The gatemen let go of the pregnant woman and pushed the door open and they all entered. The room was a bit sizeable and heavily furnished with the accoutrements, the doctor helped the women to put the pregnant woman on the bed and told them to wait for him outside. Because they couldn’t comprehend English, the gateman explained to them.
“The white man said go outside and wait for him”. They sheepishly obeyed and began pacing the corridor. Suddenly, they could hear the pregnant woman screaming and then paced the corridor muttering words of encourage.
From the corridor, they saw afar a bright light and Abena Hannah, Auntie Ceci’s friend tapped her on the back and told her to look at it.
“It must be the witches of Abease Buipe” Auntie Ceci muttered.
“I agree with you sister, all what they do is to destroy people! May Odomankoma punish them for their wickedness!”
But the lights was appearing nearer and nearer with each passing second and they began to sense danger. It was three men approaching with full speed holding torches in their arms. Auntie Cecirecognized one of the men, he was Yaa Sophia’s, the pregnant woman’s husband. She had never seen him before but the description she had given her before fitted one of the men perfectly: dark, broad-shouldered, short, had lots of hair on his arms, legs and chest and also had pale eyes which could be mistaken as red.
The hospital was built on a hill with the church next to it. These two buildings overlooked the rest of the facilities so it was very easy to see anyone who is approaching Rick-by. They had reached the entrance of the facility and were chanting war songs, songs of murder and sacrifice. Simultaneously, the cry of a baby was heard and the doctor came out quickly for he had heard some noise.
“What is happening?” he asked but since the gateman had gone to his post, he couldn’t get anyone to translate it to for him. He woke a sleeping nurse at post to come and begged her to tell her what was happening because he couldn’t understand the language of the women.
“They say that it’s the people of the woman who just delivered that are coming?”
“For what?”
“What did the woman do?” the nurse asked the women.
Auntie Ceci replied “They have charged her for adultery madam so they want to kill her and the child too.”
“They said that per the custom of the land, the child and the mother is to be killed.”
“That is barbaric! The child has no hand in whatever sin the woman has committed should we even assume she is even guilty”
“What’s he saying?” they inquired but the nurse ignored them.
“Tell the security guards to stop them” he ordered.
“Doc, it’s impossible, from how they are marching with flame in their hands, it’s very dangerous, and you know how barbaric these people can be. I suggest that we give them the baby and the mother”
The women looked at the nurse and the doctor’s face obviously in oblivion as to what they were discussing.
“Please tell us what he’s saying madam nurse” Auntie Ceci said shaking.
The nurse looked at them angrily, “Well take the baby and the mother away. We can show you a route you can use to avoid them. So much trouble for helping you filthy people.”
They rushed into the room and took the baby and came out of the room. “Please show us the way” they said panicking.
“What of the mother?” the nurse asked in vernacular.
“We can’t carry her, she’s too heavy and too tired, and if we choose to save her too we might be caught. If we are caught we will get burnt also”
“What are they saying?”
“They said, they have to leave the woman here because she’s too heavy, they are choosing to save the child only.”
“What are they saying?”
“Doc, I will explain what they are saying to you later”
“So then what do we tell them?”
“That the child”, aunty Ceci replied “is dead”
“What if they ask of the body?”
“Maame Nurse, you can tell them a lie or something, look over the window, they are coming fast, if you are going to subject us to this question and answer regime, we will all be dead in a few seconds.”
“Nurse, can you please tell me what they are saying? Where’s the gateman, he can help me withsome translation here.”
Within minutes, the gateman arrived panting and showing signs of tiredness. “Docta, we have to give em they babe or they well kirl us.”
“I will do no such thing! Show the women the exist! The woman is too tired for her to escape, I shall face the barbarians, they can do me no harm me; I am white.”
The woman still stood there panting and not understanding a single syllabi being discussed.
“But doc” Philip protested.
“I mean now!”
“Please follow me” Philip told the women in twi and they obeyed him. They walked past the doctor and opened the room next to the delivery room and escaped.
Just as the door closed, three figures emerged holding flames looking so ready to murder anyone who crosses them, they approached the white doctor and the mulato nurse and circled them amidst singing of songs of murder.
“Obroni, bring the child before we kill you
Obroni, bring the child before we burn this place down
Obroni, bring the woman ooo
Obroni, that woman is an abomination
Whoever touches her should be burnt
“Nurse! What are they singing about?”
