One day Nigerian markets boomed with buyers and sellers-amidst the hardship besieging the country, traders and buyers alike scrapped daily rations for their family, the next day Governments instructed markets to shut because of Covid19. The interest of the world in regards to Nigeria centered on how the most populous country can effectively contain the virus-no one paid attention to challenges various government initiatives pose for ordinary citizens.
The lockdown may have its theorized health benefits but what about the side effects? I happened to travel during the harshest period of the lock down. I knew it would be a mountain from onset but certain issues require one’s presence, I could not circumvent the needed presence. Interestingly there are countless Nigerians who were in critical need to travel during this infamous lockdown. This is a country lacking the sophisticated nature of developed nations, only a few percentage of Nigerians rely on or even know what ecommerce is. To get money to elderly loved ones who may not know how online banking works became a problem, these elderly ones probably saw their only means of survival extinguished by the stay at home order, and the only means their children could alleviate their affliction remain the old way of sending money physically.
Interstate traveling though banned nationwide could still happen through bribes. One must have a brimming pocket to begin with since the whole road is littered with checkpoints, some military and police check points while others civilian check points. Public transport fare tripled since drivers give out bribes ranging from #200 to #1000 at each checkpoint, traveling from Ebonyi state to Abia state costs #5000 naira, a journey previously #1500.
In Umuahia the police made it their business to extort money from tricycle riders who could not endure the harsh hunger and misseries associated with lockdown without government palliatives. Some riders pay as huge as #30,000 before they are allowed to get back their seized tricycles. The government failed us in all areas, policing was the worst. Without palliatives how can a man who rely on daily wage to feed his children? Millions and billions were donated to the government at both federal and state level yet appropriate disbursement of some of these funds to needy mouths were not carried out. The money found its way into private pockets.
Cost of necessary Commodities skyrocketed. In Umuahia a cup of garri sold for #100- the question is, how many cups of garri will be enough for a family of six the government forced to relinquish their daily means of earning money? Where will the money for such an exorbitant cup of garri come from? Foreign observers failed to see the exponential rise of deaths related to hunger, depression and poverty. You can’t use dirt from a new hole to cover an old one, causing deaths due to hunger and neglect because you want to stop Covid-19 related deaths is absurd.
During the first weeks of lockdown, police and military brutality increased. How can a country viewed as the big uncle of other African nations call in her military to effect lock down? The work of paramilitaries of which the country has in abundance became a military affair. Unspeakable human right violations, torture and beatings were all carried out by the military. In fact TVC news dedicated one of its nightly Journalist Hangout to this brutality. The populace fell into an abyss of uncertainty and humiliation, subjected into it by the elected representatives.
Tomorrow Covid-19 will be of the past however we should not forget the major sufferers and deaths weren't those with Covid-19 but millions in nooks and crannies of the country who tried to survive in any which way.
