What Is The Value Of A Nigerian Life?

Opinion Pieces6 Comments

The image above not only represents the heart-rending inferno that consumed some commuters in Lagos last week, it could also pass for the current state of the Nigerian nation. On Saturday, a young man, in an apparent demonstration of his dissatisfaction with the chaotic and saddening reality of the country, stood at the Maryland intersection holding up a signage that asked the government of the day either shape up and fix Nigeria like they were elected to do or resign. He stood there almost all day, alone and stoic in his one-man peaceful protest, braving the odds. When the pictures began to make the rounds on social media, one would have expected everyone to laud his initiative and courage, but that was not the case. Rather, some of the same youths who have been clamouring for a revolution opined he was only wasting his time and would soon tire out.

5 Things You Must Know About Lagos and Lagosians

Lifestyle, Stories9 Comments

Smart, street savvy, boisterous and impatient are all adjectives that come to mind when describing the Lagosian. That special breed of people who define the pace and set the trend for other Nigerians to follow. The good, the bad, and the “extra”- Lagos boasts of them all without trying too hard. The DNA of the Lagosian seems to be hardwired from the point of conception. One look, and you can tell that if a person is cut from the Lagos fabric or not. You can’t fake it, it’s either inborn or not. 

On Beggars, Their Trickery, And Growing Aggression

Opinion Pieces, Stories6 Comments

You can’t miss them if you live in a country as hugely populated and as diverse as Nigeria, more so if you live in a cosmopolitan city like Lagos. They remain a part and parcel of the metropolis. Even though beggars are not unique to these parts, the method and manner of soliciting for cash on the streets is certainly unique here. I first really began to pay attention to the growing aggression of beggars when I was observing the compulsory National Youth Service programme in Port-Harcourt, Rivers State years ago. One time, I was in a colleague’s car in traffic when this man walked up to us to beg for alms. Apparently feeling ignored, he began to rap on the side glass in an attempt to get our attention, and probably force us to part with some cash, if not out of mercy, then as a way of escaping the nuisance he was constituting. It didn’t work.