THE UBER DRIVER

JUST THINKING

Femi decided to go into business long before he graduated from the university. He told himself several times that he would not work for anyone. So, he started with a business center back in school. He was able to fend for himself and even helped others while he was in school.

After graduation, he was offered a job by the university but he turned it down. Femi was the second overall best in his set.  His parents and friends persuaded him and encouraged him to accept the job and other job offers but his mind was made up.

He started off with a computer and internet business centre but the problems of electricity, pilferage by his staff and his inexperience cost him the business. He closed down the business and he decided to start off a whole and retail recharge card business. With time, he walked away from it. He made more losses than he did in his previous businesses.

He tried other businesses and failed until he eventually decided to join the Uber business. He bought the Corolla Toyota from his savings and registered with Uber. He started off by kicking the ball rolling from the very first day he started. He had a plan and he also set a target for himself. He also  had time to do other things as well. However, the Uber business favoured him more.

He met and carried a lot of people. The rich, the poor, professionals, call girls, clubbers, and so on. At times, he worked round the clock because of the target he had set for himself. He also had good and bad experiences while on the job. Some customers paid and also tipped him. While some could not pay the complete fare and a few refused to pay. In all, he never fought any of those bad customers. He felt customers were always right, he wanted to have a good record and also be a professional hence he allowed them go.

There was a time a lady's wallet dropped from her bag. She was the last customer he picked up that day. He did not notice it until the following day. When he saw the wallet and opened it, he saw a good amount of Naira and Dollars notes in it. He was tempted. The thought of, "God has rewarded me for all the sufferings and bad customers I have had", came to his mind but he shook the thoughts off and returned the wallet intact. 

The lady worked with shell and she was the Head of Human Resources in the organization. She was amazed by his sincerity and integrity. They had a chat that day and she realized that he was from the same state with her, that is, Ogun State, in Nigeria. She was willing to offer him a job either in shell or one of it's subsidiaries when she discovered he was a graduate but he declined. He was stubborn with his decisions to work for himself. They exchanged contacts before he left and he promised to get in touch. He never did. She tried but he didn't pick her calls.

Then one day, he just dropped off a lady at Victoria Island in Lagos and when he turned around to move away, he saw people running and heard gunshots. He quickly accelerated but he was stopped by four guys with automatic guns. He wanted to run them over but one of them shot at the pessenger's seat and he had to halt. Then, the guys entered the car and their leader hit his head with the boot of his gun for wanting to run them over and his head started bleeding. His clothes became wet with blood but the thieves shouted at him, "Move", if you don't want us to waste your life. Then, he started driving.

They screamed at him to drive fast and he being a good Uber driver and someone who knew the routes very well was able to manouver his way out of the traffic on Adeola Odeku, Victoria island, Lagos. Then there was a chase. The thieves had robbed a bank but their get away car was stuck in the traffic hence they stopped Femi. 

The police chased them with their vans and a helicopter. It was also televised life on television by the Arise Tv News through their sophisticated live helicopter.

When they got to Lagos toll gate by seven up, there was a heavy traffic. Then, one of the thieves came out and started shooting sporadically into the air. People ran and this led to a serious accident. A car ran over three people who wanted to cross to the other side of the road and they died on the spot. Then, there was a confrontation between the police and the thieves. Some police officers and three of the thieves were killed in the gun fire. Their leader was shot in the leg and a bullet hit Femi on his left side while in the car. The leader and Femi were arrested later arrested. 

But first, they were taken to the hospital. After they recuperated, they were arraigned in court. The press tagged it, "The Failed Heist". It became a national issue. The two of them were interrogated but Femi stood his ground. They tried forcing him to spill but he insisted that he was just a Uber driver. People recognized him when the court case started because it was televised live on national televisions. 

The last customer (the lady he dropped before the incident), went to the police station to give evidence and speak in Femi's favour when she saw Femi on television but to no avail. As a result of that, she started off a petition of which many people whom Femi had helped and carried signed it off. Bisola, the lady who worked with Shell contacted that lady. They made contacts with Arise Tv and they were invited for a live interview on the case. Then and there many people realized who Femi was. Bisola spoke about her experience with him and how he returned her wallet. 

The Presidency had no choice but to order for a proper investigation because of the news about Femi. It was then, a video from a CCTV came out where Femi dropped the lady in front of her office before the incident. The police also went to Uber head office in Lagos to confirm if Femi was a registered driver with them. Uber had their records of him and so far so go, he had good ratings from most of his clients. All of those evidences led to his release. But the leader of the gang was sentenced to death.

Bisola was a single mother from a failed relationship twelve (12) years ago. And since then, she had not been in a relationship. But she had started thinking of going into one before her experience with Femi. She actually fell in Love with him after the experience but when Femi was not forth coming, not picking her calls and responding to her whatsApp messages, she gave up on him until the day she saw him on live TV as a criminal. 

While in prison, Bisola was always checking up on him. Then when he was released, they became closer. Femi eventually fell in love with her and they got married six months' later. With her help and connections, Femi started his own online car business which he named, FEMLA and the slogan of the company was "WE MOVE".