Paddling To Make A Living – Rolly Ibigoni

A seventeen year old girl, student of Senior Secondary Two (SS.2), Government Girls Secondary School, Finima, Bonny in the Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State (OLGA), Miss Rolly Ibigoni, rvealed to this writer that she meets up her requirements selling pure water. I met Miss Rolly Ibigoni at the Bonny beach in Bonny Town boarding a small canoe she loaded with bags of Iced pure water.

I became inquisitive and I asked her what she was doing with twenty bags of Iced pure water.

She quickly told me a brief history of her family.

Hear her, “we are six from my parents and I am the third child. My father worked with the Nigerian Ports Authority, now retired. My mum sells garri to make ends meet, nothing comes out of it. My elder brother is a welder, my direct sister, immediate senior makes phone calls, a business that yields no fruit in Bonny

Truly my parents are poor. They find it very difficult to feed us and also cloth us. It has not been easy. I sell pure water to buy my books and meet up with my other requirements.

I contribute to the house keeping, that is I feed the family (my parents, brothers and sisters) with the gains I make from pure water.

I am very grateful to God, Miss Rolly Ibigoni said, I bought a deep freezer fridge with proceeds from the pure water money.

My pure water selling is unique because, I sell more of my pure water in the fishing port.

I load my hired canoe with more than twenty bags of Iced pure water and paddle to the fishing ports.

Each bag of pure water costs three hundred naira and they are happy to buy because drinking water is difficult to come by in the fishing port. No fridge to cool their water.

There is no electricity in the fishing port. Some of the pure water come out blocked, that is why they are happy to buy.

I sell up to ten thousand naira (10,000) in a day.

She reiterated the need for youths to be wise.

My parents are proud of me, she revealed, but my elder sister is jealous of me surprised of my success.

Almost in tears, Rolly Ibigoni lamented that canoe paddling is very stressful and strenuous. I do it because I want to forge ahead in life and there is dignity in labour. I deprived myself of so many good things of life because I know what I want.

I have started saving for my university education.

The Lord will see me through because I have never seen the Lord disappointing. My trust, hope and faith is on him. I thank the Lord for his mercies towards me, she concluded.

Miss Rolly Ibigoni is a rare gem, humble in nature, soft spoken and very respectful.

I wish her the best in her life’s struggles. May her endeavours materialise in Jesus Name, Amen.

Julie Jumbo