I really hate complaining about Nigeria but I swear it feels like that's all I've been doing for the past couple of months. This morning, I was once again reminded of how much I absolutely hate it here.
This morning, I and my wife were supposed to book a train ticket from Kaduna to Abuja to sort out our relocation plans. What we assumed that was supposed to be a simple process turned into a nightmare that drove us to the brink of frustration.
We tried to book a ticket like we always did but instead encountered a frustrating system that simply doesn't work. We're supposed to add our NIN to our portal but the portal simply doesn't work, meaning we can't book a ticket.
Now, if you've been keeping up with my publications, you'll remember that I've talked about the security concerns with traveling from kaduna to Abuja through the road. It is not to say people don't do it but it puts an unnecessary mental strain on us when we do it.
Funny things that even the train has been subject to criminal activities but at least it is more reliable and less frequent than the road. There's also the fact that when we use the train, the terminal in Abuja is close to an economical lodge for us to pass a few nights.
Unfortunately, nothing works the way it is supposed to work in Nigeria and our plans hit a potential snag. I managed to contact a guy that works at the station to help us book a ticket, and by tomorrow, we will know our fate.
I'm not sure of how he intends to do it but he seemed quite confident in the fact that he will get us on the train. We will find out tomorrow, but one thing for sure is that we're definitely going to Abuja tomorrow.
Paying the price
Whenever things don't go according to plan, there is always a price to pay and I just know that it will be financial. Actually, I hope it is financial because anything else will be a bit too tedious for my mind to handle.
I reckon that getting into the train will pose a real challenge and I also know that getting back to Kaduna from Abuja will be another issue. I try not to bother too much about the future, so I when that time comes, I'll find a way around it.
Of course, all this heartache will not have existed if things simply just worked the way they were supposed to work. I mean, how hard is it to have a website that works and verifies something as important as NIN?
