Whoever said vanity is the killer of men surely grew up in nation in where the last time they experienced poverty was before the Industrial Revolution. I have been fortunate to live a life only few in our homeland Ghana, can ever imagine.
Because of my body, I have been able to provide employment for a thousand youth in Ghana, Germany, Venezuela and the UK combined. The name Sima Ibrahim contours up imaginations of the fashion world, the lay person and finally a whole continent.
Name the profession; I have done it, sadly though my cunning ways have come at an impasse. I am accused, guilty before proven innocent. It is as though as one snap of a finger, all the good I have done means nothing. The mouths I have fed, the inspirations I provided, and all mean nothing.
“Furer Ibrahim, sir, do you understand sir, we are doing everything we can to have you extradited back to Germany,” says the German diplomat #2. In my mind this is a lost cause, I’d rather they focus their energies on the paedophile Whiteman that has been put in cells next to me.
Why can’t they understand, regardless of my German citizenship, I am of this land and though I appreciate what my German citizenship has done and is doing for me, this battle is neither here nor there. “Please sirs, you are wasting your time, this is Africa. I have accepted my fate, let me be, please,
” I say to them, silence holds the air as I clock their dejected faces. Diplomat #1 snapped out of his reverie by saying, “very well then, it appears your health is affecting your mental capacity to accept these terms, so we shall return tomorrow, thank you for your time.”
As they turn to leave, I can’t help but put my mentoring hat back on. Both men arrived in posh suits, by the look of the cut; it is a Tom Ford gray flannel suit with leather shoes probably from Woolworths. Diplomat # 1 ought to have tied his long locks in a ponytail in order to keep up with the formal ensemble.
Also when he exercises, he should take care not to focus so much on his chest which his skinny legs make it appear that they are suffering from carrying the bulk of the muscles in his pecks and arms. Please young man, do strength training for the upper body utilizing your body’s weight to shape the upper body and do weight lifts to focus on your legs being careful not to bulk up too much in thighs lest you be called only for sports modelling contracts. A tear forms at the corner of my eyes, as I realize, my powers are confined to an audience of my mind.
It began with the taunting of my mates that I spend entirely too much time in front of the mirror. Being a student at Accra Academy was a dream come true, for my parents, town and most important the goals I hoped to achieve. You see, I knew that being in this school would equip me with the traps to eventually travel abroad, make waves and return home a rich man.
Only, somewhere along the line, my centre of influence became less academic and more sinister in nature. I knew the ladies at my school were attracted to me but I paid them no mind, my ‘boys boys’ would drop hints about these girls and still I would ignore them. Only one lady had my heart, my ultimate symbol of Lady Luck, mounted right above my living quarters, a large poster of supermodel Naomi Simms.
Looking furiously at me is my dormitory mate, Dex, he says,” charley, you spend too much time in that mirror. We will miss the meeting with our guy, come on, lets go, after all this is not about your looks, or?” “I know Dex, its just that, I want him to take one look at me and know I am serious about this deal,” I say to Dex as I brush my freshly cut fade one more time and dab a bit more sporting waves to my sides making it shine some more.
“Okay Dex, lets go,” I say with finality and proceeded out the dormitory with him and the others gathered at the alighted taxi. Our destination is a posh communication centre at the scenic hills of Weija. We told the taxi driver to return in 3hours and we will treat him to a generous monetary gift due to the fact that seldom do professional drivers take this route to find customers. There are 4 of us Paa Solo and Mr.Eve are the other two.
“Dex, Charley how? This must be the others, Sima, Paa Solo, Mr. Eve welcome to the spot, have a seat,” says Captain, a burley stoic man with creamy red skin and even redder hair that can rival the clay earth of Ejisu. Captan, in a commanding tone declares, “I was not sure what you will have so dinner will be served latter in the night…”
“Oh no Captan, please, don’t worry yourself, we do not wish to bother you, I speak for all of us when I say we have eaten,” says Dex. We all node our heads in agreement.
Captan: okay then, you are all big boys right, good.
I smiled because I knew this form of chivalry from a powerful king pin can only mean he expects us to remain docile in his presence, but I would not fall for it, so I interjected.
“Excuse me Captan. Dex informed us that you will have traveling oppurtunities for us, is that true, please explain!” With a brow lifted, Captan zoomed in on my eyes and proceeded to talk to me as though I am the one that holds influence in the group, a position he had assumed belonged to Dex simply due to the association between him and Dex.
Captan: of course, it is true, which brings me to why you are important to this deal.
Captan: you are soon to inherit your father’s lobster shipping business, how would you like to surpass the riches of your father or even great-grandfather?
Sima: I am list-en-ning.
