My Manager in Kano Said I Needed 'Special Training' After Hours. I Went for Seven Months.

I was 23, fresh out of NYSC, posted to a manufacturing company in Kano. This was 2022, and I was the only female in the logistics unit. My manager, Alhaji Sani, was 48, married with four children, and everyone called him 'Malam.' He seemed like a father figure at first.

Then the 'special training' started. He said I needed to understand the company's inner workings, so I should stay back after 5pm. First week, it was just paperwork and advice. Second week, he started touching my shoulder when explaining things. By the third week, he locked the office door and said if I wanted to keep my job, I needed to 'cooperate fully.'

I was scared. My family back in Enugu depended on my salary. I had no one in Kano. So I cooperated. For seven months, I stayed after hours. He paid my rent, bought me a phone, gave me 50,000 naira every month. I told myself it was survival. But every night, I would look at myself in the mirror and not recognise who I had become.

One day, his wife came to the office unannounced. She saw us through the glass door. She didn't shout. She just looked at me with this pity that broke something inside me. I resigned the next week without a word to anyone. I never reported him. I told myself it was because I needed the reference, but deep down, I was ashamed that I stayed for the money.

If you are reading this and you are in that kind of situation, please know that it is not your fault. But also know that staying will cost you your soul, not just your body. Find one person you can trust. Leave before you forget who you are. I am still trying to remember mine.