HumAngle

“I used to work as a commercial motorcyclist before the Lagos State Government banned the use of Okada on highways. Since then, things have been very difficult for me. I survive on the stipends I get on the street. I used to buy a rubber of garri for ₦350 or ₦400. But now I cannot buy the same measure if I don’t have over ₦2,000. I could not afford Christmas clothes for my children during the last festive period, let alone buy for myself. There is no food, no electricity.”

“He asked, how could I have agreed for them to marry me off and even put a baby in me? When I told him how hard we resisted, he asked why I did not choose death over it. I started crying. I told him it was not our fault, that we had tried to resist. I was trying to explain to him, but he was not listening. He said all sorts of things to me. He then asked me not to tell anyone, especially my mom.”

“They were entering people’s houses and setting them on fire. As we came running out of the house, they shot at me twice, but I was able to escape. My wife fell towards the exit, and they started hitting her before she could stand up. They took my wife away from me, they butchered her in cold blood. I don’t even know the kind of life that awaits me without my wife. I have to leave the two kids with my mother.”

“While in school, we faced several challenges, including going to school on foot and on an empty stomach because our parents don’t have the means to provide us with the normal three-square meal daily. Also, they don’t have the means to give us transport fare. It often takes us at least an hour to get to school, which sadly results in lateness, missing out on class activities and being behind schedule. We also sometimes lack the means to pay examination fees and other levies, which is up to ₦2,000 per term.”

“Life here has been awful; we barely have enough to eat or sleep on. This morning, some of the children went out to beg. It’s cold, and the children often cough because there’s nothing to cover them with. We don’t have water until we go to a nearby hospital to get some to drink. But it’s not safe because multiple children have been hit by motorcycles on their way to the hospital. That’s all we have going on for us. It’s really sad.”