Corruption

He scrubbed the floor over and over again and muttered something incoherently that Soru Nico could not hear. Soru Nico looked at him intently. It looked as if all that was left was the scrubbing.

“Soru Nico,” he paused, “It seems as if everyone from our school had to become a nurse, a policeman, a soldier or a teacher. I mean, look at it this way Soru Nico; all my life I never thought I would become a policeman. What lacks in all of us rural folks is exposure. I only realized there were bigger things when I came to Harare. You see, that time at school we used to talk nonsense, we lied to each other. I think it was because we were young. It was because none amongst us had the real picture of the world out there in his pocket.”

“Yes that is true. Do you know that Sheila was chucked out of a fragile marriage she found herself in? Menard ended up doing mathematics at Midlands State University and his only option was to become a teacher, there is no way out. I was thrown to the Kariba Basin (Chidyamugwamu), hundreds of kilometers away from home.” Soru Nico said. His voice had a certain element of pain he could not take away.

"Chief Musampakaruma??" Kabhunara asked

"Yes, deep in the jungle."

Officer Kabhunara stooped over the small bucket from which he was dipping the scrubbing rag. He wrung the rag with so much intensity that it ended up breaking. Finally, he threw the rag into the small bucket and landed heavily on the bed.

Suddenly a picture appeared on the screen of the television. It was a picture of a top government official. His face was blooming. He was visibly fat, and breathed heavily; he began to castigate his fellow officials on corruption. The picture flashed past.

“Corruption?” Soru Nico questioned, “Corruption is what we are, corruption is the nation, and it is us Zimbabweans.”

“I agree with you, but I slighlty beg to differ on those who are corrupt. It’s not us mere constables or mere teachers like you. I point at those at the top. Do you know that this fat official who has just flashed past has even corrupted the news crew for him to appear on T.V? There is rampant corruption everywhere, starting from the head down to the toes, there is rampant corruption in the community.”