He became a subject of mockery by his friends, even the elders in his Haye community of Yankaba, Nasarawa Local Government Area when he proved his undiluted honesty.
The tricycle rider, Auwalu Salisu, 22, who operates in Kano State, is by no means a rich guy. A school dropout, his parents, faced with the current economic hardship, are only trying to make ends meet.
So, when he stumbled on the missing N15 million, he would have reasoned like his critics: “Allah has His own way of blessing people,” especially when the owner is a Chadian passenger who came from Chad to buy goods in Kano.
Instead, he was afraid and worried to be in position of such a huge sum of money forgotten in the tricycle which he operates daily to supplement the efforts of his parents in fending for them.
He returned the N15 million, which when converted include 10.130 million CFA and N2.9 million. Since that singular rare act, the humble story of Salisu has changed. He is now a celebrity, an ambassador of youths and a reference point in honesty.
Above all, he has now gotten multiple rewards, in cash and kind, which will, no doubt, catapult him to grace.
First to honour him was the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), which rewarded him with N100,000. The cash gift was presented by the ACF Chairman, Dr Gwani Farouk, in a public ceremony.
Farouk, while presenting the cash prize, said “the tricyclist has exhibited the highest sense of honesty by returning the money to the passenger who forgot it in his tricycle, notwithstanding the economic challenges currently strangling the country.” He urged the Kano State Government to reward Salisu hugely.
Farouk said: “It’s not about the amount that ACF has decided to honour him with but the highest form of honesty which he exhibited by returning the money to his passenger in spite of the economic challenges he is facing
“ACF will not only donate money to Salisu but will involve him in its activities to serve as a lesson and example to his friends and youths in the country.
“Salihu, by his action, has demonstrated the fact that there is still hope in Nigerian youths. He has elevated the image of Kano State and that of Nigeria in the estimation of the world.”
It was also reported that the chap of the moment has been given a brand new tricycle for his business operation.
Before the ACF’s cash reward, the owner of the money, Musa Hassan, gave Salisu the sum of N400,000 in appreciation.//YouTube ChannelSpecial BBC report on Nigeria’s presidential poll.
Kano State House of Assembly has also pledged to reward the young tricycle rider for his honesty and proven integrity.
The 40-member Assembly took a unanimous decision to contribute a percentage from their individual salaries to the tricyclist.
The most unusual reward, however, came from the Kano Matchmaking Marriage Association also known as Mai Dalilin Aure, which offered four women to the tricycle rider.
While joining others to reward Salisu for his honesty, the matchmaking group gave him an option of 10 women to select the four wives from.
The Chairman of the association, Alhaji Mukhtar Inuwa Yakasai, who spoke on Freedom Radio, Kano, said that two of the 10 ladies that would be made available are his daughters.
Yakasai said: “The boy has shown the good character of our Noble Prophet, Muhammad (SAW). He is indeed trustworthy. That is why we have decided to honour him with these gifts.
“There are 10 women for him to select four. Two of them are my daughters.”
Salisu said he returned the money after an announcement about the missing money on a radio station in Kano.
He said he did not notice that his passenger had forgotten the money in his tricycle when he (the Chadian) alighted, until he got home.
“After discovering the money, I told my parents about it but they ordered me to go and look for the owner,” he said.
Source: The Nation
