A Dirty Game

Chapter Twenty-Four

175 Twenty-Four ridays were days most lawyers would spend in their offices. Court sessions were often held from Monday to Thursday weekly. That morning, Omotula was expecting Foti. He was one of the few blacks practicing in Switzerland. His parents brought him there when he was ten, and they were all granted asylum. Though faced with tough racism, he fought hard to become a lawyer. Omotula had fought together with the World Bank for the stolen funds hidden by a Nigerian former president’s son in a Swiss bank to be returned. He hated the way African leaders were siphoning massive sums and dumping them in western banks. When Foti rang, the secretary opened. Omotula was in his office sipping hot coffee. She spoke with him briefly on phone and immediately directed Foti there. When Foti entered, he pushed the cup aside and greeted him. ‘Good morning. How are you doing?’ ‘Fine, Sir.’ ‘Have a seat.’ ‘Thanks.’ ‘Can I help you?’ ‘Yes, Sir.’ He presented to him his identification paper. The lawyer looked at it. ‘You have a problem and you want me to help you, is that?’ ‘Yes, Sir.’ When he started searching for a file to take down his case, Foti raised his head to the wall. He saw the picture of the lawyer in legal robes with some judges wearing frightful wigs. The first thing that came to his mind was when he used to buy off lawyers and judges in criminal cases in which he was involved. F 176 ‘Ok, Mr. Fooo… What is your name again?’ he asked picking up the piece of paper to read the name. ‘Ok, Mr. Foti Posh,’ he read out the name as written on the small piece of paper. ‘Right, Sir,’ Foti confirmed. ‘Let me hear you now.’ Foti explained all details. The barrister was puzzled. When he asked him to explain a second time, Foti thought he had a good lawyer who could fight for him. When he finished, the lawyer folded his arms and breathed heavily. ‘Mr. Foti, can you tell me how much you have in the said account? Just tell me the amount again.’ ‘Five hundred million francs CFA.’ ‘That is in Cameroon currency.’ ‘Yes, Sir.’ ‘Don’t tell me that. You said you were a mayor. What other business were you doing? Do you own a company?’ ‘No, Sir.’ ‘How many children do you have?’ ‘Three.’ ‘A wife?’ ‘Yes, Sir.’ ‘Where are they now?’ ‘One is in Germany, and the other two with my wife are in the US.’ ‘I can’t really understand. In fact, just tell me why you decided to block this kind of huge sum in a western bank.’ Foti frowned and was almost getting annoyed. ‘Well, I don’t mean to dissuade you in any way, Foti.’ ‘If you say so.’ ‘Why didn’t you keep this money in any bank in your country? You decided to bring it here. Is there electricity in your village? Does your village have good drinking water?’ Foti wasn’t ready to talk any more. He was nervous and ready to leave. When he stayed quiet for about two minutes, Omotula said venomously, ‘Walk out of my office.’ 177 He immediately fell out and disappeared into the streets. 178 ...