If you're looking for people known for their tenacity then I would gladly recommend Nigerians. We go through a lot of struggles and still find time to have fun and be happy, although this can also be said for other nationalities.
The past few weeks has quite hectic but like I mentioned earlier we're known for weathering the storms.
Amidst weeks of scarcity and hike in fuel prices, CBN (Central Bank of Nigeria) announced it would be redesigning the naira notes. Old notes are meant to be returned to the banks in order to get the new ones. This news was met with mixed reactions because the economy is largely dependent on cash transactions.
This is a story about you, from your point of view and I'll leave you to come to your own conclusions.
It's 8am in the morning and after doing a few chores, bathing andgetting dressed. You whom we'd like to call X (for gender neutrality), decides to step out to get breakfast from a nearby local restaurant.
X arrives at the restaurant and meets a few other customers arguing in front of the restaurant. The whole gist of the matter is that the restaurant owner has refused to accept all old notes because CBN has given a deadline for it's usage.
X mentions that they could instead use their bank apps to pay, but it seems other customers had previously tried using this method and they were debited while the restaurants account wasn't credited hence the argument.
Frustrated and deciding to tread on the path of caution, X leaves the restaurant and heads home. On getting home finally decides to go deposit the old notes at the bank and get the new notes from the bank. So once again X heads out.
This time around though X decides to drive down to the bank. On getting to the bank there's a long queue at the ATMs available. So X decides to go in to deposit the old notes and come back outside to withdraw the new ones because the bank wasn't allowing withdrawals on the counter due to the pressing need for deposits.
X finally deposits the old notes and luckily the queue outside at the ATMs has reduced. In no time, X is finally able to get hands on the new notes but it's not enough.
Now driving back home hungry and tired, X (remember you're X)notices your fuel is almost empty and decides to stop at a fuelling station.
You queue once again but it eventually gets to your turn. Your fuel tank is filled and you proceed to pay but this is where the drama begins.
The fuel attendant selling to you claims the new notes you're giving him is fake. Puzzled, you get angry while also explaining that you're just coming from the bank but he refuses to listen and soon there's a crowd gathered around you both.
Someone people hint that you were trying to dupe the fuel attendant while others say the money is original but somehow brighter in color to the one they've been seeing around (maybe CBN printed your notes wrongly).
The argument continues this way with no solution in sight until someone says they should put the notes in water and see if the ink will fade. You know this is a very bad idea but with opinions in favor of the fuel attendant, you reluctantly agree.
Someone volunteers to go wash the notes but thirty minutes later he's still nowhere to be found. Now the fuel attendant insists you've still not paid him while you also insist the money is original and he should go look for the volunteer. Another round of argument starts again.
Seeing the direction the argument is going, many of the passerby who were previously shouting their various opinions earlier now begin to disappear one after the other leaving you both to your argument.
Some of the people still standing begin another round of conspiracy theories. Some claimed the volunteer who absconded with the money was a US spy trying to destabilize the economy, others claimed he was a trained in a Russian facility.
Tired, hungry and frustrated your phone rings and it's a call from your best friend telling you he's been waiting at your apartment door for you.
You explain the situation to him and he laughs and goes on to inform you that CBN had just extended the deadline for the exchange of the old notes to the new ones.
Now you burst out laughing in pure laughter of misery wishing you'd just kept your old notes earlier.