I know I stated in my previous post that I would be sharing the not-so-nice parts of life in Nigeria but I didn’t know it would be this soon lol.
Lagos is one of the biggest mega cities in Nigeria, we have very few of them here. It is also a state (we use ‘state’ and ‘city’ interchangeably). It is a popular tourist place, there’s no way a foreigner would visit Nigeria without getting a feel of Lagos. It is the commercial central of Nigeria, commonly referred to as “the commercial hub”. There are clubs, the exhilarating nightlife, the famous beach, extravagant estates with exquisite bars and restaurants on the island. The city is divided into two parts — the island and mainland with a long bridge linking the two called the Victoria island bridge.
As exciting and opulent Lagos may appear to be, there are millions of citizens living in poverty. They reside at some areas of the mainland and outskirts of the city. It is not uncommon to discuss mega cities and their system of transportation.
The major transport system in Lagos are personal vehicles, commercial motorcycles (bike) and tricycles which is popularly called the “okada” and “keke or keke napep”. For context, check the image below:
photo taken by Serrabellum on Instagram
Both the poor and middle class use this means of transportation to navigate the city. The constant heavy traffic has a lot of people relying on them especially the okadas (motorcycles) to easily maneuver the traffic.
So recently, these motorcycles and kekes were banned by the state government. Now even though, the drivers can be very reckless, they were easy and cheap transport for most people. The policy was officially passed on the 1st of February leaving millions of people stranded with no alternatives. Some had to walk long kilometers to their jobs; this may seem normal to anyone living in places like New York or London but unlike those highly developed societies, Lagos does not have well built walking pavements or pathways. The roads are horribly bad which makes walking extremely uncomfortable. This has affected many lives, rendering a lot of people unemployed because for some, commercial motorcycles and kekes were a source of daily income. There were private transport companies whose businesses like Gokada were also affected. The people of Lagos are furious and frustrated because this seems like a not so thought out, impulsive and apathetic move by the government.
In a bid to catch on with other developed cities, the government has driven its citizens to a state of chaos. We are looking at possible increase in the rate of crimes and insecurity due to lack of unemployment and poverty.
What are the possible ways to handle such situations - is the big question right now. You can comment below and we’ll discuss the harsh realities of Lagos state.
The people resorted to riding horses to work (hilarious!!! - ehh not so much!) it is the wild wild west down on this side
Thank you for reading my post.