Lagos, Agberos and Politics

Lagos, Nigeria's mega city, is synonymous with thugs. These thugs are locally called agberos by the Yoruba folks in Nigeria. The agberos are authorities in the commercial sector of the coastal city. Under the auspices of the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), they control the transportation sector of the city - by merely sitting at bus stops and forcefully collecting (extorting) money from commercial bus drivers.

Anyone may be quick to ask why the money is paid, but for commercial drivers in Lagos, such question is unnecessary. Daring to ask such question could result into the vandalisation of your bus and other personal valuables. It could also result in physical assault or even death. No one - even the Police - can question their methods and decisions. And this simply shows the depth of authority exercised by a 'legalised' set of hoodlums in a supposed developed Lagos

You might be asking, how can hoodlums and touts be legalised in a society like Lagos? Well, that's where politics come in. Politicians have great need for these agberos as they are utilised during electoral periods - either to run campaigns or to manipulate election results. When these politicians eventually come into power, it becomes difficult to oust these thugs. But rather than employ them directly, our leaders allow these agberos excess liberty to raise money for themselves - using any method. The thugs - in turn - exploit the commoners to satisfy their whims. Even if a death case is recorded during extortion, the government turns a blind eye to it. This is why it is said that in Nigeria, playing politics with security isn't frowned upon.  Continue...

Lagos seem to be the foundation of agberos in Nigeria. According to a 2007 report in Wikipedia, agberos in the city were estimated at 35,000. After seven years, it is logical to infer that Lagos habours more than 100,000 agberos. Juxtaposing this number with other citizens in the state, a rational mind can understand the extent of potential insecurity and social malaise the highly-ranked African city grooms.

Our politicians pretend not to see anything. They turn blind eyes to every harm done by this set of political puppets. Rather than develop them and reintegrate them into the society, Lagos State Governors - since 1999 - have continued to defend the interests of their "boys". Being an agbero, at the moment, appears to be a very lucrative and stress free job for the young and upcoming boys.

But then, since the leaders have refused to see the bad part of their political tools, I think its high time we reminded them of the foundation of Boko Haram. In Borno, the Boko Haram members - not yet terrorists - were used for political reasons. Ali Modu Sheriff, a former Governor of the State, confirmed he used Boko Haram members during his gubernatorial campaigns. When he came to power - no longer interested in granting their outrageous wishes - these political puppets, in exercising the group's anger, opted for social non-conformism, and eventually terrorism. These Boko Haram boys eventually grew to become a problem to the global society. But they could have been snuffed out from the very foundation.

Lagos is never a serene environment. At every moment - in different areas within the state - there are violent cases and fracas, which are stirred by thugs and area boys.

You may not understand the intensity of the fracas constantly experienced in Lagos. And this is why Lagos is quite different from Johannesburg or Accra. If the government in Accra (Ghana) frowns at street urchins, the government in Lagos (Nigeria) defends their interest.

One thing is certain; regardless of the huge edifices and the good roads, Lagos is still very much underdeveloped since it rears hoodlums and street urchins who are undeveloped. Development is pro-people, and any development which does not change the quality of the people is no development at all.