SHE HATE HAR MADDA

Dear Taiwo,

I wish I could have a say in the situation that is going on in my house, but unfortunately, there is little or nothing I can do. This is because in our society children do not have a say in what their parents do and secondly, if I decide to leave home, I have nowhere to go. In essence I have to accept my mother’s indecent attitude and pretend nothing is happening. I am the third out of her five children and the unfortunate thing is that all of us have different fathers. I and three of my siblings do not know our fathers, only our youngest sister knows her father and even at that he doesn’t live with us and he can only come when my mother wants him to come.

She has a good job as a personal assistant to the executive director of the company where she works, so I am always very confused as to why she is living the way she lives.

I really cannot count the number of her male friends that come around to our house. Sometimes two or more of them have had cause to meet one another in our house. At times she would be inside her bedroom and make us tell lies that she has gone out.

I am very disturbed and sad because we have had to move away from two houses because the landlord and other tenants cannot stand her attitude and the rate at which male visitors come over to our house.

Fortunately, we are in our own house now and we do not have to look over our shoulders to see who is coming or who is watching at us.

A sad incident happened to my elder sister two weeks ago and I wish I were in the position to do more than I did. My mother is fond of sending her and her immediate younger sister to her male friends to collect money and or other errands. She sent her and unfortunately my mother’s male friend raped my sister.

When she came back home she did not have the courage to tell mum but she told us, I forced her to tell her. Unfortunately, she did not believe my sister, she said she lied as the man she sent her to is too gentlemanly to do a thing like that. I was very angry and sad. Should my mother believe the word of her male friend as against my sister’s words?

Instead of doing something to help my sister, she castigated her and accused her of seducing her male friend. Aunty Taiwo, as I am writing you, my sister is very sick and mum wouldn’t even take her to the hospital. As if that was not enough, the stupid man who raped her called her using unprintable names. He was so sure of himself and he even said he knew my mother would not believe my sister’s words against his own.

I am sick and tired of the whole situation. I wish I had somewhere else to stay. I must confess that I hate my mother. I wish I knew who my father was so that I can run away and stay with him. Please, what can we do, help my siblings and I.