“They said, we should give them the child or the baby or else we will get burnt. They also claim we have touched them so we have to be killed.”
The doctor gave a high pitched laughter and for once the music died down. The three men did not know what made the doctor laugh but from the looks on the nurse’s face, they could tell them she was telling no joke and that she was scared her own safety.
“Tell them that they would do no such thing and that because of what they have said they are having none of what they have said”
Instantly, people starting rushing to the hospital because they had heard people singing. The doors of the hospital burst opened and it was followed by five other white men and Philip.
“What is happening here?”
“Apparently, they are barbarians!” the doctor replied “they want me to give them a child and a mother who just delivered”
“Dr. Short, are you not aware that you are not to treat any black patient here. Aren’t you aware of the rules and regulations of this hospital?”
“I am totally aware but the dictates of my profession is in such a way that it doesn’t permit me to follow your rules and regulations” the doctor replied.
“So what do they want?” one of the white men said looking at the black men in disgust.
“The woman and her child” Dr Short replied
“What are you waiting for Dr. Short? Give them what they want?”
“What are they saying?” one of the black men replied.
“I will explain everything to you people” Philip whispered to them in Twi.
“I can’t give either the baby or the mother to them?”
“Why is that?”
“You see, the baby is dead and the mother is a bit too heavy and too sick to be handed to them”
“That shouldn’t be part of our concern, should it? Hand them over to them whether dead or alive, they know what to do”
“You see, things aren’t that easy. The baby has been taken away by family members to be buried”
“Dr. Short, why do I have this feeling you are hiding something”
“Obroni, give us the baby and the mother before we burn you people!” the short hairy man addressed “for it is our custom. It must be obeyed”
Philip replied them “It hasn’t come to this please, just go home, we will bring you the baby and mother”
“Philip, what are they saying?”
“They would burn this hospital if we don’t give in to them.” He replied one of the white men.
“Utterly nonsense! Black skin, black mind, big head full of stupidity. Tell them to move out” he advanced to Dr. Short “and you doc we shall get to the root of this whole issue!”
“Please you have to leaf hiya oo, please come tomollow, we will settle dzi mata” he pleaded to the three men seeking to destroy the hospital.
“Agya Appiah, tell them that if they don’t give us the child and the baby, we are not leaving her. We will burn this hospital”
“Kwasi Boateng, don’t you dare call me by my barbaric name! Call me Philip. Why do black people find it difficult to understand anything?”
“But Agya Appiah” Kwasi Boateng replied snidely “you aren’t even fairer than us?”
“Philip, can you for once tell me what they are saying?” Dr. Short replied
“Docta, I tell you err’thin dze pipple are saying right away”
“Now, you are making no sense” Dr. Short replied
“Doctor, I mean wait to let dze piple go, I will tell you what it are talking.”
The white men in the room nodded; they felt it was advisable to let Philip handle the situation. He had proven time and time again to be capable in handling issues involving black folks. Oncehe sat in the judicial council with the white and helped in solving an issue involving labor unrest involving the black workers. He considered himself more white than black, hence that was why he changed his name from Agya Appiah to Philip – he felt that black race was a foolish one to be born to. He was one of the only few blacks in this town who could speak English. Though his English was extremely worse, he was the best in the town. He was thirty three and the whites had decided to send him to London to polish up his English so that he would be a part of their central administration. He was the most paid black in the community and he found extreme solace in this fact.
“Agya Appiah, well we are”
“Yaw Asamaoh, don’t call me Agya Appiah! I made that known to Kwasi Boateng. Now take Agyapong and get out of this hospital. You’ve brought enough filth in it already” he cut them short.
“Agya, is that us that you are shouting out” Agyapong advanced on Philip and Philip quickly brushed him off.
“Yaw! Kwasi! Let’s go. Today, we are going to show him something” and they left with the flames in their hands.
They watched them as they advanced towards the door angrily and whispering among themselves. Indeed, all was over so as they thought.
“Dr. this should be the last time, this incidence should…..”
They heard a loud scream from outside. They all rushed outside, only to see the Yaw, Kwasi and Agyapong running away.
“Daddy, I’m on fire!”
Dr. Short run quickly to his bungalow. “Nooo, Emile!”
