Name: Joy Okwuchi
State of Origin: Delta
Age: 36 years
Dependants: Four children
Business: Caterer
I am a caterer. I am also into decorations but the business has been poor. The last catering contract I got was in December 2016.
I supplying snacks to Foresight primary and secondary school in Festac, St Jude primary and secondary school in Festac and Margret secondary school, opposite Ojo barracks but before long, the schools employed a caterer to cook for the students and the bill added in their school fees. Now, the students are no longer buying snacks because their lunch is taken care of. My husband is into interior decorations but he has not been getting jobs.
To feed my children now is a big problem. I rely on leftovers from restaurants to feed my children and it’s only in the evening when they have closed business for the day.
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House rent: My rent expired five months ago and my landlord sent us packing without giving us quit notice because we did not pay for agents and agreement fees before moving into the house. We could not afford to pay our annual rent for a one-bedroom flat which is N130,000. Presently, I and my children are squatting with a friend while my husband is staying with his friend at Agbara.
School fees: I have not paid my children’s school fees since January this year. The fees of my first child in basic five at Nation-builders primary school in Agbara is N28,000, the one in basic three is N26,000 and the fees of my children in basic two are N18,000 but I cannot afford to pay their schools. My children are at home pending the time I’m able to pay their school fees.
Challenge: The main challenge I have now is how to feed my children. They have to wait till in the evenings when the restaurants have closed for the day to eat. I also want to start a foodstuff business because the catering and decoration business has been unfruitful.
Chinwe Agbeze
If you want to contact the writer of this story call: +234(0) 803 889 1567, +234(0) 8155184838
