10/12/2024
Moving To Italy, Episode 1
It’s now five years since Uju graduated from the university and she has not been able to find a job. Not that she has not been working, but mostly, she could only find menial jobs which paid her pennies. One of the jobs even paid her as little as N15,000. There was even a time she worked at a nursery school as a teacher, collecting only N10,000 monthly. The last job she did was working as a waitress at a hotel. Her salary as a waitress was N20,000 monthly. The money was not enough, but she was just using the job to pass time. Uju was desperate to make quick cash and she was ready to do anything to save herself from poverty. It was while working at the hotel that Uju met Madam Philo, a rich woman who always came to the hotel to spend money as if she had a machine that prints cash for her.
One evening, Madam Philo was with a friend at the hotel and they were talking about their next journey to Italy. They were talking of how they would like to recruit more ladies who would follow them to Italy and earn money like them. They were bragging about the number of ladies they have taken to Italy. Madam Philo made it clear that she would like to help more women to be rich like her.
“I’m passionate about helping young women to travel abroad and to make money like me. There is no money in Nigeria. Italy is the best place for young women to live. I will help as many people who want to go.” Madam Philo said. Meanwhile, Uju was eavesdropping and listening to what Madam Philo was saying as she served them drinks and fresh fish pepper soup that evening. She was so curious. She wanted to know if Madam Philo could also help her to travel abroad and make money. She wanted to ask Madam Philo if she too could be helped to travel to Italy, but she decided against it. She would wait for another perfect moment.
“I will wait when she is going, I will ask her privately.” Uju said in her heart as she placed the tray of drinks and fresh fish pepper soup on the tab
