*It was 8' o'clock on
Thursday morning, I woke up early by 5am, I quickly did the morning chores as usual,
When it was 7am, I ran into my bathroom, brushed my teeth, took my bath and dressed up.
By 7: 30 am I hit the road,
I boarded a cab to the nearest bank to quickly pay my school fees,
From my house to the bank will take up to 10 to 15 minutes.
I need to be at the bank by 8am, I pray the bank is not crowded today,
in the middle of my soliloquizing, engaged in my thought, a taxi drove through by, I quickly waved to ask him to stop and take me to the bank at AP.*
The driver parked to asked my destination. I replied, Bank at AP. You may enter the cab said, and the driver drove straight to the bank.
By 7:50am we reached our destination, the driver man parked at one side of the street to drop me. Immediately, I dipped my hand inside the pocket to pay him and he drove away. And I turned back to walk into the bank but to my surprised, outside the bank gate was crowded.
Whoa! How come the bank was so crowded like this, at this time, it's
like this people passed their night here, I said to myself and I burst out laughing 😃,
Immediately, I rushed to join the queue.
By 8 o'clock I am, the bank was opened, and we were told to be in a queue so that we can be given a number according to the way we came. A few minutes later, we were told to enter the bank one after the other according to our number.
Thank God the queue was moving faster, said by a lady in the queue, before she stopped the praise, my number was called to come in.
I hurriedly stepped inside to pick two tellers, to filled, one for withdrawal and the other one for money deposit, without delaying, I joined the withdrawal queue to withdrawal before joining the second queue which was for money deposit.
After 30 minutes joining the withdrawal queue, what I noticed was that the queue
wasn't moving, what happened sir, I asked a man at the front row, he replied, the cashier said the network is poor.
Haaaa! I exclaimed, and I said, network, why now? Please do not be poor! I thought it was a minor thing, that will be okay in a few minutes, but to my surprised I stood for another hour again, and I started grumbling.
Why these happening today that I needed to pay my school fees, and the network sucks, it was so bad to this extent that almost everybody was grumbling and shouting.
Monday this week, the timetable for the examination was pasted that our examination would be starting in a week time, which is the following Monday. This is the thought running through my mind.
Though I wasn't panicking because of the examination, have studied hard and well-prepared, but the headache I am having was the mandatory by school authorities, no school fees no examination
I wasn't the type that do wait to the deadline period, before my school fees been paid, but things has not been going well for my parents during that time, my dad was hospitalized for more than two months and this really affected everyone including me.
I said to myself, how will I change my teller to receipt in school with these delaying of network, I was confused and perplexed, I didn't know what to do, at that point, I didn't have a choicer than to wait? Because I have no power or magic to make the network good,
It was exactly 2pm, the network was fair, although it keeps going off and on. When it was 3: 10 pm, the cashier told us, she would only be attending to cash deposits due to poor network and in my case, I had to withdraw before deposit.
I told myself I will keep waiting until she changes the idea of deposited only. When it was 3:30pm, we were told no more withdrawals again because of the network, I ran to the front row to meet the cashier, if she can help me because my payment must be made today.
I said to her, please ma, I'm a student, I don't know how you can help me to transfer from my account to make my school fees payment, since it's the same bank, it's not necessarily withdrawing and deposit, I explained what courses the delay and
without this payment, I will not be able to sit for an exam on Monday. Please kindly help me out, I said again.
She refused and said, nothing she can do about it, she wasn't the network. Tears started running down my eyes like rain drops, I thought maybe she can pity my condition, but she refused and remained violently adamant, she said it repeatedly she couldn't do anything.
I said to myself not that I can't come the second day, but I just heard from one of the people around that there will be public holiday tomorrow on Friday, and it will affect the bank too.
Few moments, I decided to go out and make a call because security did not allow anyone to call inside the bank.
I quickly rushed out to call one of my lecturers named Mr. Adedapo to tell him what was happening, Mr. Adedapo has been a good father, a tutor, and a role model since my level one.
but unfortunately, his number was switched off, after countless calling that I made to reached him. I decided that Since the number wasn't going through, let me go back inside the bank and continue the pleading again.
You are not allowed to go in, said the security,
I told him I just stepped outside to make a call, since calls wasn't allowed inside the Bank and besides, this is just 3:, 35pm and the bank closes by 4pm, but he said, they had instructed them not to allowed anyone in once more.
That really got me sad, but I had to leave because he refused to let me in.
On Monday morning, very early, I rushed to the bank to make the payment Because I will be having my first paper by 10am, but the payment I made on that day almost affected the morning exam,
before I got to examination hall, examination has already commenced, I had to rush to Mr. Adedapo,the lecturer to explain things, he followed me straight to Bursar to lay the complaint, I was asked to hold the bank payment receipt instead of the school receipt and show them in the examination hall, the Bursar said If I should go and convert the bank receipt to school receipt by this time, I will miss the examination. Angrily, I said to myself after this payment, I will not use that bank again. I felt, not even using any bank as a means of saving money.
Unforgotten experience I had, each time I remember, it saddens me.
Thanks for taking your previous time to read 🙏