One of the major problems that is stifling creativity in Nigeria is not just the lack of infrastructure and resources, but the fact that the cost of living is high, and the cost of being a creative is even higher! Also, the fact that there is no light, and you just about have to provide the infrastructure for yourself. And when you do get all these things in place, including the things you need to bring your ideas to life, there is one more trouble you’ll have to face: thugs.
At this point, it’s almost as if every venture you want to undertake, you’ll have to go through some ‘boys’ first, even after you’ve done everything that’s required of you by law. You open a business and get everything set, and they’ll come in there to harass your staff and demand you pay them off. You buy a piece of land to build your house, but they disrupt everything and try to force you to pay them. When movie producers try to shoot on location, these guys will pop up yet again, threaten thunder and brimstone if they’re not given any money. Hell, these days, even as a small content creator, making a video on the road is enough to make you a target to these guys. They just want to take money from you, and they’re willing to do it by any means necessary.
And as a result, people suffer. Being forced to pay money that they never budgeted for. One time, a governor in the east tried to build a road, and the people in that community stopped work and demanded that he settle them first. He invited them to his office so they could discuss it, and when they got there, he placed them all under arrest. After that moment, no one disturbed any of his projects again.
But then, not everyone has the power of the governor. Because the governor is supposed to protect, not just his projects, but every citizen from people like these. It's quite painful that this is what it has all come down to. You watch movies these days, and they keep most scenes restricted to homes, driveways, and offices. If they’re lucky, they might be able to shoot in an estate, giving an illusion of the street. But to find a realistic busy Lagos street or a traffic jam on a Lagos highway, it will be hard. Not that the producers of the movie won’t get permits from the government. They will, they will do every single thing by the book. Yet, when it's time to shoot, these guys will come from nowhere, demanding money that they didn’t give anyone to keep for them.
We’re suffering, mehn! We’re saddled with leaders who don’t care, and people who will benefit from these projects end up being the very weapons fashioned against said projects. Like, where exactly are we going to? At this point, no one seems to care, except the people suffering for it. But know that the more we keep being quiet about injustices like these, the more confident they get and the more they wreak havoc on people just trying to make an honest living.
In the end, it will still be up to us to take back our society. Until then, let’s keep allowing a bunch of thugs to tell us where to do business and where not to do it.
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