His daughter was on the ground and she was burning together with the grass. “Someone help me” she screamed.
All the people in the other bungalow run from their rooms to save this lady girl. Some were carrying buckets of water, others held in their hands fire extinguisher.
“Catch those men!” Dr. Short ordered. Philip runs to catch them but they are nowhere to be seen.
That night was the longest night ever witnessed in Abease-Buipe. No one slept, all what was heard were screams from Rick-be, the whole population was alive, mourning the death of Emile Short. She was burnt beyond redemption and Dr. Short sat at the entrance of the hospital weeping tears never seen before. It looked like an alienation, he uses his knowledge to save people of their ailment but he couldn’t save his only daughter. The other white people gathered around him in a quest to console him but he refused bluntly to be consoled. He should have never brought her daughter to Ghana. Was it even his fault? She refused to live with her auntie in London, she wanted to be close with her father, her mentor, her inspiration, her everything. Now, she was dead, she was gone, she had sighed her last, breathed her last and the last words she said before giving up the ghost was so reverberating in the spheres of his mind “Daddy, please save me.”
Twilight came and it was time for revenge. The white marched to the main township of Abease-Buipe armed to the teeth. They set fire to every hut they saw, every grass they smiled at them, every dust that begged, every tree that looked sorrowful and every face that begged for mercy. They burnt everything. Some escaped to the next town, some died but most importantly, all the white men left Rick-by, Philip didn’t, he stayed back to take care of the ruins. He knew in his heart that one day they would come back and the old glory of Rick-be would be greatly restored. That one day, they would come back and his dreams of living in London, a city he had heard so much good tales of would come to past. But no, they never did. He never became a Londoner. The grasses in Rick-be invited snakes and other wild animals. It became a forest, a memento, a shrine of tears. Interestingly no one knew the name of this woman who because of her had caused this misfortune, the three men were never found again. Some said they had gone to Kumasi, others said Tamale, other postulated that they were now in Sekondi, others said Accra but mostly importantly, every knew that 3rd March was a black day and yes the gods were vindicated, the chief priest was right and Abease-Buipe was never the same ever ever again.
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The gatemen let go of the pregnant woman and pushed the door open and they all entered. The room was a bit sizeable and heavily furnished with the accoutrements, the doctor helped the women to put the pregnant woman on the bed and told them to wait for him outside. Because they couldn’t comprehend English, the gateman explained to them.
“The white man said go outside and wait for him”. They sheepishly obeyed and began pacing the corridor. Suddenly, they could hear the pregnant woman screaming and then paced the corridor muttering words of encourage.
From the corridor, they saw afar a bright light and Abena Hannah, Auntie Ceci’s friend tapped her on the back and told her to look at it.
“It must be the witches of Abease Buipe” Auntie Ceci muttered.
“I agree with you sister, all what they do is to destroy people! May Odomankoma punish them for their wickedness!”
But the lights was appearing nearer and nearer with each passing second and they began to sense danger. It was three men approaching with full speed holding torches in their arms. Auntie Cecirecognized one of the men, he was Yaa Sophia’s, the pregnant woman’s husband. She had never seen him before but the description she had given her before fitted one of the men perfected: dark, broad-shouldered, short, had lots of hair on his arms, legs and chest and also had pale eyes which could be mistaken as red.
The hospital was built on a hill with the church next to it. These two buildings overlooked the rest of the facilities so it was very easy to see anyone who is approaching Rick-by. They had reached the entrance of the facility and were chanting war songs, songs of murder and sacrifice. Simultaneously, the cry of a baby was heard and the doctor came out quickly for he had heard some noise.
“What is happening?” he asked but since the gateman had gone to his post, he couldn’t get anyone to translate it to for him. He woke a sleeping nurse at post to come and begged her to tell her what was happening because he couldn’t understand the language of the women.
“They say that it’s the people of the woman who just delivered that are coming?”
“For what?”
“What did the woman do?” the nurse asked the women.
Auntie Ceci replied “They have charged her for adultery madam so they want to kill her and the child too.”
“They said that per the custom of the land, the child and the mother is to be killed.”
“That is barbaric! The child has no hand in whatever sin the woman has committed should we even assume she is even guilty”
“What’s he saying?” they inquired but the nurse ignored them.
