By Franklin Ihejirika, Lagos
Before now, the weekend parties in Lagos and other parts of the South West popularly called Owanbe is the biggest thing in most parts of the cities, but today all that is becoming history as the usually colourful and flamboyant Owanbe is gradually fading.
In Lagos before now, one can hardly drive around the metropolis especially on weekends without encountering people blocking the major streets to celebrate parties, either birthday, child dedication, burial, marriage, engagements, house warming among other things.
This is not to say that there are no more Owambes in Lagos, people are now more civilized in organizing their parties at event centres, hotels with hall facilities that will accommodate more people. So today, the magnitude of the parties is now scaled down to make provision for huge amount to be paid for party venues and other logistics which eats deep into the cost of organizing such parties. Before now, such amount would have been added to celebrate an elaborate event that would be the talk of the town for months which others will try to surpass in the future.
This may not be unconnected with the rising economic situation in the country coupled with the state government policies which frowned against the blocking of major streets in Lagos for parties.
The blocking of major streets in Lagos for parties in the past no doubt impeded the free flow of traffic and created chaotic traffic situation where the major city outlets are blocked during weekends.
Based on this development, the former Lagos governor, Babatunde Fashola warned residents to desist from blocking roads and streets in the name of party.
Fashola signed into law a bill banning the blocking of roads for any form of social or commercial activities in any part of the state.
The law titled “Bill on Commercial Activities and Prohibition of Obstruction of Traffic” makes it an offence for any person or group to obstruct traffic on any road in Lagos state as a result of social or commercial activities.
By the provision of the law, any body that obstructs a law enforcement agent of the State in the course of enforcing compliance to this law will be liable to a six-month jail term with an option of fine or N10, 000 or both.
Fashola said the law was significant in many ways, adding that it tried to address the problem created by the people themselves by the way of life they have chosen for themselves.
He lamented that, “this is the only city or state in the nation where parties are held in the streets. I know of no other cosmopolitan city where this happens, the law would also encourage the building of function halls in the State.”
The former governor then said such function halls and events places would ensure that the people continued with the celebrations they have adopted as a way of life. “We cannot throw away our culture but we can do it in a more orderly manner and increase our life expectancy”, he said.
According to him, the signing of the bill also re-enforced the commitment of his administration to bring to public domain every law passed by the State Government and public information and knowledge why such law was passed, rather than do it in the confines of his office.
In his words, “what the law offers us is that it throws some very serious questions about the continued efforts to build more roads. Roads play very critical role in our lives as a people. Traffic impacts on our life as a people not only on our health but also on the price and cost of living. The efficiency of transmitting and transporting of goods and services is impacted upon by the efficiency or otherwise of traffic flow because how long a vehicle stays on the road and the fuel consumed affects the cost of goods which is passed to the final consumers”.
Fashola appealed to the people to cooperate with government by complying with the law adding that it was one thing to sign the bill into law and another thing to get the people to understand the reason behind such law.
“We have blocked access routes with gates. Agreed there is security problem but rather than solve it we have created more problems for ourselves” he said.
According to Olumuyiwa Akande, a Lagos resident, “this may not be because people are not partying again, but the level of that kind of Owambe has drastically reduced because people now have bigger responsibilities like the payment of school fees which is not like those days most people attended public school, today most parents enroll their wards in private school because of government non- challant attitude to education and the cost implication for a family with four children in school is not an easy thing. This also not forgetting the rising cost of living, like house rent, transportation, feeding and clothing that is not commensurate with wages people are earning.”
Commenting on the declining rate of Owambe in Lagos, Goke Olaitan another Lagos resident explained that the economic situation in the country is biting harder now that even those who are working are also taking care of other dependents and as such cannot afford the luxury of parties again.
“The rate of unemployment is so alarming that people are losing their jobs every day, so in such situations, how will a man who is not sure of his job tomorrow be embarking on the luxury of organising party with the meager resources which he put into other meaningful uses. But this is not to say people are not partying, every weekend there is always one party or the other for people marrying, dedicating children, house warming, burial and all that, but this time around some of them are organized in event centres and rented halls so as not to disturb the peace of other residents. Even at that some of the events are now done in a low key to minimize cost”, he said.
In the same vein, Emeka Igwe noted that though Lagosians still do their parties as people will continue to celebrate marriages, do burial and born children, but the magnitude of the celebration is not what is used to be before.
“I remember those good old days, as a Lagos boy you can enter any street party without even knowing who is doing the party and eat to your satisfaction because there would always be enough to eat and drink, but today all that has changed as people now celebrate based on the size of their pocket. Even people may not have that gut again to move to an event centre just to gate crash in a party he/she was not invited. Here if you break a cup and they ask you to pay, where will one get the money to pay in this difficult time? Though some bold ones still brave the odds to attend such parties whether they are invited or not, even at that, the number of people that will summon the courage to attend such parties is low because there may be bouncers or based on invitation.
Summing it up, Fatai Azeez pointed out that even the super rich do not engage in such life of luxury again as the fear of EFCC is the beginning of prudent spending, while other average Lagosians need to pay house rent and school fees and as such have little or nothing at the end of the month to celebrate parties.
“The illiterate landlords of 20 years ago who collect house rents to organise parties have given way to the more enlightened ones who now know the value of shares and investment in landed properties. Most of them that live the lives of partying and enjoyment have all sold their houses to fulfill their Owambe life style and the younger ones have learnt from them. More so, if anybody is caught blocking streets for parties again in Lagos, the person will have the state government to contend with, he concluded.
