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- Herausgeber: Victor Ehighaleh
- Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
- Sprache: Englisch
Ubushi's vision had found a place in the heart of his community. Although he had died, his vision had acquired visible hands and legs. His bosom friend had been elected president. The president's sudden disappearance and foray into other lands had elicited a measure of rebellion. As expected, the urge to hijack power through fraudulent means suddenly surged forward and the promoter of the impeachment clause soon realized that it's a game of numbers. Fortunately, the president showed up at the brink of time and the game changer suddenly became the game. Did he win or lose? Find out.
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Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2020
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Victor Ehighaleh
SAINTS OF IMPEACHMENT
A Short Story
Table of contents
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
Saints of Impeachment: A Short Story
Copyright © 2020 by Victor Ehighaleh. All rights reserved.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any way by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording or otherwise without the prior written permission of the author.
The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
Esthom Graphic Prints.
To all victims of unjust impeachment.
CHAPTER ONE
Ulaba had been so fortunate to have been blessed with Ubushi. Her husband had been admired by everyone in Hurabaa community for many years as a shining light and beacon of hope and productivity. Ubushi had been a major force in the affairs of the community. He had cultivated an excellent relationship with Umudi and the twosome had succeeded in laying a very strong foundation for effective governance in the community. Ubushi had been propelled by his vision for Hurabaa community – he wanted the community to be self-reliant. He had always believed in persuading others to believe in his vision. His wife – Ulaba had also supported him in championing the vision. In fact, she had succeeded in convincing the female folks to identify with her husband’s vision.
Her husband had always opined that a community that cannot provide its basic needs is akin to a beggar whose fortune resides in the hands of other communities. As far as he was concerned, Hurabaa community must navigate out of the water of slavery as soon as possible. This mindset had been the driving force behind the establishment of political structures in the community.
In order to realize their goal, Ubushi and Umudi had convinced all household leaders to assemble at the village square for an emergency meeting. As expected, every household had been duly represented. The meeting began with the opening prayer by Juludi. After the prayer, Ubushi rose up to address the house.
“I must appreciate everyone for honoring our invitation. I had consulted with Umudi on the need for Hurabaa community to work towards being self-reliant. I am happy that Umudi instantly supported the vision but advised that we call all household leaders for a meeting so as to collectively give life to the vision. This informs our gathering today. I am sure that everyone will agree with me that we need to appoint leaders who will pilot the affairs of the community. Going forward, I wish to suggest that the house should call for nominations for the position of president, vice president and secretary.”
At this point, everyone in the house agreed with Ubushi and Zolota – the peacock, nominated Umudi – the horse, as president. After Zolota’s nomination, Ubushi – the cat, nominated Juludi – the mouse, as secretary and Juludi thereafter nominated Ubushi as vice president. As soon as the three nominations had been made, Ubushi asked the house to ratify the nominations in the absence of objections. At this point, Jingudu – the lion, rose up to address the house.
“I must appreciate everyone for contributing to moving Hurabaa community forward. However, I wish to suggest that we create the position of treasurer.”
“I must commend Jingudu for the suggestion but at the moment, I do not think the position of a treasurer is necessary.” Ubushi opined.
“You are right Ubushi. I am on the same page with you.” Umudi remarked.
“I also wish to agree with you.” Zolota opined.
At this point, it had become clear that Jingudu’s proposal was unpopular and had to be discarded by the house. At the end of the proceedings, the executives were inaugurated and the journey to becoming self-reliant has just begun.
CHAPTER TWO
It was Tuesday night and Ubushi had suddenly become ill. His wife – Ulaba had become so worried and had to quickly make a dash to her husband’s friend – Umudi, to seek for assistance. As soon as she had arrived at Umudi’s house, Umudi promptly left his abode to help his bosom friend. A short while later, they had arrived at Ubushi’s residence – unfortunately, they discovered that his condition had already nose-dived to the extent that he had been engrossed in excruciating pains for a while and his eyes had become red. In fact, they met his children crying by his bedside.
As soon as Umudi beheld the face of his friend he knew the end was at hand. He promptly asked Ulaba to take the children to another room so as to enable him assist his friend without distractions. Ulaba heeded his call and relocated the kids. As soon as Ulaba had left, Ubushi began to confide in his friend.
“My friend – I am in pain. My intuition tells me that I might not recover from this strange illness. I want you to continue with the vision of making Hurabaa community to become self-reliant. My wife will make a good replacement for me. You need to grant me this favor – by convincing other household leaders to allow my wife to replace me on the executive.”
“Ubushi – You know I will always be on your side but the truth as it is at the moment is that I am not ready to lose you. However, the gods will always have their way – I will certainly convince others to accept your wish.”
