Mrs Dunni woke up very early in the morning to meet up with the staff bus that was going to the state secretariat. Since she retired about a year ago, she has been going to and fro the state secretariat to work her papers for the payment of her gratuity to no avail.
She was in company of other retirees on this fateful day as the marcopolo bus started picking other staff from bus stops before the journey to the secretariat commenced.
Hey!! Mrs Aladey, how have you been? Quite and age.
She greeted one of her office mates who had retired three months after her.
How far have you gone with the procedure?
Mrs Dunni was sceptical because the journey to the secretariat for this purpose is becoming alarming.
I hope to get my check today?
In bewilderment, Mrs Dunni looked at her.
Wow!!! God is on your side then. Her case had been very unpalatable as the officers in charge of her case aren't doing a great job. She still hopes that her cheque will be ready someday no matter what.
The journey continued as the bus passed through the Itoikin bridge where the news had reported that a python as long as fifty metres was seen a week ago. Everywhere went silent as a graveyard when the bus moved around that axis.
Finally, they arrived at the secretariat but to their amazement, all offices were under lock and key. The civil servants have gone to protest at the liberty square for the non-payment of their allowances.
As distorted as she was, Mrs Dunni sat on the bare floor, seemingly tired of the treatment she was getting from the secretariat staff. To her, it was better that she had established a private business than to have joined the service and suffer this fate at old age.
After the protest, the civil servants returned to their offices with the intention not to attend to any one or treat any file. Hence, Mrs Dunni entered the pensions office but was snubbed by all the officers. She read the countenance and saw that the officers were determined never to attend to her. Then she vibrated:
You all are acting like you don't know you will grow old someday.
Then, their attention was drawn to her. While some became willing to help, the others walked out of the office at will.
At the end of the day, she still could not achieve any tangible progress with her documentation for onward payment of her gratuity.
Mrs Aladey did get her check on the said date. Though she knew her way around the top officials in the pensions office.
One would wonder how possible it was that the one who had retired earlier hadn't been paid the fruit of her labour.
Mrs Dunni kept going to the secretariat to get her document cleared. The officers had requests for her employment letter, last promotion letter and pay slips which she was unable to present to the officers.
All together, it was a frustrating exercise for Mrs Dunni. Whereas, Mrs Aladey has been paid.
After eighteen months that nothing could be done to her pension, Mrs Dunni died in her sleep.
It was during her lying-in-state that the pension officers cleared her document for onward payment. It was so shocking and irritating that the children of late Mrs Dunni rejected the money and petitioned the state government and pensions board for unlawfully withholding the pension rights.of their late mother.
When the matter was heard at the court after the burial of Mrs Dunni, all the officers who were directly involved in handling her file were demoted and some suspended from service.
It was a dilemma. Late Mrs Dunni's family kept receiving visitors who came to plead with them to withdraw the case from court.
The commotion was very tense, it was jeopardy in a city of death.