Captan: well then, if you can acquire one boat from your father, so that I may ship my oysters, you stand to make a hefty profit amongst yourselves with the bulk of it going to your father and myself of course.
Sima: My father need not be involved, I own fleet of boats but unlike my father, I am only allowed entry to West African waters.
My friends had stunned looks on their faces, Dex in particular was so shocked he said,”my paddy, you never told me.”
Captan: I like you Sima, I have a feeling you will go far. You know when to reveal privileged information. I will end this meeting for now but in two days I want you to visit me by yourself.
Dex: Captan, what about the deal, is it on or not?
Captan: Dex, relax, in due time you will know it. For now, I want to deal with Sima. Call me tommorrow Dex.
Dex: no problem.
On our way home, Dex had a ton of questions for me as did Mr. Eve and Paa Solo. They knew I came from “well-to-do” financial home but until today, I hadn’t revealed my personal business dealings. “I will not be suprised if Captan is able to get you the visa into Europe first!” exclaimed Dex to which I responded, “that is my hope, and also a Maritime Shipping Licence visa into Europe could really boost my lobster business.”
We were in for a thrill of a lifetime at our young ages, I know the fulfilment of fishing the seas but the idea of getting to Europe was an even better prospect. Plus, to do it on my own without aide from my father made it all the more enticing.
The following day, Dex cornered me after he spotted me on the pitch refereeing a cricket match between freshers and seniors. “Sima, please, if my friendship means anything to you, do not mess this deal up for us, make sure you attend to the appointment with Captan.” To which I responded, “Charley you know me, always on time, sharp and ready.”
Later on, I came to learn the intended plan was for Captan to use me as a springboard to meet my father so as to rent one of his lobster boats but upon learning information that I have my own fleet, the plan changed.
Two days arrived faster than a speeding bullet, as I sat in the chartered taxi heading for Captan’s communication centre, I couldn’t help but ponder my upbringing. Being from a fisherman’s family is not glamorous by any standards but I, out of all my family yearned for something different.
In an effort to weed me out of my constant day-dreaming my father gave me the responsibility of running a small boat at age 7. I had to keep my grades up in order to keep the riches from the boat; however I was responsible for the upkeep of the boat. I was able to convince teenagers (mostly uneducated one’s) to work for me fishing at rare hours of the day so that it would not interfere with my school work.
The loyalty had grown so strong that my father added more boats to our team and when I gained admission to Accra Academy, he gave me a 50,000 Ghana Cedi cheque saying, “Abou Sima, this is all the money I have saved for you through out the years and this will pay for your education.”
Initially I wanted to reveal to him that this money should go towards me expanding the business into non-African waters but this was not the time nor place, I laid the matter to rest and thanked him for paying for my next few years at school (even though I knew this was my hard earned money). As my destination gets closer I broke out of my reminiscing.
Finally, the taxi reached my destination just in time and like clock-work, Captan was there to welcome.
Captan: how was the journey here, I hope your studies are doing well.
Sima: perfect on all fronts, hope you are doing well yourself!
Captan: thank you for asking, I am also perfect. Please join me in the canteen, I have a meal prepared for us.
Sima: oh wow, in fact I have already eaten.
Captan: don’t be silly, I know how you boys ration out your food stuffs, at least eat my assorted fruits. I will have the maid pack a basket for you to take with you back to campus.
Sima: well, how can I refuse! I will take you up on your offer of fruits.
Captan: good, have a seat, feel comfortable.
The canteen was average, the first of its kind actually. Most computer cafes in Ghana at the time discouraged people from eating next to their computer but Captan figured out that offering a room for fast foods could encourage a whole new market.
Captan explained his background to me of how he grew up from a “well-to-do” family like myself in SSNIT Flat. His desire to go abroad came about by way of a journey through the desert starting at Brong-Ahafo.
Once he reached Europe, he got connected with an Italian businessman that wanted him to deliver goods to Libya. Captan kept quite about not having papers in the first place and to his surprise, the man provided all legitimate documents for him to travel in and out of Libya. I gave Captan the benefit of a novice youth, because firstly, I did not believe this tale about growing up in a stable household because he had no photos of his family around.
He gave me a tour of his home, which is immediately adjacent to the communication centre cum canteen, and surely enough, the only pictures he had up were motivational messages like Reach Higher or Except God.
Sima: so please, Captan, shall we talk business.
Captan: of course, like I said before, I have a shipment of oysters that need to reach Germany, I have all the required documents for such a transaction. My only need at the moment is a fisherman willing to ship my goods.
Sima: I see, my fleet is only equipped to handle lobster to be shipped in West African waters. But if you provide upfront cash I can upgrade my boats to meet European seafood regulations in say one month’s time including special storage for your oysters.