“Tell the security guards to stop them” he ordered.
“Doc, it’s impossible, from how they are marching with flame in their hands, it’s very dangerous, and you know how barbaric these people can be. I suggest that we give them the baby and the mother”
The women looked at the nurse and the doctor’s face obviously in oblivion as to what they were discussing.
“Please tell us what he’s saying madam nurse” Auntie Ceci said shaking.
The nurse looked at them angrily, “Well take the baby and the mother away. We can show you a route you can use to avoid them. So much trouble for helping you filthy people.”
They rushed into the room and took the baby and came out of the room. “Please show us the way” they said panicking.
“What of the mother?” the nurse asked in vernacular.
“We can’t carry her, she’s too heavy and too tired, and if we choose to save her too we might be caught. If we are caught we will get burnt also”
“What are they saying?”
“They said, they have to leave the woman here because she’s too heavy, they are choosing to save the child only.”
“What are they saying?”
“Doc, I will explain what they are saying to you later”
“So then what do we tell them?”
“That the child”, aunty Ceci replied “is dead”
“What if they ask of the body?”
“Maame Nurse, you can tell them a lie or something, look over the window, they are coming fast, if you are going to subject us to this question and answer regime, we will all be dead in a few seconds.”
“Nurse, can you please tell me what they are saying? Where’s the gateman, he can help me withsome translation here.”
Within minutes, the gateman arrived panting and showing signs of tiredness. “Docta, we have to give em they babe or they well kirl us.”
“I will do no such thing! Show the women the exist! The woman is too tired for her to escape, I shall face the barbarians, they can do me no harm me; I am white.”
The woman still stood there panting and not understanding a single syllabi being discussed.
“But doc” Philip protested.
“I mean now!”
“Please follow me” Philip told the women in twi and they obeyed him. They walked past the doctor and opened the room next to the delivery room and escaped.
Just as the door closed, three figures emerged holding flames looking so ready to murder anyone who crosses them, they approached the white doctor and the mulato nurse and circled them amidst singing of songs of murder.
“Obroni, bring the child before we kill you
Obroni, bring the child before we burn this place down
Obroni, bring the woman ooo
Obroni, that woman is an abomination
Whoever touches her should be burnt
“Nurse! What are they singing about?”
“They said, we should give them the child or the baby or else we will get burnt. They also claim we have touched them so we have to be killed.”
The doctor gave a high pitched laughter and for once the music died down. The three men did not know what made the doctor laugh but from the looks on the nurse’s face, they could tell them she was telling no joke and that she was scared her own safety.
“Tell them that they would do no such thing and that because of what they have said they are having none of what they have said”
Instantly, people starting rushing to the hospital because they had heard people singing. The doors of the hospital burst opened and it was followed by five other white men and Philip.
“What is happening here?”
“Apparently, they are barbarians!” the doctor replied “they want me to give them a child and a mother who just delivered”
“Dr. Short, are you not aware that you are not to treat any black patient here. Aren’t you aware of the rules and regulations of this hospital?”
“I am totally aware but the dictates of my profession is in such a way that it doesn’t permit me to follow your rules and regulations” the doctor replied.
“So what do they want?” one of the white men said looking at the black men in disgust.
“The woman and her child” Dr Short replied
“What are you waiting for Dr. Short? Give them what they want?”
“What are they saying?” one of the black men replied.
“I will explain everything to you people” Philip whispered to them in Twi.
“I can’t give either the baby or the mother to them?”
“Why is that?”
“You see, the baby is dead and the mother is a bit too heavy and too sick to be handed to them”
“That shouldn’t be part of our concern, should it? Hand them over to them whether dead or alive, they know what to do”
“You see, things aren’t that easy. The baby has been taken away by family members to be buried”
“Dr. Short, why do I have this feeling you are hiding something”
“Obroni, give us the baby and the mother before we burn you people!” the short hairy man addressed “for it is our custom. It must be obeyed”
Philip replied them “It hasn’t come to this please, just go home, we will bring you the baby and mother”
“Philip, what are they saying?”
“They would burn this hospital if we don’t give in to them.” He replied one of the white men.
“Utterly nonsense! Black skin, black mind, big head full of stupidity. Tell them to move out” he advanced to Dr. Short “and you doc we shall get to the root of this whole issue!”
