Retirement Party

 

Chidi struggled with his tie in front of his wife's mirror. He could hear his Adaku's patience going down the drain as she repeatedly honked from the garage. A smile appeared on his face as he mused about how husbands usually have to wait for their wives. Now she was the one waiting for him. If only he could knot the damn bowtie correctly! After a few more trials, Chidi gave up and took out the navy blue necktie, which he already knotted in the usual way some time ago. Then, grabbing their tickets, he went to join his wife in the car. 

In less than an hour, they were seated in the conference hall. The event planners had decorated the hall with ribbons and balloons in the company's colours: red and blue. Two chairs were placed at round tables which had been arranged around the hall to face the dais. The dais had the designated high table behind which had been placed large cushion chairs. A banner on the dais loudly announced: Happy Retirement, Chief Oluwole! In front of the high table was a stand from which the master of ceremonies was speaking. The members of the high table were already seated, and Chidi proceeded to put names to faces. 

‘That is Mr Eze Edochie, the owner, and the one sitting next to him is Chief Oluwole. The other one on his left…no, the other left, when that one is my immediate oga, Mr Jeff. We will greet him later. The one on Mr Edochie's right is the CEO, Chief Augustine’. 

'What about that woman? She looks so ancient.' Adaku said. 

'That is the head of the HR department, Mrs Enechie. She is said to have helped found the company. Everyone's CV passes through her table, even the CEO's and Chief Oluwole’s own did too!' 

The party was splendid. Only senior executives and their wives had been invited, and therefore it was of VIP quality. Champagne bottles had been placed at each table while waiters passed local and foreign dishes around the hall. It seemed no expense was spared in this grand occasion for an important man. The MC then started calling on those in attendance to say a few words about the chief. 

As Adaku listened, there was no doubt in her mind that Chief Oluwole was an irreplaceable stakeholder in the company's great vast financial strides. Those who spoke also drew a picture of a philanthropic Chief Oluwole. They also talked about his generosity, humility and kindness. 

'I'm sure we will stay here till next year if we listen to all that the Chief has done. But in consideration of our time, let us listen to only one more person,' the MC announced. 

A man in a light blue agbada indicated that he wanted to speak. He was the only one at his table. When the MC passed the microphone to him, he began. 

'Chief Oluwole, the now retiring Chief Financial Officer, is a great man. He is a giant amongst men. What am I saying sef? Where chief is, we are ants. That is why he doesn't mind-crushing people like me. 

Silence echoed in the hall as everyone understood what the speaker had said. 

The MC was the first to recover, and he quickly moved to recover the mic. However, what happened next froze him on his tracks. From the folds of his agbada, the man had drawn a pistol and was pointing it straight at Chief Oluwole. 

'You are a wicked man. You have been nodding your head up and down like agama lizard when people have been praising you as if you deserve it. "Chief Oluwole is the most humble man I know." Humble my foot! Just because I forgot to insert the 'Chief' one time, one time!'

By now, the man had dropped the mic, and his voice boomed around the hall.

'This man has made wrecking my career his goal. He was the one who….'

A gunshot suddenly rang out. The screams of women followed the sound as everyone ducked under the table. When no more shots followed, Chidi extricated himself from his wife's grasp to observe the scene. The man laid on the floor; his blue agbada now stained bright red while a completely bald man stood over his body. Chidi recognised him as one of Mr Edochie's well-built bodyguards.

Later as they discussed the events of the day, Adaku said, 'That man must have been crazy. Goes to show that you can't please everyone, no matter how nice you are someone must hate you.'

'He wasn't crazy, just probably frustrated.' Chidi quietly replied.

'Well, he shouldn't take out his frustration on other people. You haven't really told me much about Chief Oluwole but from what I heard tonight he seems to be a nice man.'

A snort escaped Chidi. 'Nice Ke? All the employees in this company have been trained in the art of sugar coating. Especially when he comes to the chief. So all the 'good' things you heard about the chief's humble and generous personality were lies.'

'But why the charade? What about the owner and the CEO? Don't they know what kind of man the chief is?' Adaku asked.

'Well, the chief is a financial genius who has made the company millions in revenue. Who's going to complain?'

'I wonder what that man was going to say the chief did to him before he was shot.'

They had arrived home.