TAKING A LOAN FOR A WEDDING, RENT, OR SCHOOL FEES?

When Tola Adeyemi said yes to Kunle at The Vue Restaurant, Novare Mall, Wuse Zone 5, she believed love could handle anything. She lived at Flat 3B, Block 6, NNPC Quarters, Alex Ekwueme Way, Jabi, and worked as an admin officer at Julius Berger Nigeria Plc. Her ₦320,000 salary was enough for bills, not dreams.

Then came the wedding plans. Her mother wanted imported lace. Her friends demanded “classy décor.” Kunle wanted a live band “that would shake Abuja.” So Tola borrowed — ₦3 million from her office cooperative and another ₦2 million through a colleague’s contact.

The wedding at B.M.O Events Arena, 174 Ahmadu Bello Way, Wuse II, was everything she imagined — chandeliers, champagne, gold drapes, endless selfies. Hashtags trended, their smiles filled timelines, and even strangers envied their joy. But when the lights went out, reality kicked in.

₦200,000 in repayments vanished monthly. The decorator’s balance remained. Rent on their Utako flat rose from ₦1.2 million to ₦1.6 million. Kunle’s event business stumbled, clients vanished, and excuses multiplied. “We’ll manage,” he said, though his eyes betrayed the panic.

Tola turned to Koboweb Microfinance Bank, No. 2 Mambolo Street, Off Sultan Abubakar Way, Wuse Zone 2, for another ₦700,000. The officer smiled. “Everyone borrows these days,” he said, sliding the papers across.

A month later, Kunle got accepted for a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) at Baze University, Abuja — tuition ₦2.1 million. “It’s an investment,” he said. She wanted to believe him, so she borrowed again — this time from a loan app with cheerful ads and crippling interest.

By the fourth month, her salary disappeared before she could touch it. Auto-debits, late fees, and constant reminders filled her phone. Kunle stayed out “networking.” The tension at home thickened.

One evening, she broke.
“You’re always out,” she said. “You think I don’t notice?”
“I’m hustling,” he snapped. “You want me to sit here and starve?”
“I want you to help! I’m drowning in loans!”
He turned away. “You started this. You wanted a perfect wedding.”

The silence that followed was colder than any debt reminder.

That night, Tola stood by her window, watching Abuja’s traffic lights flare and fade along Alex Ekwueme Way — the same kind of lights that glowed outside The Vue the night he proposed. “I thought I was building a life,” she whispered. “Turns out, I was financing a fantasy.”

Because in Abuja, love may blind you — but debt always opens your eyes.

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