“Please you have to leaf hiya oo, please come tomollow, we will settle dzi mata” he pleaded to the three men seeking to destroy the hospital.
“Agya Appiah, tell them that if they don’t give us the child and the baby, we are not leaving her. We will burn this hospital”
“Kwasi Boateng, don’t you dare call me by my barbaric name! Call me Philip. Why do black people find it difficult to understand anything?”
“But Agya Appiah” Kwasi Boateng replied snidely “you aren’t even fairer than us?”
“Philip, can you for once tell me what they are saying?” Dr. Short replied
“Docta, I tell you err’thin dze pipple are saying right away”
“Now, you are making no sense” Dr. Short replied
“Doctor, I mean wait to let dze piple go, I will tell you what it are talking.”
The white men in the room nodded; they felt it was advisable to let Philip handle the situation. He had proven time and time again to be capable in handling issues involving black folks. Oncehe sat in the judicial council with the white and helped in solving an issue involving labor unrest involving the black workers. He considered himself more white than black, hence that was why he changed his name from Agya Appiah to Philip – he felt that black race was a foolish one to be born to. He was one of the only few blacks in this town who could speak English. Though his English was extremely worse, he was the best in the town. He was thirty three and the whites had decided to send him to London to polish up his English so that he would be a part of their central administration. He was the most paid black in the community and he found extreme solace in this fact.
“Agya Appiah, well we are”
“Yaw Asamaoh, don’t call me Agya Appiah! I made that known to Kwasi Boateng. Now take Agyapong and get out of this hospital. You’ve brought enough filth in it already” he cut them short.
“Agya, is that us that you are shouting out” Agyapong advanced on Philip and Philip quickly brushed him off.
“Yaw! Kwasi! Let’s go. Today, we are going to show him something” and they left with the flames in their hands.
They watched them as they advanced towards the door angrily and whispering among themselves. Indeed, all was over so as they thought.
“Dr. this should be the last time, this incidence should…..”
They heard a loud scream from outside. They all rushed outside, only to see the Yaw, Kwasi and Agyapong running away.
“Daddy, I’m on fire!”
Dr. Short run quickly to his bungalow. “Nooo, Emile!”
His daughter was on the ground and she was burning together with the grass. “Someone help me” she screamed.
All the people in the other bungalow run from their rooms to save this lady girl. Some were carrying buckets of water, others held in their hands fire extinguisher.
“Catch those men!” Dr. Short ordered. Philip runs to catch them but they are nowhere to be seen.
That night was the longest night ever witnessed in Abease-Buipe. No one slept, all what was heard were screams from Rick-be, the whole population was alive, mourning the death of Emile Short. She was burnt beyond redemption and Dr. Short sat at the entrance of the hospital weeping tears never seen before. It looked like an alienation, he uses his knowledge to save people of their ailment but he couldn’t save his only daughter. The other white people gathered around him in a quest to console him but he refused bluntly to be consoled. He should have never brought her daughter to Ghana. Was it even his fault? She refused to live with her auntie in London, she wanted to be close with her father, her mentor, her inspiration, her everything. Now, she was dead, she was gone, she had sighed her last, breathed her last and the last words she said before giving up the ghost was so reverberating in the spheres of his mind “Daddy, please save me.”
Twilight came and it was time for revenge. The white marched to the main township of Abease-Buipe armed to the teeth. They set fire to every hut they saw, every grass they smiled at them, every dust that begged, every tree that looked sorrowful and every face that begged for mercy. They burnt everything. Some escaped to the next town, some died but most importantly, all the white men left Rick-by, Philip didn’t, he stayed back to take care of the ruins. He knew in his heart that one day they would come back and the old glory of Rick-be would be greatly restored. That one day, they would come back and his dreams of living in London, a city he had heard so much good tales of would come to past. But no, they never did. He never became a Londoner. The grasses in Rick-be invited snakes and other wild animals. It became a forest, a memento, a shrine of tears. Interestingly no one knew the name of this woman who because of her had caused this misfortune, the three men were never found again. Some said they had gone to Kumasi, others said Tamale, other postulated that they were now in Sekondi, others said Accra but mostly importantly, every knew that 3rd March was a black day and yes the gods were vindicated, the chief priest was right and Abease-Buipe was never the same ever ever again.
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