Hunting rats, like any king of hunting, is not an easy task but some youth near Zariyawa village are making sure there are enough rats to go round. PEMBI STEPHEN-DAVID writes.
Usman Aziz was pulling weeds in his backyard in Zariyawa, a village in Suleja town in Niger State; one day, ten years ago, he noticed rats in their numbers moving in and out of the bush. Next, he found them running in circus as if impressing someone who had the time to enjoy their show and he soon discovered paths, carved by them, coming from different directions. He was then ‘tempted’ to hunt them. As it turns out, Aziz had recently become one of the best rat hunters in Zariyawa. ‘‘It has never been my plan to hunt rats; it started like a child’s play. I remember in those days, I will run to the bush behind my father’s compound to chase rats. It was? fruitless because all I did was to run after them but today, the story has changed. ’’
Aziz makes sure that he is not left out in the scheme of things when it comes to rat hunting. ‘’ You know that we leave in a competitive world and no one will teach you how to survive. You see, I am a married man and I do all I can to provide for my family. I make sure that there is something to eat everyday,’’ he explains. ‘‘I live here with my old parents and my immediate family. I have siblings, who are mostly girls and are now married,’’ he reveals.
?It is a revelation to see Aziz in his own domain. There, he is a charismatic figure, level-headed and seldom profane. He keeps his people alive with jokes. He placed eight rats in a basket and lights the fire to roast them. ‘’ I want to roast them and keep as dry meat. My wife will cook them for me sometime next week.’’ Aziz has a young family, a wife and a child, but he says it is his duty not only to protect them but also provide for them. ‘‘As a man, you are supposed to do all that is right to make sure that your family is ok. That is want I work hard everyday to do.’’?
Leaving his house as early as 7 am every morning and come back for break at ten and go back at 3pm and finally close at 6 pm everyday of the week, Aziz, 21, is truly on duty hunting rats to survive. He says his primary aim is to make rats available for the inhabitants of Zariyawa and neighbouring villages. ‘‘The people in and around this village are farmers. I am also a farmer but after harvest, I have little to do as my wife will take care of every other thing. So I start hunting for rats. I make sure that I catch enough for people to buy. Though not an easy task, I enjoy the business.’’?
On this fateful day, unlike most days, Aziz was not in the bush hunting. He was sitting under a three mending traps. ‘’ I could not work on the traps yesterday. I came back home late and slept off almost immediately. You won’t believe that I just woke up from sleep. It is already 8:15 and I am still here.’’ Anyday Aziz goes hunting and comes back, his house becomes the theatre of rats, as people are always there waiting to buy.’’
On a sunny Saturday afternoon in Zariyawa village, four young boys move in the bush beating the dry grasses. Not for fun but they have a mission. The mission is as simple as it is counterintuitive: to catch rats in order to eat and earn a living. In Zariyawa village, that is the trend as ‘‘harvest is over and there is nothing else for men to do, ‘’ says Aminu Yusuf, a native of the village. He says it has come to this. To reduce the rate of poverty in the village, young men like Yusuf go out chasing rats in the bush and sell to clients who usually come from Suleja, Kwamba and other towns.????
Yusuf puts a trap in a hole in a path he identified as rats walk way. He had dug the hole earlier. He beats the bush to chase the rats and lure them to the traps. Like magic, rats, in a race to survive, unknowingly run into the traps and Yusuf has a catch. The traps, made of sharp sticks and rubber are in no way friendly to rats.‘‘ When rats run into the traps, they are caught in the neck and the game is over. The rats will cry and that is a sign of a catch,’’ explains Yusuf.
Spending about six hours in the bush everyday and selling the rats at N20, 000 and N50, 000 respectively, is, to say the least, a great feat for Yusuf and his colleagues, who are tireless in hunting rats. ‘‘We are happy together and are even envied in the village for having to wisdom of going to the bush everyday to catch rats.? When it is evening, people come to my house to buy and those who cannot get will book for the next day. There is usually more demand than we can catch everyday. This is what gives us the courage to look for more rats everyday. ’’?
Catching between six to eight rats everyday, Yusuf says he is satisfied because ‘’ I have a choice of what to eat and some money to buy one thing or the other. At least I make meat available in my home every week. I never intended to sell rats, my desire was to catch and eat at home but people started coming to ask if I have some that I want to sell. I thought about it and decided to give it a trial and I am glad I did. It may interest you to know that the cloth I am wearing now was bought from rat money. The bicycle I use was also bought from rat money. I am grateful because I have a trade.’’?????
Audu and his friend, Zubairu, are not left out in the business of ensuring that there are enough rats to go round. Audu, 12 and Zubairu, 11, are protégés of Aziz and Yusuf. They have the simple duty of holding the traps and watching the movement of the rats. They listen to the cries of the rats and inform their masters. ‘‘We also have our traps and share in the catch.’’?
Sani lived and had his elementary education in his native town of Funtuwa, Katsina State before to Zariyawa. Since the major occupation of his people is farming and it is seasonal, Sani, 34, like everyone who leaves his home for greener pasture elsewhere, left Funtuwa to earn a leaving. He said he goes home town quarterly ‘‘to farm.’’ Sani enjoyed what he was doing in his native town but he made little or no money. ‘’ I was farming and raring the family animals back in the village. I was happy doing that but I was not getting money to take care of my needs but the rats I catch and sell are enough to keep me away from home ,’’ he said. Apart from hunting rats, Sani sells firewood, makes and sells hoes. He spends the day hunting rats in the bush and the night making hoes.
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