24/04/2026
FINANCIAL INDEPENDENCE
It’s a scorching hot Monday morning in Agbogbloshie and the chaos and noise exceed any other market day. Travellers seeking to buy and sell at competitive prices have doubled the number of people. Social distancing has been thrown to the wind by heavy human and vehicular traffic. Traders can be heard beating their pans and yelling to draw customers’ attention to their goods, without wearing any face masks.
A glimpse at these and how traders had packed their wares on the ground, close to the roadside amidst poor sanitary conditions at the market, made one wonder if Ghana was ever going to succeed at containing the spread of COVID-19.
Right in the heart of the market is Akpene’s shop. She is a retailer who has stocked her shop with a wide array of goods, from canned foods, biscuits, assorted drinks to groceries. She is a hardworking and determined woman who sells with unrelenting vigour. Though uneducated, her physically endowed features made men fumble with nervousness.
Elegantly dressed as the queen that she was, looking very lively and relaxed with her colourfully manicured fingers, delicately adorned with beads, she sat patiently at her desk, waiting to serve potential clients. Juggling between many tasks and wearing a broad smile, she ensured all her customers were well taken care of.
At the end of such a tiresome and hectic day, she heads straight to her sister’s house to pick her kids, and continues home with them. Life had become hectic with the shutdown of schools due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Seeing an exhausted woman, who had endured long hours at the market, with two kids, one saddled at her back, and the arm of the other in her firm grip, standing by the roadside waiting for a “Troski”, made you wonder if she was married. And yes, she was! Married for 10 years, and yet had nothing to show for it, except her children. To say she was a slave in her marriage was an understatement.
Akwasi Mensah, her husband, had lost his job as a result of the COVID-19 crisis, yet for reasons best known to him; he had blatantly refused to take care of their kids. He claimed to be occupied; occupied with sleep and engagements with friends. The least attempt he made to find a job was to read through the newspapers for any vacancy.
On reaching home, she rushed to the kitchen to prepare some food for the family; do the dishes, and then put the kids to sleep. It is only after this that the second part of her business begins.
Seated comfortably in the sofa with a bottle of cold beer in his hands, Akwasi patiently waits for Akpene in the hall. Apparently, Akwasi supported Akpene with the initial capital for her business. Thus proceeds made from each sale, unfortunately went to him.
Joining him grudgingly in the hall, Akpene brings out her sales books and renders account to Akwasi. She hands all the money to him, reminding him of things needed at home. With a grin on his face, he begins to count the money insinuating each time that she had short-changed him.
A bit upset and worn out, she controls her emotions with a stern stare. Yet as she stood up to retire to bed, Akwasi held her hand and touched her breast seductively. As exhausted as she was, she did not have enough strength to resist him, so she succumbed to his desires. Whilst Akwasi was busily whining his waist, Akpene was lost in her thoughts. All she could think about was how she was going to get money for dresses and shoes for the kids. She knew the money would not see the light of the day. Some would hopefully return as stocks for her shop, with the rest disappearing as he steps out with his friends the next day.
Although Akpene appeared as a wealthy, hardworking woman to others, deep within her laid a troubled woman; troubled by the heavy financial burden she had to bear. The children had all outgrown their dresses. The hand-me-downs just weren’t helping. Not to talk of credits for her phone; she had been talking to her ailing mum early on when her credits run out. She needed to even send Mama some money for some medications. And here she was, lying beneath a man who cared less about any of her financial needs. Her only hope was to get some money after satisfying his desires. Smiling mischievously, she gropes him firmly from behind, as she fakes an or**sm. She prays she can get enough to sort out her financial needs.
How financially independent can a wife be?
