However, leaving home to an entirely new environment exposed me to a different reality, where the neighbourhood dynamics were based on personal interest rather than communal interest. Unlike at home, they always come together for the common good of the community, such as the monthly contribution of funds by each household to pay the night watch guards.
Also, each household was taxed a certain amount of money to provide financial support during times of joy and sorrow, and not only that, they also came out in their numbers to support each other.
When I relocated to Ilorin and moved into my present apartment, I experienced a concerning situation where a neighbour decided to block a motorable road for personal gain. He was building a shopping complex, so he decided to use the motorable road as part of his complex.
The narrow foot path.
Despite all the initial protests from other members of the community and even from the Ministry of Town planning to stop the work, the lack of unity amongst them and his ability to bribe those in the ministry made me believe the saying that with money, you can get away with anything in Nigeria.
This single act from the ministry made it easier for the man to proceed with his selfish agenda, inconveniencing everyone else in the process and leaving only a narrow foot path that had a mini gate that was initially locked around 6 p.m., but with protests from some of the people, it was extended to 8 p.m.
The blocked road did not only affect our daily activities but also put us in harm's way because we were forced to take longer, less secure routes home, especially at night. This absence of communal cooperation affected the whole neighbourhood.
It was disheartening when I discovered that in that same neighbourhood we had residents who were quite influential, ranging from a two-time commissioner in the state to retired military personnel and even one of the current SAs to the Kwara state government and well-established businessmen and women, but all these people failed to intervene due to personal reasons.
The lack of cooperation also extended to the compound where I live. I've encountered some challenges due to the selfish behaviour of a fellow tenant who deems it fit to disrupt essential services like electricity since we all share the same metre and the control switch is in her apartment (the building is an older kind of apartment).
She practically switches off the prepaid metre whenever she leaves the house, thereby leaving the rest of us with no choice but to wait for her return. All the attempts to address the issue collectively by holding a meeting always ended up in a fight, thereby making such meetings ineffective.
As the only tenant who is still single among married tenants, having to live with such a dramatic and selfish tenant has been very challenging, I must say. I have tried reaching out to the legal practitioner in charge of the house to address the electricity issue caused by the troublesome tenant. I observed a little improvement, but still fewer instances of deliberate power cuts, which she claimed were an oversight and not intentional.
From these little experiences, I have come to the realisation that it is very important to live in a community that will always come together to make decisions for the common good of everyone. A community where everyone's opinion is heard and their well-being valued over personal interest.
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