into a
zombie, and he is not a magician. Let me tell you, his real-life
story. But before that, please let me talk about the circumstances
that led to his fate.
In
2014, News
reached us in Nigeria, that people who could risk the Mediterranean
Sea from Libya to Europe, are taken care of by the European
governments, as war refugees. They were given homes, health care,
food, and even jobs. All one had to do was go to Libya. In Libya,
they put the migrants on boats, without clothes or food. They
traveled almost naked, male or female, they were all put into boats
and pushed into the sea, with a balloon attached to the vessel, to
drift to Europe. That is what Clifford intended to do.
Most
of the crafts
got to the other side successfully. Most landed in Italy, while a few
were in Spain. When they got close to the shores of Italy or Spain,
they were rescued by coast guards or navy, and taken ashore as war
refugees. Some migrants who traveled from Nigeria called on the phone
to tell us about the hardships they went through. Migrants died in
the desert, on the way to Libya. Some boats didn’t get to the
other side of the Mediterranean Sea successfully. They sank, along
with the migrants, and many lives and dreams died like that. But the
goal was to get to the other side, which is the blessing.
In
Italy or Spain,
the immigrants were hoarded in a warehouse, stark naked like…like
chickens, and had disinfectants sprayed on them. Afterward, the
Italian or Spanish government gives them clothes, food,
accommodations, and medication. Free of charge. Skilled immigrants
were given jobs and lived luxuriously; the luxury the average income
earner could not afford in their home countries. After some time,
those immigrants or refugees, who risked the sea to Europe, began to
send money home to their people, to build houses or start big
investments. Some returned home after a while, looking fresh, and
robust. They bought the latest cars and displayed their financial
means in one way or the other. Refugees in another country! Who
doesn’t want to go to Libya if that’s the way forward?
Life
in Nigeria was
hard, and things were getting worse. So, parents began to sponsor
their children to Libya. Thousands of youths enter Libya daily, to
cross to Europe. Going to Libya, and risking the sea to Europe became
the new trend and the fastest lane to financial freedom for most
Nigerian youths.
At
that time, Clifford just gained admission into the university. During
his high school days, he learned barbing. The idea was for him to do
barbing on the university premises, while schooling, so that the
financial burden would not be too much for his parents. He was the
first son, and his parents were peasant farmers. He had two younger
sisters and a younger brother. The two sisters were still in high
school, while the younger brother, Daniel, was learning a skill as an
electrician. It was a lucrative skill. Daniel was already 2 years
into the apprenticeship. In 6 months, he could become independent and
start his own business as a professional electrician.
Going
to Libya was the new trend, the parents intended to sponsor Clifford
to risk the Sahara Desert to Libya, and then risk the Mediterranean
Sea to Europe. So that, when he becomes successful in Italy or Spain,
he could invite Daniel over to work as an electrician in Europe. The
poor couple borrowed the money from a firm, to sponsor Clifford, who
was supposed to be in the university. However, Clifford and Daniel,
struck a confidential deal, for Daniel, his younger brother to go
along with him, unknown to his family members. The two of them
hustled some money, and his younger brother joined him on the way to
Libya with the thought of surprising their parents when they both got
to Europe.
Getting
to Libya was even more dangerous because there was war. Sometimes,
migrants may spend up to three months on the way. They would wait in
Niger Republic, a neighboring country, until given the go-ahead to
continue the journey. Imagine if a traveler has no money to buy what
to eat along the journey, thousands of kilometers along the scorching
sun of the desert! The two brothers and their contemporaries crossed
the desert, and other God-forbidden dangerous places until they got
to Libya, successfully.
In
Libya, they were joined with other migrants to form a crew. Their
crew was to cross the Mediterranean Sea to Italy with the balloon
attached to a boat. There were about 20 migrants in their crew. They
boarded the vessel and began to drift towards Europe.
In
the middle of the sea, the boat started to sink. The air began to
escape from the balloon. There was no land or help in any direction.
It was all horizon to all four cardinals in the middle of the vast
inanimate sea. The migrants on board began to fall into the sea and
get lost. The only person remaining onboard was Daniel, the younger
brother. Clifford fell into the sea, too. He held to the edge of the
sinking boat so that he would not drown. Wanting to give up, Clifford
let go of the vessel and began to sink. Surprisingly for him, his
younger brother grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him back into the
boat unharmed, but his younger brother lost balance and fell into the
sea instead. In that air of trepidation, Clifford fainted.
He
fainted because of the fear that his younger brother was going to die
in his place.
When
he regained consciousness, he was back on the shores in Libya.
Unfortunately, he was the only survivor among his crew. His younger
brother and the other migrants died in the sea. While he was
unconscious, he was rescued and taken to Libya, not even to Europe,
the place they had risked their lives to go.
Clifford
was broken when he realized what had happened. He did not get to
Europe, eventually. Daniel, his younger brother was gone forever.
supposing he knew, he shouldn’t have allowed him to come along.
His parents did not know that Daniel went with him. The poor couple
had borrowed money from a firm to sponsor him. Now, everything is
gone. He did not have money to risk the sea for the second time. He
did not even dare to try again.
That
was when the madness started.
After
a while, he was deported and landed at Murtala Muhammad International
Airport in Lagos, Nigeria. What will he tell his parents? Will they
believe him? He decided not to go to his parents. He dares not go
home. The poor couple may faint or develop a heart attack. He would
remain a vagrant so that his parents would conclude that he died on
the trip and that his younger brother went missing somehow.
Frank Edejoro Miller
is a new writer from the Isoko tribe of Delta State, Nigeria.
Currently, he lives and works in Agbor, Delta State. That was where
he met Clifford Deji while working as an Artisan.
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