Looking at Mr Jim Ovia talking about ‘his’ Lagos, it is very easy to see why Lagos attracts, and appeals to people…he is a very good example of why everybody wants to come to Lagos.
Lagos is a land of and a provider of abundant opportunities.
The mystique of Lagos is wrapped in never ending stories told over and over again.
Stories of people that are un-inhibited, stories of seas, lagoons, beaches, riches, high rises, successes, fun, failures, breath taking sceneries, wonderful people, razzmatazz and the whole hog.
In 50 years, Lagos has transformed into a mega city with admirable and enviable cosmopolitan outlook in structure, stature, status and in development, exchanging capital city function for a blossoming supercity.
‘Eko ile lo’lu ile ede Nigeria,
Ibe de ni ibere ati opin oun gbogbo
Eko ni moti ri buba obinrin alapa labalaba
Eko ni moti r’adelebo to n lo jigi oju ale, dudu
T’eba ri won lehin ogba won a ya gele genge…
F’seso jaiye l’eko o, sisi eko e f’eso jaiye eyi le o’
Admonitions from Late Adeolu Adekinsanya (Baba Eto)
‘Lagos is the capital of Nigeria
The beginning and the end of all things.
It is in Lagos that I saw a woman with Butterfly-like top,
It is also in Lagos that I witnessed a Lady wearing dark goggles at night.
Do take it easy Lagos ladies’
To everybody and anybody, Lagos holds a bright future, no matter what you are, or what trade you ply, or what skill you exhibit, Lagos will give you that leeway to prove to yourself your worth and ambitions.
In my early days, coming to Lagos was coming to update my ambitions.
No matter your station in life outside of Lagos, Lagos will give you someone or something that is a mite ahead.
In Lagos you have the opportunity of pitching your brains, talents, education and wherewithal against some of the best in the land and beyond.
Surviving the different odds gives you the certificate to call yourself a ‘Lagos Boy’ meaning you have fought the best.
No land in Nigeria of today can give you such a wonderful feeling of conquest and satisfaction.
In fact going back to your land as a Lagos Boy has its own pecks and advantages nobody can face or faze or challenge you anyhow.
You are simply one of the best because you have proven your mettle on the tough streets of Lagos.
Surviving in Lagos is a multidimensional task of presumptions and assumptions.
You must be able to be a step ahead of guys that are trying to be two steps ahead.
It is a battle of wits, skills and your very essence.
Right from the Molue conductors to the Mallam selling whatever on your street, everybody wants to hit you for six.
No gawking in Lagos.
You are supposed to be on your toes and be on red alert 24/7!
No sme-sme, no suegbe!
No bagga, ko si ‘ya were l’eko!
Don’t be a Lagos looker!!!
Street jives to remind you of where you are.
In Lagos everybody lives together in the same yard,work in the same place and rock in the same bars, no discrimination, no cultural or religious intolerance.
Economic strength is the only remarkable form of discrimination.
As a multi-cultural and cosmopolitan entity, it is easy for a new comer to identify their kith and kind, and blend into the larger Lagos fabric with very minimal effort.
Lagosians can make fun of you, poke you, rile you, troll you and quip you, that is where it ends, Lagos is not overtly contemptuous.
An haven for starters and ambitious individuals.
You can meet your destiny and your miracle anywhere in the cosmopolitan city of Lagos and you are on the way to easy street.
Lagos however can be very intolerant to laggards, indolence and the impetuous (Oya!) so to speak.
Lagos admires hard-work, loves successes, appreciates individual industry, romances the serious, loves the genuine article, tolerates the charlatans, copes with vagaries and frowns at indiscretions.
Anything and anything goes in Lagos, a popcorn machine well-placed in Lagos can turn over a million naira annually, likewise a ‘paraga’ joint can fetch half of a million annually if the ingenuity is robust.
A corper in Lagos can turn out to be a chief executive in few years if the dedication and commitment is sufficient in the land of aquatic splendour.
The civil servants in Lagos can pass for bank workers in other lands.