“Thank you Umudi – I know you will not disappoint me.”
As soon as Ulaba had walked in, Ubushi began to address her.
“Ulaba – The journey before me is very far. I want you to be strong for me and for the kids. I can assure you that my bosom friend – Umudi, will give you a helping hand. I want you to be at the forefront of driving the vision of Hurabaa community becoming self-sufficient.”
After he had made the statement – the curtains fell. Ubushi closed his eyes in death. His death had hit Hurabaa community like a cyclone. Oh! - The father of the “self-sufficiency” vision had joined his ancestors. As expected, the community leaders had met and decided to mourn him for seven days.
Many residents had converged at Ubushi’s residence to sign the condolence register and to commiserate with Ulaba and the kids. Unfortunately, Ulaba had become a shadow of herself due to constant shedding of tears. Also, despite Umudi’s presence, she had consistently said to herself – no one can replace Ubushi – he is like no other – a mighty tree has fallen.
After the burial and the third day of mourning everyone who had gathered at Ubushi’s residence in the night had gone home with a resolve to make a repeat visit in the morning. Fortunately, Ubushi’s residence had become the rallying point for unity in the community. Surprisingly, a moment after the burial, Ulaba has begun to appreciate everyone who had daily visited to commiserate with her and the kids. She had decided to take the bull by the horn and brace up to the challenges ahead. She knew that she can only surmount her travails by being strong.
As a result of the bond in the community, everyone had noticed Ulaba’s sudden resolution and this had put smiles on their faces - the hitherto mournful look in the community has given birth to liveliness. Going forward, members of the community had decided to go back to their daily chores. This action has also restored Ulaba’s privacy. With the exception of Umudi who spent an hour with her on the fifth day, everyone had simply moved on with their life.
CHAPTER THREE
It was Monday morning. Everyone had woken up to a bright new day with tremendous expectations despite Ubushi’s death. The inhabitants of the sky were not left out of the game. However, as the day surged forward, things began to fall apart and as the falling apart continued, the sun decided to beckon on the moon and as soon as the moon noticed the unusual gesture it began to examine itself to ascertain the reasons behind the sun's action. The curious sun soon noticed the moon's temporal hesitation and resolutely moved forward by engaging the reverse gear. The sun’s action resulted in deep hallucinations. This action infuriated the moon and in less than five minutes - the sky had appeared strange – water droplets had commenced a downward journey toward the ground and everywhere had been hit by the red colored water. The incident in the sky had been so clear for all to see. In fact, the animals had already been put on alert and were already expecting instant chaos. Most animals had also begun to hallucinate about the sudden change in the sky and the attendant weather condition - the clouds had begun to move at a very fast pace with strange colors trailing it through the sky.
The sudden change had also elicited a behavioral change in the community. Everyone had been jostled to the extent that an emergency meeting at the village square had become necessary. Soon, all household heads had arrived almost simultaneously. Ulaba - the cat, was not left out of the trail. She had gathered her children and instructed them to remain indoors for the rest of the day. Ubushi - her husband, had died six days before. Despite being bereaved she knew the best thing to do was to proactively make a dash to the village square as required by their constitution which demands that all household leaders must gather at the village square for a meeting during emergencies. Despite the presence of the red colored water, the community household heads were already gathered at the covered section of the village square with the exception of Umudi - the president. The meeting commenced after a short opening prayer by Jingudu the lion. Soon afterwards, Juludi - the mouse, rose up to address them.
"I welcome everyone to this emergency meeting."
"There is no time for rhetoric." Jingudu interjected.
"What is wrong with Juludi's remark?" Ulaba asked.
"Oh, I suppose you are blind. Can't you see the sky?"
"Yes, I can see the sky but you must allow Juludi to complete his statement in a civilized manner." Ulaba advised.
"That's a good one." Zolota the peacock opined.
The animals soon began to talk in hushed tones and after a while, Jingudu had asked the animals to permit him to make a few comments and as soon as they obliged him - he addressed the house.
"The gods of Hurabaa welcome you all. I am sure everyone had been jostled as a result of the sudden change in weather. I am also sure everyone is aware that our president is conspicuously absent at this meeting. I am very sure that he is responsible for the sudden strange activities in the sky. My dear friends, Hurabaa community must act fast by invoking the impeachment clause as obtained in our constitution. We must not allow the president to visit us with a fallen Sun and Moon.
We all know that he has failed to positively impact the community since he emerged as our leader."
"Jingudu - Why are you so selfish?"
"Ulaba - My statement is factual."
