Before I could say Jack, my feet was in too deep to retreat! Gosh! Perspiration and anxiousness overtook me. What seemed like a swell of a ride had become an eternal nightmare! It was only then, that I appreciated my matronly primary two teacher’s favourite words “not all that shines is gold”! In this instance, not all that is smooth is smooth! My trip into the mouth of the dinosaur was totally unplanned; however, as I entered through its wide mouth, I decided to enjoy the ride. Soon I begun approaching a bumpy portion which seemed like its tongue; then down I was hurled into a narrow opening which seemed like its throat. Unknown to me, scores of victims had preceded my arrival; I was only one of the many [at least I just arrived]. Every one struggled to break free from the heat and frustration; it was then that I remembered vividly the parable of the narrow and wide road. Do I go along with those who had made a ‘U’ turn and had charged for the dinosaurs mouth in a bid to break an escape to face an unknown destiny [through the wide road as it were] or force my way through the narrow road down the body of the dinosaur (at least I knew the outcome of that)! It all begun with a simple desire to visit a friend (on whom I had exhausted all excuses for not honouring my visit appointments) at Adenta, a suburb of Accra. As I approached the Tetteh Quarshie interchange from Accra, some vehicles took a straight route as opposed to the regular Shiashie turning towards east Legon. As adventurous as the day was, I decided to follow the crowd and drove smoothly on the new expanded road works on the interchange. My; it was a fascinating experience! I was full of praise for contractors, and the Government; I was loving it! Driving was a delight on the three lane road! Immediately, I begun to question the numerous concerns about the road construction works and the inconveniences posed to commuters.

Unknown to me, I was right in the middle of the dinosaur’s mouth! As I crossed the Okponglo roundabout, my frustrating experience worth equating to a day in the belly of the dinosaur [a wide mouth with thin intestines] begun! It was as though the road was a huge dinosaur swallowing up every vehicle only to lump them at the throat. Leaving vehicles lumped at the narrow end of the road with a survival of the fittest Darwin would have given anything to study in support of his theory. The three lane road had become a narrow single lane road without warning! Imagine what would happen to all the cars on the lanes. As I manoeuvred my way through the bumpy gravels, a bus conductor at the side with utmost sarcasm blurted out “obaa ma kwan” literally meaning, woman give way; and off they took my place in the queue! The mood was one of anger, manoeuvring, profuse perspiration (in times like these you respect the air-condition), and indecisiveness. Do I go back? A glimpse of the opposite lane gave sketchy feedback; some cars here and there but most importantly, fear of the unknown ahead was high! If I was asked to paint a master piece on canvas about what I experienced, it would simply be: CHAOS to the power three! The journey lasted over three and half hours!

The lesson in the belly of the dinosaur enlightened me on the wealth every Ghanaian sacrifices on the road each day (lost work and family time, fuel, emotional and physical stress, and the like)! Is time really money? If it is, then how much money do you spend on the road each day commuting to and from work? Or Going out for lunch? You must be very rich to spend that much money in the face of the current economic downturn on the road on a daily basis!

By: Henrietta Aba Lartey Email: henritalartey@yahoo.com