Mr. President had been pacing up and down in his spacious office brooding over the news, the accountant general just told him, over the phone. His brow shone with profuse sweat as he wondered what would become of Rio Hondo’s economy if the news were verified to be true.
Promptly the door creaked and opened for the minister to prance in.
“What is it that I am hearing minister?” the president queried once he caught sight of him, “The accountant general just phoned me about seventy percent decline of our capital market and foreign exchange. Did you hear anything ” he swallowed hard and expected a different news from him.
The minister’s jaw sagged and he pressed his lips tightly in contemplation. “Yes, Mr. President, I have only come to confirm if you have heard yet another news. The decline in the capital market is virtually becoming old news now….” His voice died off with a smirk of the lips.
The president cocked an eyebrow and squeezed his brow, “What news again? I am yet to verify the capital market investment and you are confronting me with another news.” He questioned his beholder with his thunderous stare and longing eyes. “Is it about the foreign exchange?” he queried yet further.
The minister gave a firm nod of disapproval. “No, His Excellency. Going by your words it is obvious you haven’t been told about it.” He snorted, curved his lips and watched the president’s face grimace horribly
“What is it, this time? I thought we have huge losses in the capital market and foreign exchange alone.” His heart pounded with utmost disdain as he nervously waited for reply.
The minister hummed in a nagging disturbing manner, “His Excellency, times are getting hard for us. The revenue generators are complaining of poor turnout from the populace due to the ravishing economy. In two years only ten percent have been realized. We can barely pay salaries and service our debts…”
His voice broke out.
The president pummeled his fist into his palms, stroked his hair confusedly and groaned under his breath.
Thought of the loan they took from me had been hitting him in the head and he wished the minister wouldn’t raise issues bordering on it.
With his face turning blue and breath whistling, the president suspected the minister was about to raise issues of the loan.
“We have a huge problem, Mr. President,” he sounded, unlocked his brief case and took out some documents which he placed on the table afterwards. “Just yesterday I perused through the loan documents and I realized we have lost the oil well to Mike Don…”
He had barely finished his statement when the president interjected, “What do you mean by that? Isn’t the tenure for the loan clearly stated to run for two years? This is the first year…” he widened his gaze and shot an expectant gaze at him.
“Take a look at this, His Excellency. We didn’t read carefully before signing the loan. We have flopped.” His finger pointed at a clause, “It says Rio Hondo will lose their collateral to the loaner if fifty percent of the loan is not remitted in eight months.”
The president was nervous at the time. He swallowed hard and his eyes flinted with scare. “What do you mean? How come we didn’t see this clause? But I thought we have paid fifty percent already.” He settled his gaze on the documents to confirm and couldn’t stop blinking nervously the moment he read through.
The minister shook his head in disagreement, “Hell no, Mr. President. We have only paid twenty five percent in one year. And…”
The creaking of the door interrupted him and when they turned around, it was the secretary.
“His Excellency, Mike Don and his lawyers are here.” The secretary intoned.
The minister stared agape, almost losing breath,
“What! Oh no! No! No! Not now!” he pummeled his fist into his palms one more time, bit his lower lip tightly and stroked his hair backward. The president had never been nervous. Suddenly he became hot in his tuxedo despite the winter. He squeezed out of it and tossed it to the sofa close by. “What do we do now, minister? The world richest man is here.”
The minister took in some deep breath and felt shattered with his loins before tossing his head. “The game is up for us, His Excellency. We are up against the wall now. The agreement is legally bound and to think of the powerful man we are dealing with…hmmm,” he hummed, “We are definitely losing the oil well to him.”
“No!” His Excellency slumped in the sofa and fed his gaze at the ceiling as he evaluated the situation. “It is erroneous to lose the oil well in my regime, not in my regime. Oh Mike Don, the world richest man keeps getting richer and richer…” his voice disappeared within his breath as he murmured
“His Excellency, should I let him in?” the secretary asked gently.
The president shook his head coldly.
***
Once the secretary ushered me and my two British lawyers into the president’s office, I observed the minster and the president cringe upon seeing me.
My face was etched with contagious smile and although I never expected them to return the compliment yet I thought they could at least force a smirk.
“Greetings, His Excellency and the minister,” I greeted and introduced my lawyers to them , before I added, “You have defaulted in the agreement binding the loan which I granted to Rio Hondo.”
The minister’s gaze fell, and Mr. President shook his head, averted his gaze from mine and sounded, “I know Mike Don, but please you can give us a little time. Neither of us read that clause. We wouldn’t have signed it if we had read it…”
“Hell, no, His Excellency,” one of my lawyers replied him, “That is not an excuse. An agreement remains an agreement. We have come with Mike Don to review the documents for the oil well and take complete acquisition of it, since you have defaulted.”
Mr. President sniffed, warm tears surged down his cheeks.
The minister shut his eyes briefly and snorted. “You said aright. Agreement remains an agreement. Hence forth the oil well belongs to Mike Don. Shall we start the documentation and signing of documents now?” he demanded coldly.
Angry and frustrated, His Excellency walked out on us, shedding tears.
“His Excellency! His Excellency!” the minister called.
I smiled gratefully.
***
In few hours, after review and signing of documents, I officially became the owner of the national oil well.
I became invigorated.
The news trending all over the world was about Mike Don , the world richest man being the first mogul to own an oil well. This also had doubled my net worth so immensely that more than five hundred reputable banks disturbed me to save my money with them.
My father, Saint Don had been popping wine in celebration of my success, “Son when am I going to see you? I can’t wait to celebrate this indelible success with you.”
“This is a dream come true for me father.” I replied from the other side , clicking glasses of wine with my staff who couldn’t stop celebrating me. “I will be with you in few days, father.”
More power called on…