"Go ahead to convince us if you can. Why can't we go hunting for our president instead of listening to this disgruntled Jingudu."
"Ulaba, you call me disgruntled?"
"Yes - What can you do? Everyone knows the reason why you hate Umudi so much to the extent that you always plot his impeachment at every opportunity available to you."
"Can you please clarify your statement?" Jingudu asked.
"Yes, I will clarify my statement. In this community, everyone knows that the only one backing you up is Bolido your son. Your wife - Shingo, has since joined Umudi's camp. The refusal by Umudi to grant your request to marry his daughter is the major reason why you seek his impeachment."
"Oh, you don't mean it - no wonder Jingudu hates our president with ravenous passion." Juludi opined.
"I have heard enough of your ranting. I believe Umudi should be impeached." Jingudu remarked.
"Jingudu - You are yet to exonerate yourself from the accusation against you. You therefore have no right to proceed with talks of impeachment. You must exonerate yourself from Ulaba's allegation - that is the main issue before the community at the moment."
At this point, the animals began to discuss in hushed tones until Jingudu asked the house to allow him to dash home to enable him make private consultations with his household. As expected, everyone approved his request because he had been a bone on their neck. After he had left, Ulaba began to address the house.
“My dear friends, you are all aware of the demise of my husband – Ubushi. I wish to request that you allow me to make a quick dash to my residence to see how my children are faring.”
“That should not be a problem. I believe Zolota is on the same page with me.” Juludi opined.
“You are right Juludi. Kindly allow me to advise that you must return before the arrival of Jingudu so as to enable us to consult with ourselves.” Zolota advised.
“Okay my friends.”
After Ulaba’s exit, Juludi and Zolota engaged themselves.
“We need to confine Jingudu to where he truly belongs.” Juludi opined.
“How do you mean? Can you please explain?”
“Oh, can’t you see the handwriting on the wall?”
“Juludi – You know you are more intelligent than me. Why can’t you just hit the nail on the head?”
“Okay. Can’t you see that Jingudu’s aspiration to become president is responsible for his bias?”
“Of course, everyone knows including Shingo who is permanently on Umudi’s side.”
A short moment later, Ulaba had returned.
“Oh, Ulaba – You are welcome. How are your children?” Juludi asked.
“They are doing well.” Ulaba answered.
“That’s good to know.” Zolota remarked.
“My dear friends, I believe we need to put a strategy in place to halt Jingudu’s plan.” Ulaba opined
“You are right Ulaba. We had just finished engaging ourselves on the same issue shortly before you arrived.” Juludi remarked.
“Could you guys tell me the way forward?”
“The way forward is so simple – you guys know that we are in a democracy. As long as Jingudu remained in the minority group he would not be able to have his way.” Juludi observed.
“You are right Juludi. We must ensure that we remain united. As long as we maintain the margin we will always have our way – it’s as simple as that.” Zolota remarked.
Meanwhile, Jingudu had gotten home and had attempted to win his wife to his side but had met a resolutely uncompromising wife. He knew that he needed to get as many folks as possible on his side before he would be able to achieve his objective but unfortunately, only Bolido - his son, is on the same page with him. At this point, he remembered that other animals are yet waiting for his return at the village square.
CHAPTER FOUR
After he had made a fruitless effort to persuade his wife to tow the same line with him he suddenly began the journey - back to the village square. A disgruntled Jingudu arrives at the square in a solemn mood. His arrival prompted Ulaba to ask the house to visit the provisions of the constitution on him for keeping everyone waiting in an emergency situation. The intervention of Juludi saved Jingudu from being visited with the community sledge hammer. Juludi had observed that despite the fact that Jingudu had flouted the provisions of the constitution, the fact that the weather had improved - called for mercy. After a moment of avoidable silence, Zolota opined.
“I must appreciate Juludi for being magnanimous. Everyone knows that the society is filled with some folks who are more guilty than the guilty. Unfortunately, in some climes, these unfortunate groups are increasingly piloting affairs in many communities. Everyone knows that Jingudu’s case is quite peculiar. He had been so troublesome to the extent that he has no friend but his son. Permit me to clearly state that the devil you know is better than the saint you don't know. I am sure that you will all agree with me that with the exception of Jingudu and Bolido, every other indigene of Hurabaa community can vouch for Umudi's integrity. I therefore suggest that Jingudu and his son be expelled from Hurabaa community for peace to reign."
At this point, Juludi asked the house to permit him to make some remarks. Everyone including Jingudu had approved the request.
