The partial lockdown of businesses and formal activities across Bauchi state occasioned by the current Covid-19 outbreak is taking a negative toll on the poor and the vulnerable, who have to fend for themselves daily.
From Okada riders whose operations have been banned in the state to lower cadre civil servants, laborers, tailors, traders and mechanics, the partial lockdown has either truncated their means of livelihood completely or reduced their income significantly.
These people now find it difficult to meet their family needs especially in this month of Ramadan, forcing some of them to break the partial lockdown orders in search of daily bread, at the risk of being caught by security agents and the state Mobile Court on Covid 19 defaulters.
Their condition is further compounded by increase in prices of basic food items and high cost of intra city transportation.
Numbering about 16,000 across the state based on the 2016 registration carried out by the government, Okada riders are probably the worst hit by the Corona pandemic, following a total ban on their operations by authorities in the state.
Chairman of Bauchi State Commercial Motorcycles and Tricycles Riders AchabaAlhajiAbdullahi Muhammad Nabayi who could not quantify the amount of money his members contribute to the economy of the state daily, was however confident that the decision has thrown many families into chaos, desperation and hopelessness.
Nabayi said beside depending on the business to feed their families, many of the Okada riders took loans of the motorcyclesto be paid back in one year, fearing that the situation will put the lenders and debtors into a collision course.
Isah Muhammed is one of these debtors, who took loan of a brand-new Bajaj motorcycle five months ago. He is to be paying NGN1,000 daily for a period of one year after which the motorcycle will formally become his own.
Though, the arrangement looks fine superficially it is exploitative and the riders risk failing or the lender calling off the agreement along the way.
Investigation shows that, a brand-new Bajaj motorcycle costs NGN245,000.00 but the riders are required to turn in NGN365,000.
A father of 7 kids and two wives, this reporter interviewed Isa at Jamil Guest Palace close to Old Dass Motor Park on Sunday 8th May 10, 2020 doing his Okada business within areas where security agents enforcing the ban will not apprehend him. If apprehended Isa will have to pay a fine of NGN5,000 or in extreme case forfeit the motorcycle. Aware of the danger of his actions, Isa said he was compelled to do so as there was nothing else he could do to feed his family and to fulfill the loan obligation.
“I used to sell yam at Muda Lawal market, but the business collapsed, and I therefore resorted to Okada. Before this ban I was able to feed my family and pay the loan obligation” claims Isa.
Isa parked the motorcycle for the first 2 days of the ban but, came out for business from the third day onward as there was nothing to eat in the family.
“Every day we consume a measure of rice and half a measure of beans for lunch, 2 measures of maize floor for the dinner plus the ingredients for soup. With the increase in prices of food items, I have to work extra hard to put the bills”.
That very day, Isa said he dodged a call from the owner of his motorcycle who was presumably calling to ask him to bring back the machine. Should he return the motorcycle to the owner before the completion of the loan period, Isa would have gone empty handed.
Seizure of 500 motorcycles
In a statewide broadcast, the governor confirmed the seizure of over 500 commercial motorcycles for violating the ban, insisting that the ban stands in view of how the riders could spread the disease and the challenges they pose to the security of the state.
“When they were dislodged from Lagos, most of the commercial motorcyclists relocated to Bauchi, which was then one of the few states that allowed the Okada operations. Even before the Corona outbreak, we were thinking of how to ban the Okada operation, because criminals have been killing the riders to cart away with the motorcycles” says Bala Muhammed.
One of those whose motorcycles was seized after the ban was Idris Alkaleri.
Idris like Isa Muhammed also took loan of the motorcycle and the agreement is now in limbo, since their operation has been banned. If the agreement is voided, Idris and Isa would have no option than to return the motorcycles to the lenders and loose out completely.
Tailors
If not for the Covid 19 lockdown, the current Ramadan season would have been the pick season for tailors, during whichpeople buy new clothes for themselves and their families to celebrate Eid-el fitr.
Towards and within the month of Ramadan, tailors work barely 24hrs in their shops to meet customers’ demands for new clothes for the yuletide.
Alas, reverse is now the case as the lockdown of markets and business premises has limited their production output, thereby affecting their income.
Those whose shops are located within major markets and business centres have been locked down and they had to be operating from home.
This according to the Bauchi State Chairman of Tailoring Association of Nigeria Ibrahim Liman Kawule has significantly affected their production, due to a lot of distraction associated with working from home.
Ibrahim Liman also noted that the rate at which people also bring new materials to be sewed has reduced drastically, when compared to last year.
Bricklayers/Masons
Another group hit hard by the Corona crisis in Bauchi state are bricklayers or masons and their laborers, who like their Okada counterparts also have to go out daily to fend for their families.
Across the state, construction of houses and other structures through which these group of people get their income is virtually at a standstill.
This as observed by WikkiTimes is caused by the closure of shops and other business outlets selling construction materials as the result of the partial lockdown order in the state and limited amount of money in circulationamong people.
A renown mason in WuntinDada area of Bauchi metropolis Muhammad Usman (Mamman) told this medium that, masons and laborers are in a difficult situation following the near total absence of work.
Mamman recalled that before the Corona crisis, construction industry was booming in the state, which kept them busy every day.
“Before this pandemic, in a day I normally lead a group of not less than people and we can earn between NGN25,000 and NGN30,000. At the end of the day, each one of us will come home with nothing less than NGN2,000-says Mamman.
The situation according to him, has now changed completely as the works are now not only hard to come by, but the scale has reduced to an unimaginable level.
“Sometimes we do stay up to a week without any job to execute. Where we get one, it is usually very small for the 10 of us in the group. Imagine getting a NGN5,000 job for the 10 of us after a week without anything”, exclaimed Mamman.
Mamman said, masons and their laborers were not the only ones affected as it is also not the best of time for cement sellers/dealers and other construction materials who were forced to lockdown their shops.
Another mason Nafi’uAdamu said many of his colleagues cannot buy new clothes for their families for the forthcoming Sallah celebration due to lack of jobs. Nafi’u claimed that many of them did not get a single job in the last ten days. In his words “most of us depend on this work (bricklaying) to meet our parental obligations and we are now idle, so feeding our families has become almost impossible”.
No palliative for the poor yet
Despite this situation of desperation among the citizens, the state government is yet to roll out a palliative programme to cushion the hardship.
On the 27th of last month, the state government inaugurated a palliative committee under the leadership of the Emir of Bauchi Rilwanu Suleiman Adamu, the mandate of which was to secure donations in cash and kind from individuals and corporate bodies and distribute same to the poor across the state.
The committee is yet to make public what it has generated so far and when distribution will commence across the state.
Even before the inauguration of the palliative committee, the state committee on Covid 19 led by the state Deputy Governor Senator Baba Tela had received donations of money, food items and equipment from individuals, corporate bodies and NGOs.
In the state broadcast however, the state governor Bala Muhammad assured that the state government would commence the distribution of palliatives across the state in 3 days. He confirmed that the state has received donations of food items, cash and equipment and that a consignment of food items worth NGN700,000,000 is being expected in the state from Lagos any moment.
This report written by Nura Bashir was facilitated by Wole Soyinka Centre for investigative Journalism (WSCIJ) under its Covid-19 Reality Check Project