Lagos as a business system is about the most efficient in Nigeria, no other city or state can boast of such super effectiveness.
Satide l’afi n patibaba l’eko o,
Ojo Sunday l’afi n muti aiye,
L’ojo Monday nkan tan, gbese o ni se je mo,
Awin o ni se gba mo,
Oti a won bi oju
L’ojo Monday eko o ni gba’gba’ku’gba o
To ba wa bami f’owo ti mo je e ma lo s’aro Monday o
Tebi ba pa e won a ni kolo gba’win wa o saro Monday o’
L’ojo Monday eko o ni gbagbakugba o’
Lagos Life from the ‘Baba’ Himself…Fela Ankulapo-Kuti(Baba 70’)
‘Saturdays is for erecting tents (parties)
Sunday is for heavy drinking
By Monday resources would have been exhausted, so no to borrowing
Nor credit
Drinks will be unaffordable,
Lagos takes no bullshit on Mondays
Even if you ask me for the money you loaned me, I will tell you it is Monday morning (No leftovers).
They will tell you to go ask for credit if you are hungry
As Lagos does not allow bullshit on a Monday morning’
Being a mega city, catching fun is basically localized, apart from the fun that are nature restricted to certain areas like the beaches and waterfront excitements.
Every area in Lagos has their fun spots…
An Agege fun seeker do not need to get to Ebute Metta to catch fun, neither do a Gbagada gal has to travel to Okokomaiko to enjoy.
By the way I am a Suru-Lere boy, all the fun I needed then was right there in Suru-Lere except for the beach thing and invitation to parties outside the locality.
How can I ever forget the street lined food vendors, the beer parlours by the wayside, the pepper soup joint by street corner and the highbrow lounges dotting all the landscape of the city?
Bata at Ojuelegba for booze, the fried chicken leg and pork under Ojuelegba bridge, down to Kenke and fried fish on Akerele, to Shitta for hot amala, Bank-Olemoh for designer rice, Masha for grilled fish and sharwarma, Adeniran Ogunsanya/Bode Thomas for total night fun of clubbing, agidigbo, et al.
In Lagos, there’s no dull moment!
‘Lagos Jump’ indeed as espoused by the great musical band known as ‘Third World’
Like all mega cities of its stature, Lagos has its own south-side too, crime (from the absurd to the hi-tech), slums, ghettos, traffic, congestion, over population, waste disposal challenges, public water systems, security et al.
However, Lagos has been very lucky with her governors and administrators over time.
Smart and passionate individuals, that have cleverly managed the status and the ego of the city to world standards.
Lagos can favourably rank alongside most European cities especially the island parts.
Subsequently, the next fifty years should see Lagos of massive physical infrastructure to include sky rails, fly-overs, low/ medium cost high rise apartments, efficient water ways, good public water system, sustainable waste disposal initiatives, inner city upgrades, sports facilities, entertainment centres, effective security measures, smart power generation and keeping up with the sophistication of other modern cities worldwide.
Lagos should be a twin city of New York, a super cosmopolitan city with similar natural structure as Lagos.
Lagos my Lagos!
Unlike other cities, Lagos has a life of its own, a different kind of alluring spirit that seeps into you, whispers sweet nothings, grabs you by the crotch and propel you to aspire.
Finally from Baba Chris Ajilo…
Baba Yeye p’emi so fun mi teletele
P’eko akete, ilu ogbon
To ba duro ko sora f’oniyangi,
Eko o gba gbere, eko o gba gbere rara o
To ba lo fe won l’aiya, ijongbon lo fe
To ba lo fe won l’oko ijongbon lo fe
Eko, Eko, Eko o gba gbere rara o.
Loose translation…
‘My Pa and Ma had told me already,
That Lagos of the islands, is a town of wits,
That even on my feet I should be mindful of evil intents,
Lagos does not tolerate silliness,
Marry them as wives, you’ll have fire on your hands,
Marry them as husbands, you’ll have fire on your hands,
Lagos, Lagosians, Lagos will never tolerate stupidity
At all…
