My first 5years in America was by God’s grace

The perception that life in the North American Country, the United State of America is easy may not be entirely true as the Chief Executive Officer of GIHOC Distilleries Company Limited, Mr Maxwell Kofi Jumah has opened up about some of the struggles he had to endure in the country.

Speaking on Okay FM’s Ade Akye Abia, on Friday, October 1, monitored by GhanaPlus.com, he said as a young man living in the state without proper documentation, the first five years of his life there was just by the grace of God.

“Kwame, you know, I can say that for me when I went to the state, my first five years, it was God who took me through. My mother thought I was in the state, I am living well and my brother will call me every now and done, Kofi, if you don’t send me money I will not eat ooo, then I will send him money”.

He revealed he traveled to the state with a tourist visa even though he had intentions of furthering his education there since his friend had already secure for him an admission in one of the universities adding that his greatest challenge was that he had no documentation which would permit him to earn some decent job to support his stay and so had to resort to menial jobs to survive.

Mr Kofi Jumah mentioned in his entire life in the state, he took up 19 different jobs some of which included, driving, security guard, insurance sales agent, factory hand among many others just to make ends meet.

“Kwame you know I said when I went to America I did 19 different jobs before I came back. So I suffered Kwame. So when I was able to save a little to start school, I had to drive a taxi before I could survive because there, you can’t say you are a student,…… they don’t care, You are not a citizen, you have to pay your rent, everything that workers do to support themselves, you will have to do some and pay your school fees as well. And the job too, you can’t wake up at 9 o clock like you do here and walk majestically to work, no no.. He said 8, if you like be late for 5minute , they will deduct it from your pay. And when they deduct for a long time, they will sack you. That is why I decided to drive a taxi because with the taxi you are self employed,” he narrated.

I couldn’t boast of $300 in my account after 10years in the state

The Ghanaian politician and a former Mayor of the Ashanti Regional Capital, Kumasi said after 10years stay in the state he could not boost of $300 as his saving due to his expenses.

He told the Ade Akye Abia host, chunk of his finances went into bills and  payment of school fees and opined living Ghana was better than living in abroad.

Source: GhanaPlus.com