Africa-Press – Rwanda. For the past week, our beautiful city trended with several unexciting events. It almost feels like a situation where a parent leaves their kids unsupervised for a few hours, only to find an unexpected mess upon return.
First, the week opened with a pregnant woman who was forced to leave her job because she could not continue to work under her ‘condition.’ I am not an expert on pregnancy matters, but I am sure that the ‘condition’ does not affect one’s capacity to be productive.
The shock that our ancestors must have! They perhaps thought that by 2021, we’d have a cure for cancer or found common ground for all religions- significant achievements. But how can we reach such milestones when we are so busy firing expecting mothers?
The sad reality might be that the decision-makers of this drastic idea could have included women, mothers even. I recently watched an interview of a female police officer from one of the African countries. She said that she does not expect to rise higher in her career because she is a woman! I was shocked and dismayed at her mindset. We would be in deep trouble if the women we think represent and pave the way for younger ones are full of doubt about what our gender can accomplish.
Anyway, not to brush this pressing issue aside, but we need to address the rest of the problems that recently befell us. This is a bad season not just for the pregnant lady, but also for vehicle owners. Because, have you seen the traffic fines out here!
Receiving fines for driving past the speed limit was already keeping us awake at night. Meanwhile, the limit was previously at a decent 60km/hr in most areas. Now I learned that more cameras were installed even in places with 40km/hr limits. And it doesn’t end there; apparently, one also gets fined for driving too slow, haha. My wipers recently failed to work during the rain, oh! you should have seen me panic to check if I had not acquired any penalties for driving too slow. There is no way to get out of this one.
Maybe it would be wise to abandon cars for a while, but have you ever been on a moto, stuck at traffic lights under the rain? That was nothing because this experience is going to be way worse. Imagine sitting on a moto while it’s drizzling, and moving at 30km/hr because of big brother’s cameras planted across the cities. I assure you that drizzle is going to feel like heavy showers on your poor back!
As there is absolutely no way to avoid the fines, it would be more efficient if every vehicle owner paid a monthly subsidized fee. Here I come with unsolicited advice again. This money would account for the possible penalties incurred during that period. Vehicle owners would then make better financial plans; otherwise, we might need to sell car parts to pay the fines.
This pre-payment arrangement would work in the same way of the ‘service fee’ for mobile phones, way back when they were still new on the market. This was a compulsory fee paid by every network subscriber. It didn’t depend on whether or not you had full coverage for your phone. Back then, the range was so scarce people had to do the craziest things, such as climbing trees, only to speak for two seconds. Now that I think about it, there are some areas where this is still a reality!
And as I have made this a rant article, what is happening with the water shortages in some parts of the city? I remember our housing community going at least a month without flowing water. Going weeks without water makes the house feel rusty. It feels a bit like getting stuck in a horrible dream that won’t end. I once desperately asked our building manager if it wasn’t too late to drill our communal borehole. Of course, he laughed it off, but at that point, it felt like a much more reliable water source.
If none of the above problems affect you, how does it feel like being God’s favorite child? Share with the rest of us which Bible verses you have pinned on your bathroom mirror or what hymns you sing daily. That is where the magic could be.
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