#191: South Africa: Lawyer Gatiep

Gatiep grew up in Tafelsig, Mitchell's Plain, an average suburb of Cape
Town, then moved away to attend college and law school. He decided to
come back to Mitchells Plain because he could be a big man in Tafelsig.
He really wanted to impress everyone, so he returned and opened his new
law office there.

The first day, he saw a man coming up the sidewalk. He decided to make
a big impression on this new client when he arrived. As the man came to
the door Gatiep picked up the phone. He motioned the man in, all while
talking.

"No. Absolutely no. You tell those clowns in New York that I won't
settle this case for anything less than one million."

"Yes. The Appeals Court has agreed to hear that case next week. I'll
be handling the primary argument and the other members of my team will
provide support. Okay. Tell the State Prosecutor that I'll meet with
him next week to discuss the details."

This sort of thing went on for almost five minutes. All the while the
man sat patiently as Gatiep rattled instructions.

Finally, Gatiep put down the phone and turned to the man.

"I'm sorry for the delay, but as you can see, I'm very busy. What can
I do for you?"

The man replied, "I'm from Telkom, I've come to connect your phone."

[Contributed by Peter]

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