“My dear folks, I agree with Zolota as regards Jingudu’s case – the one who has never shown mercy to anyone has suddenly found himself in the valley of mercy. The question at this point is - are we ready to dish it out to him? Your guess is as good as mine. However, at this juncture, I want to advise that we must learn to grow beyond punishing someone who had consistently been on the wrong side. We must help him by being matured in our judgment. The time has also come for those who think they are wise to learn from Jingudu’s experience. As we may have observed – evil can never overcome good. Patience will always ensure that good overcome evil. Our dear president – Umudi has always been on the side of the masses and had performed beyond the expectations of the majority but the minority represented by Jingudu the lion, who apparently cannot govern his own house want to govern the community. At this point, we must not allow failure to be fostered on us. If you must lead – go ahead and start by being a good leader at your home. He who has succeeded at home is expected to raise his hand in the community for recognition. The evidence of members of his household should be used to decide his fate. Going forward, I must reiterate the fact that only the good can show mercy on a fellow who has never dispensed mercy to anyone. I know Jingudu has rightly observed that politics and governance are not only about one’s physical strength. One must learn to tag himself with the majority who can empower anyone to leadership position – this is the beauty of democracy. Jingudu – I must advise you – you need to be fair to your constituency. How do you expect your wife to be on the same page with you when you had decided to trouble her with a competitor? It is an open secret in Hurabaa community that Umudi’s refusal to allow you to marry his daughter had been the reason behind your constant opposition and desire to get him impeached. I must conclude by saying that you do not deserve to lead us. If you must lead – go ahead and start from your home.”
Immediately after Juludi had completed his remarks the sudden emergence of the much sought-after president changed the mood at the village square. Everyone with the exception of Jingudu had risen up to welcome Umudi.
"Thank goodness - All is right and well with the sky!" Ulaba exclaimed.
"That's right - I can see Umudi approaching the square." Zolota interjected.
"Oh - This is double Victory - Our President is back!"
“Our able president, where have you been?” Ulaba asked.
“I must apologize for leaving the community without notice. I take responsibility for my action and I must acknowledge my error. I am deeply sorry.”
“We appreciate the fact that you have been a forthright leader. I am sure everyone has accepted your apology and is on the same page with you.” Ulaba remarked.
“You are right Ulaba. No one is perfect. We must learn to accommodate some errors. What is required is for the erring fellow to apologize, learn the lessons and make the right amendments in order to avoid the same pitfalls in the future. I must opine that Umudi has demonstrated that he has the capacity to lead Hurabaa community.” Zolota opined.
After Zolota’s remarks, Ulaba asked the president to address the house about his strange disappearance. Umudi instantly stood up and in less than three seconds he had begun to address the house.
“May I reiterate again – I am deeply sorry for embarking on a journey outside Hurabaa community without notice. I must thank everyone for the opportunity to be heard. Your action is clearly a show of love and solidarity. May I continue by saying – lately, I had noticed that we needed to improve on our capacity to depend on ourselves for all our basic needs. I am sure that the majority of us know that we depend on other communities for the supply of most of our basic needs. The situation has indeed become so worrisome. This informed my short disappearance. In the course of my ‘unfortunate’ journey, I had visited three friendly communities and had had very fruitful discussions with them and they had promised to align with us in terms of becoming self-sufficient in our basic needs. Going forward, I want to believe that anyone who desires a good thing must be ready to make the requisite sacrifice. As a result of this, I have promised to assist the friendly communities – Ambusdan, Travan and Bustan in areas where we have excess capacity. At this juncture, may I assure you that the best is yet to come.”
Jingudu had remained silent as a result of being isolated by everyone. He also knew that he was at the mercy of the law. At the moment, the best option for him is to remain silent so as not to jeopardize his chance of obtaining pardon. After the president’s remarks, Ulaba stood up to address the house.
“I must commend our president for being so loving and community focused. I suppose you are all aware of the plight of widows. Umudi’s voyage to friendly communities will go a long way in addressing my concerns. Ubushi – my late husband had always said that any community that is unable to satisfy her basic needs is akin to a beggar whose fortune solely depends on the generosity of other communities. We must all rise up to commend our president for showing us that he truly cares.”
Everyone with the exception of Jingudu instantly accepted Ulama’s proposal – they rose up to commend Umudi for a job well done.
After the commendation, Umudi decided to seek the cooperation of everyone to pardon Jingudu for being late. As expected, Juludi sought for everyone’s cooperation and support towards realizing the president’s desire and in less than one minute everyone was on the same page. The Hurabaa community had succeeded in proving that there are two sides to every accusation. At the end of the day, the accusing side had become the accused. Fortunately, the hitherto accused had been magnanimous in showing mercy – that is the way to go – The Saints of Impeachment.
