Christopher's story

I cannot believe I have been here for a week already. Although, paradoxically, I feel like I have been here forever and my life in Sydney is a distant memory from another world. On a rare free moment to mull, I think about the days of commuting on a train, work in an office cubicle, watching Q&A at home, eating dinner with Patrick. It’s just an observation that how one perceives time is an unusual & personal concept and how quickly as humans we familiarise ourselves to new environments.

I spend a lot of my day talking and interviewing people about their jobs and subsequently, their private lives as well. I really am a nosy and naturally inquisitive person. To my great delight, the staff at the Ministry are generously open and willing to disclose and share insightful information about their lives. Calabar really does not receive a lot of international tourists, therefore, they are quite intrigued by this Vietnamese-Australian and I suspect, they too, enjoy the interaction. At least, I hope so!

It is unequivocally the most rewarding thing I have done on this trip – learning from the employees. However, it is the saddest thing that breaks my heart listening to their stories and struggles. There have been quite a few (unprofessional) embarrassing instances of teariness and I’ve had to pretend to look away. There’s this trick where if you lick the roof of your mouth, it will stop you from crying. I cannot attest to its effectiveness though. On reflection, I really defy anyone to listen to these stories and not be moved by the hardship. I don't think it's myself that needs to harden up but I think it's the world that needs to listen and soften up... :-)

I thought I would share an example of one such story of a public servant in Nigeria. When I first met Christopher, I was immediately drawn to him because he is one of those people that when they smile, their whole face lights up and their eyes crinkle in warmth and compassion. He was very excited to meet us and he said to me “Haven’t I already met you? Didn’t you conduct the workshop for us in March?” Turns out he had confused me with another Asian IBMer who was here earlier in the year. He had the good nature to smile when I jokingly replied with “All Asians look the same to you, don’t they?” (I know, racial jokes are an acquired taste).

Christopher works as statistician collating all agricultural data from the various departments. He always has a friendly smile and genuinely looks happy to see us every time we cross paths even though he has a demanding workload and is extremely busy. Christopher has three young school-aged children and he and his wife also work selling books to support the family. It is not unusual for public servants to have a 2^nd or 3^rd job on the side as their salaries are not sufficient. For example, Charles our driver also lectures at a uni on economics twice a week after work.

It takes Christopher about an hour to get into work each day as public transportation is unreliable. Once in the office, we only have on average power about 2 hours day. The lack of power is very disempowering to staff – the state complains they are lazy and do not work, but how does one work without power?

After 20+ years with the Ministry, Christopher sadly tells me, in his customary soft-spoken manner, he has nothing to show for it – “no car, no house, no savings”. The cost of living has risen sharply but wages have not increased with the trend. Half his salary goes into rent each month, a large portion goes to schooling and the rest is for necessities such as food. Christopher is not self-pitying, he speaks honestly and passionately about life and explains the choices he has made like marrying later in life, using all his money to support his childrens’ education, not buying a generator as they are costly and dangerous. He is also aware that he is fortunate relative to a lot of the State living in poverty. I am humbled and moved by his intelligent articulate vision for the country and his aspirations for his children. It saddens me deeply that such a lovely, compassionate, hardworking, kind-hearted, appreciative man struggles to make ends meet. (I also told Christopher that I consider him a feminist when he shared his views on equality with me!)

A lot of the staff tell similar stories. They know that life should be better - that conditions and living standards can be improved - it’s just a question of when. I am appalled and angered by the evident growing disparity between the affluent and the poor.

On a slight tangent, the use of generators in Nigeria is very alarming and not a sustainable solution. There have been many reports of people dying from generator-related deaths usually from carbon monoxide poisoning or fires. Christopher told me an profoundly moving story of a family of 3 in Calabar who died. There are also the obvious environmental effects from the fumes. There is a power crisis in this country that needs to be addressed.