PUNCH
It seems that begging has been normalised in Nigeria. It is ubiquitous. Virtually everybody is begging, irrespective of status. The only difference is the type of begging and the target of the begging. Those who are at the top of the ladder get begged by those who are under them and the chain continues downwards.
Social media has even made it easier, giving it a veneer of anonymity, which helps to blunt the shame associated with it. The popular term “Urgent 2K” is a product of that begging via social media, which is a request many Nigerians receive regularly from known and unknown social media contacts.
At the airports – local and international – the staff line up seemingly looking like professionals waiting to do their work. But behind the façade is a different picture. Begging and exploitation are writ large on that picture. This time round, all the beggars are in different uniforms: the immigration service, anti-terrorist group, customs, airport staff, or airline staff. Sometimes the begging is subtle, with exaggerated greetings and smiles. If the person being greeted does not get the message, the message is made obvious: “Oga, anything for us? Any mineral or water for us?” At the international airports, threats are employed. Certain food items are tagged contraband that will be confiscated except the owner pays a certain amount of dollars. Many feel helpless and part with some money.
If you play ball and continue doling out cash to these beggars in uniform, you will be given express treatment. But if you “don’t cooperate,” they will turn aggressive and search your bags with anger and scatter the contents. And all kinds of hurdles will be placed on your way to frustrate you and make you miss your flight.
At eateries or banks, it is the same story. The security personnel or those who attend to customers make a show of greeting you. The tone and outlandish manner of the greeting sends the message to you that you should “shake bodi.”
At interstate public bus parks, one meets them. Once the bus is full or makes a stop at the nearest filling station to fill the tank, a man appears. Sometimes he may stand beside the bus or even get on the bus. He starts singing Christian choruses and gives a charged sermon and prayer. Then he distributes envelopes and asks for offerings. Naturally, the thought of accidents and deaths flies around the mind of most travellers, which tends to make them more generous at such times.
Near the embassies, there are well-dressed beggars waiting to exploit those who are happy that they have got their visa. They study people to know those to approach. Those who look happy are the usual targets, because they have likely received their visa and will be more willing to part with some money when approached with a story.
On the streets, there are many well-dressed people walking up and down just looking for the next victim to tell a story that will elicit pity. If it is not the story of how they lost their wallet, it is a story about how their relative is hospitalised and needs a certain amount of money to be treated. From week to week, month to month, many of them maintain the same story, because they know that there is a low chance of meeting the same person twice. But sometimes, they run out of luck and meet the same person they told the same story weeks before. Even when that happens, they are not fazed. They simply grumble about their victim disturbing them and then move on to target another person.
