The love game is all about give and take- a trade exchange that involves giving money and getting sex in return, according to a conversation in a taxi to the Francistown taxi rank.

Driver: I am not here to be conned by women. As a taxi man I know better.

Female Passenger: What do you mean conned by women?

Driver: Some of these women think they are clever. We are aware of their tricks. You start dating someone and immediately she wants you to give her money as if you are paying her to have sex with you. There is this girl who is screwing around with a lot of guys and she loves money, but sadly for her, the guys here simply sleep with her today and dump her tomorrow. It serves her right!

Female Passenger: There is nothing for free. Plus what is wrong with giving your partner money? Doesn’t your partner give you money? And when she does, does it mean she is buying you to have sex with her?

Driver: I never accept money from my partner unless it is a loan.

Female  Passenger: Well, that is your loss. There is no harm in giving your partner money, she will repay you in kind.

Driver: That is exactly what I don’t want. Doing that feels like I am paying her to sleep with me, like she is selling herself. This reminds me of this woman I approached a while back. She told me she had a man, so I left her alone, in fact I respected her for that. But recently she begged me for money to pay her bills and I loaned her the money . Instead of paying me back she is suggesting that I  have an affair with her. Wouldn’t that be tantamount to me buying sex because I gave her money? (Bringing Man Passenger into the Conversation) What do you think bro?

Male Passenger: Yeah man it would. She should pay you first and if she is still interested in getting together with you after that then she can make a proposal.

Female Passenger: You are just greedy men!

Driver: I am not greedy, I just want my money back.

Female Passenger: Come on, someone is offering you something but you are only interested in money. Just take the offer, I am sure it will be a better deal. This could just be another way of getting the relationship you wanted to start previously.

Driver: I am not going to do that. I don’t want to be played like a fool. It shows she is the type of woman who is after money.

Female Passenger: So how much does she owe you?

Driver: P350

Female Passenger: Really, P350? Is that money that you should be going around demanding from a woman with whom you could have a night of pleasure? Men out there have built houses for their girlfriends and you have a nerve to complain about P350.

Driver: Our fathers have suffered enough because of such things. I don’t want to fall into such traps. How can I build a house in exchange for sex? No, not me.

Female Passenger: Suit yourself.

By now the taxi joins the road to the rank where trade in various goods not sex seems to be booming. We pay our fare and leave for the office to punch in the conversation.

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