MAINTENANCE CULTURE IN NIGERIA
Growing up in this noble country Nigeria,precisely Lagos Island was a delight for me. The system in place was so organised and virtually everything was working. One was used to very clean environment, well lit streets and roads, well tarred roads with clean gutters, flowing water taps, well equipped schools with dedicated teachers, standard clinics/hospitals with caring staff, waste disposal system and all other required infrastructure. Then the government put required sustenance structure in place for adequate maintenance. For example, we had house inspectors who were putting people on their toes for clean environment.
It is good to note that these structures were put in place by the Colonial Masters and well organised before we had independence which brought in Nigerians for running of the systems in the country.
So many structures sprung up e.g housing. The popular Festac Town and Satellite Town came into being.
In the year 1980, I moved into Satellite Town Lagos which was established in 1979 by the Military Government headed by General Olusegun Obasanjo. A beautiful town with unique amenities, replicating what developed countries provide for their people. The underground drainage was gigantic which did not give chance to flooding at all. The Federal Ministry of Works was on ground for maintenance but this was short-lived.
Few years down the line the system collapsed because of lack of maintenance and encroachment on the pathways provided for the flood to regularly flow away into the lagoon. These trespassers installed mighty foundations to erect their new houses and no one could stop them. The legal occupants which comprises of the elderly who have served the country in their youth and now retired are left in pain because the moment it rains their houses are flooded for lack of outlet for the raindrops.
The story is pathetic. It makes one unhappy. It is like watching a movie, from beauty to shambles. Ugliness everywhere, stagnant water which leads to bad roads and collapsing structures. It is a huge waste of resources and the story of Festac Town is not different. No empathy from the quarters supposedly in charge. People have been pushed to the point of Zero expectation.
The way forward, we need to take Maintenance as a serious business. A well structured system must be put in place,replicating and taking it higher from what we experienced in the days of the Colonial Master. This should involve the three tiers of government and the people should be integrated to save structures from deterioration.
One for All, All for One.