Captan: see I knew you and I would be on the same page, I did not even have to explain the importance of this looking as seamless and normal as possible.
Sima: well, I understand that those aren’t real oysters but at the same time I have a reputation to protect, you understand?
Captan: of course.
Then he handed me an envelope filled with cash, to which I assumed goes toward the boat upgrade.” In one month, return with pictures of the upgrades, all the documents will be ready and in your name by that time,” Captan declared.
True to words, documents were provided, and his shipment of oysters was carried out. I never did ask what lay in those bottom feeding delicacy. Not asking is what I believe is the start of my troubles because so long as I saw the money, I considered it trust, a kind of unspoken loyalty.
2 years of deals with Captan during our vacation time from Accra Academy went by fast. My family praised this newly generated revenue, father kept insisting on meeting Captan to thank him in person for all the documents making it possible for me to enter the European waters. That meeting never came to pass however generous gift offerings were made to Captan, as was customary with any of our West African lobster deals. My foray into model came around this time as well.
Dex and I are in Germany renting a hostel preparing to return home after our shipment of oyster and lobster were delivered with success. Instead of using the ship to return home, we decided to try our luck at using a plane ride back home.
Captan was initially against it but his connections got us on a private airliner organized by AfriQuiyah Airlines enroute to Libya then later Ghana. It was on this fateful trip that brought about my 360degree transformation.
“Excuse me young man, what is your name,” came a sound moving toward me was a gray-haired middle aged man of possible American parentage. “Who is asking and why do you want to know my name,” I said back to the stranger who in turn hands me his business card.
I took one glance before Dex grabs it out of my hands reading it out loud, “Andre Leon Tally, Vogue Editor and Chief At Large, New York, Milan, Paris, Tokyo. Telephone number….” I stopped Dex with a cooing gesture.
My heart races because even though I haven’t the slightest clue what an editor and chief does, the cities mentioned on the business card gets me seeing money and a chance to expand my lobster business. I introduced myself to him not forgetting Dex of course, the whole time he just observed me.
Andre Leon Tally: my dear boy, Sima right? You do not smell of fish and your looks certainly are deceiving, tell me, is Tripoli your final stop?
Sima: no sir, we are returning to Ghana for school.
Andre Leon Tally:school! I thought you were in the shipping industry, oh never mind. In any case, Sima, you have the look to be a supermodel, ever heard of Marcus Schankenberg or Naomi Simms?
Sima: Naomi Simms is my future wife. Do you know her?
A vibrating frilly sound came out of the loins of Andre Leon Tally, was he laughing or crying? I could not tell. But the Air hostess cut the conversation short with her request for us to take our seats on the chartered flight into Tripoli.
The flight took upwards of 45minutes to an hour, Dex and I prepared to disembark for our 3hour layover that would require us to return to the same AfriQuiyah flight this time heading to Ghana. There was not much to see at the Tripoli hanger, but our boredom was cured when an entourage of well dressed men and women headed toward us.
Dex and I look at each other like maybe something went wrong somewhere, ever the optimist I assured Dex, “Dex, I think we have nothing to worry about. Maybe this is another matter,” then I look closely at the group and surely I was right. We both said out loud, “Andre Leon Tally,” and just smiled.
Evidently, this Editor in Chief was not one to give up on a prospect so easily. He cornered me as his assistants watched on and instructed me that if I was ever in Europe, I should look him up, he pulled out another business card and this time wrote his personal mobile number on the back of it for me to have.
I call this canonical moment in my life ‘the river between’ to be a Supermodel versus a Fisherman who deals in drugs ala oysters. My heart desired nothing more than to fulfil a lifelong dream of being financially secure till the generation of my unborn grand-children.
This mission was clear at the time. Do I muddy the waters with a continued business deal with Captan? How long was I suppose to ship his drug infused oysters anyway, this lifestyle has an expiration date right?
In asking these internal questions, I should have been prepared to forsake one route over the other. I should have been prepared to forsake one environment over the other. My youthful dalliance with money clouded my vision into a delusion that I could end things with Captan and still be friends…..
Part 2 Coming Soon…
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GC Life 101 is a new feature we are introducing on GhanaCelebrities.Com. This will look at various life realities in short story forms as we try to entertain, educate and inform our readers on a variety of life experiences…Articles for GC Life 101 will be filed under Blog. These stories are fictional and names used even if they match that of another person do not mean anything more than a name used in a fictional write-up.
wen is Part II?
@Yaa Kesiwa bring part II quick I’m feeling this
Wow what a story..i love it
I love every bit of it. Next part PLEASE.
part 2 bring it quick…me feeli paa