In spite of the growing poverty in the country, some people have refused to stoop to the paucity of job in the country. Our correspondents, NANNA SELKUR AND ROSE OWOTA ADAH, tell a story on how some Nigerians are surviving.
Day after day, they ignore the heat of poverty and sun, in spite of the soreness and affliction associated with it. Many of them are seen sitting at an alert position, under the scorching heat of the nation’s capital, Abuja without a roof over their heads.
Yet supple, standing by and waiting enthusiastically to move at any point in time to paint, dig foundation, and work on site or to be engaged in any other backbreaking work their employers may so require of them.
They can be found in Wuse, Mpape, Area 1, Wuye, Mabushi and other areas of the federal capital territory. They are labourers in search of daily works to survive.
With their crude working implement-shovels and diggers placed in a standing position, it speaks volumes to the fact that you cannot separate a workman from his working tools.
These tools placed in an erectile position, serve as a trade mark-a willingness to carry out any kind of work.
However, like in most societies, there are sources of revenue usually viewed with the least popularity among people. Among these occupations are the artisan and cottage workers.
Even with the mortifying nature of this kind of occupation, those who engage in these sorts of odd or manual jobs have continued to make a payment significantly to the physical beautification, structural growth and development of any society.
Yet, looking at them from a distance, you may conclude that these artisans are illiterates who know nothing more than rendering manual services to make ends meet; but this is far from it.
On a close look, these artisans come in different categories: educated and uneducated, intelligent and unintelligent, smart and slow, reasonably and ear-splitting-who engage in jobs like carpentry, painting, bricklaying, digging, gardening, interior and exterior decorations, landscaping and others.
Anxious to know how these artisans go about their daily businesses, LEADERSHIP recently visited sites, where they usually sit to await employers. While a large number of them refused to speak on the excuse that they were being stigmatised, a few of them heatedly shared their experiences as well as challenges on the job.
Mr Kayode A. Abubakar, a family man of 42 lamented the ill treatment usually meted out on them by the public who feel nothing good could come out of them. “We are despised by the public simply because we are scanty and have no association or an established office.
Most of the jobs meant for us are usually shifted to people in organised settings. There are so many days we come out here and sit from mornings till nights with no employer requiring our services,” he lamented.
Asked why they don’t have a union, Kayode said, “People here have refused to understand that it is only when we work together that thing can work for us. They prefer to depend on themselves, they don’t believe in unionism.”
For instance, the labourer said that some of them have clients who call on them every now and then but since they are not united, those who have no clients can’t be close enough to learn and get their own clients.
“They believe in working on their own; but things don’t work that way. On different occasions, we have tried to make our voice heard so that the stigmatisation would be reduced but, the government insisted we form an organised body that would speak for us”, Kayode added.
“Ironically, nobody sees the value in that; we are all on our own.”
The kind of job these labourers do and their smartness determines their wages. “We all come in categories. Some have clients and others don’t.
Those who are smart and can express themselves are always lucky when it comes to their job. For those of us that have clients, we earn between N60, 000 to N100, 000 in a month if we get a substantial contract”, Kayode stated.
But Kayode is one of those few lucky persons; there are some time most of them sit idle with nothing to do and since every person’s job description differ, if employers come around and their services are not needed, they waste the whole day.
“I wouldn’t say I enjoy sitting in the sun; but since I couldn’t get a good job, I opted for this which is at least putting food on my table,” Kayode added emotionally.
In this kind of labour, each manual worker is an independent manager of his work; the owner bares the success as well as the losses connected with the business alone.
Painting the ugly nature of how they suffer such loses from some unfeeling employers, an Hausa speaking Yaruwa Mohammed, one of the labourers along Wuse road in Abuja said, “Despite the fact that Abuja is a rocky land we charge N500 per metre long when digging foundations, if is two metres then you will pay N1000.
“On several occasion some engineers have refused to pay us our money, even when the house owner has said they should pay us. We had to joined forces to demand for payment from a developer recently that we had worked for along Apo road, but denied us our pay after 20 days from the day we worked for him.
“We stopped his truck from off loading some gravel, and demanded for our payment, the driver had to call him, to report the incidence, which eventually led to the payment of some of our money but, he has refused to pay the balance until this day.”?
But in spite of that repulsive experience, Mohammed and his colleagues are usually seen waiting on major roads in the FCT for possible contractors or employers of labour.
A young man in his mid twenties who refused to mention his name, but identified himself as the youth leader emphasised on the pain they go through. He also said that they are ready to come together to form an organisation, which would help in making their lives better.
He said, “We are suffering here. Our services are not needed as it should; we are professionals yet, we beg and fight for the job we know so well and don’t even get it.
But since everybody is talking about association, we are ready to form one if that is the only medium through which our voice will be heard.”
While some lamented resentfully on not being employed, some propitious ones made it bare that they prefer this job to jobs like teaching.
A young graduate from Emmanuel Olayode College of Education, Oyo State explained that he became a teacher after graduation and was earning N7, 500 monthly, but decided to come to Abuja in search of greener pastures.
“I was being paid N7, 500 monthly as a classroom teacher and I left my state to Abuja to search for a better job. I was introduced into this job and because I am really smart, I earn N20, 000 and above on every contract job I get. I prefer this to my former job and I wouldn’t give it up for teaching,” he stated joyfully.