Compassion Is Powerful: How A First Lady Was Abandoned And Unrecognised -By Miriam Yakubu Ikunaiye

I went to Abuja Central Mosque to buy tesbih (rosery). As I stopped to make a left turn into the mosque, allowing oncoming vehicles to pass through, unknown to me, a convoy among the oncoming vehicles was also going into the mosque, had I known, I would have hurriedly cut in front of the convoy to avoid what happened next.

WHAT HAPPENED NEXT?
In the convoy was a state First Lady who has come to do sadaka (alms). Nothing wrong with sadaka; I do sadaka myself sometimes.

But here is what is very wrong. Because she chose to come with convoy of seven cars, the parking lot that was almost full, now overflow onto the security post. And the rest of us were asked to hold on outside till a space becomes available. Meaning, we seat in the car waiting or pack on the street and trek to the mosque.

Anyone who knows the Mosque knows it has a small parking space.

In this extreme heat wave, people including myself, walk around agitated. Plus, this is God’s house why should I be made to wait on ‘these people?’ I got pissed off.

When I looked closely at the license plate, identifying the state, my anger became irritation. The thought of “these people”(The Non salary paying heartless leaders) overwhelmed me.

By now, we have waited for about seven minutes that felt like ten hours and she was still fumbling inside her car.

I began to hunk incessantly. Then I stormed out of my car going straight for her car, to tell her to learn some humility and get out of the way for the common people.

I took only two steps away from my car when her front door opened and her orderly stepped out with a gun visible in the holster strapped around her waist. At the same time the back door opened slightly with the First Lady’s hand still holding on to it. But one can see her arm littered with gold bangles and her fingers snuggled with gold rings.

All of a sudden, I had noises from every direction as almagiris (beggars) were running towards us. They were running and shouting Hajiya Maryam! Hajiya Maryam!!

To those who ever did sadaka in central mosque, know how almajiris are never orderly. They rush in droves almost smouldering alms givers. That’s how they were rushing from every direction.

Even though they were shouting Maryam, it does not registered in my brain at the time. Now standing in the open, very confused and few feet’s away from first Lady’s car.

I thought the Almajiris were heading for the First Lady. But in minutes, I was surrounded by huge numbers of Almajiri and they were all trying to talk to me at the same time.

To cut story short, they recognized me and came to thank me for inviting them to the Villa to eat with Mr. President in 2015.

My gratitude is, at least, even momentarily, they ignored the First Lady, who is drenched in gold, seated in a posh car with her blinking convoy. And instead they came to me.

Well, as I tried to catch up on politics and life generally with the Almajiris, the convoy left the mosque unnoticed. Even the orderly had to physically pushed through to get back into the car, as some Almajiris pushed against the car, yet took no notice of First Lady.

This is a powerful reminder that without a whole bunch of money, a token of kindnesd to mankind and to nature is a priceless treasure that many are remembered for in a lasting way.

I may not have money but I have compassion for humanity and for nature. And I am very grateful beyond measure for their gratitude.

It is me, Miriam Yakubu Ikunaiye saying, compassion is a powerful means to change the world. And may God put compassion in the hearts of those who found themselves in the positions of leadership. So that God will not abandon them the way almajiris abandoned this First Lady at Central Mosque.