Nationwide, the activities of prostitutes have been seen as anti-social vices that need to be checked. There have been clampdown on perpetrators of the act. But suddenly, Abuja and its environs have seen a large inflow of these night workers who have virtually taken over strategic locations in the FCT and neighbouring states. Olusegun A. Olufemi, Solomon Nda-Isaiah, Ruth Choji, Uche Udoma and Anthony Ada Abraham write on the unfortunate trade
As old as the creation of mankind itself, prostitution is a trade that has found essence in women of easy virtues that aim to make living with their body. And also through time, history has recorded their existence from generation to generation, and the negative effects their presence had on the different generations.
To different classes of the society, they represent different meanings; negative and positive. And their activities have been the source of social debates, especially among religious and social institutions. Different organisations have emerged to curb the activities of prostitution within and around cities to build acceptable moral standards that the young in the society can imbibe for a better tomorrow.
From Lagos to Port Harcourt to Abuja, down to the hinterlands in the country, the trade has suddenly grown and has as well become a source of concern to authorities in these places. But who are the beneficiaries of this trade, and who are the losers? The answers can be intertwine, but like a Yoruba adage says: “It’s fun to watch a madman, but pain to have one.”
For Joy, a prostitute in her late 20s, who hails from Akwa Ibom State, who lurks around the wine bar at New Nyanya along Abuja-Keffi Expressway in Nasarawa State, the trade feeds her family. “My mom is a cassava farmer who feeds the whole family. My dad is late, and we are seven children in all. The paltry sum she makes from the sales of the product can hardly take care of the household. So, as the eldest child, I have to fend for the family too.”
Joy does her business from as early as 7:00pm to late at night, expecting to find a suitable “customer”. She claims to hold a secondary school certificate wherein she added that she has five credits, enough to gain admission into a tertiary institution. Then, why is she not in one? “We are struggling to stay alive for now. I support my mother financially to pay the house rent and other bills in the house.”
She is not alone. Agnes hails from Benue State and comes all the way from Lafia in Nasarawa State to a nightclub in Abacha Road to do her trade. She is a student, like she would like her prospective clients to believe, whose aim in life is to finish her education and become a lawyer. In company of two other ladies, she parades the nightclubs around Abacha Road and other gardens along Abacha-Keffi Expressway.
“I’m in my third year in school and hope to graduate soon. My parents are poor, so I cater for myself. I also take care of my kid brothers in school.” But has she ever thought of taking up a decent part-time job in a company? “I have gone through all that. How much will they pay you? N15,000! I’ll pay for transport, eat and clothe myself. Will that amount solve my problems? Even in some places, they would want to sleep with you before giving you the job,” she lamented.
And in Abuja, the FCT minister, Mallam Isa Mohammed, made a pronouncement sometime in 2010 banning the activities of commercial sex workers in the federal capital. The ban worked for a period of time, even though many insisted it could not be sustained, because banning of prostitution had never worked in any part of the world. And Abuja is like a haven for prostitutes.
However, the FCT authority did well by establishing a task force that was saddled with the responsibility of arresting and prosecuting anyone caught in the act within the FCT. But are they winning the war?
They litter the Federal Capital Territory like ants on grains of sugar, from Kuje to Abaji down to Kubwa where a section of the satellite town has been code-named “women boku”. Some of them trade even on the internet, meeting prospective clients on appointments in gardens and club houses.
Street prostitutes who hawk along busy areas like Adetokunbo Ademola Crescent in Wuse 2, Gimbiya Street in Area 11, and within the metropolis, sometimes dress in skimpy and provocative clothing, meant to attract potential “customers”.
In Abuja, Sonia shuttles between the Eden and Zuma Gardens, both at Utako. She evades law enforcement officers through her years of experience in the trade, while insisting that her involvement in prostitution had much to do with unemployment and poverty. But she shares a N750,000 per annum apartment in Wuse Zone 2 with two other colleagues who are also into the trade.
“I don’t hang on the streets. I attend clubs and meet my clients there. Sometimes though, we (she and her friends) go to gardens, but not often together,” she said. Asked if her real name was Sonia, she evaded the question, rather stating that “life for a single lady is very tough in Abuja.”
Patricia, a prostitute, stated that “I stand at street corners, and I come out when it is late at night. Any man that stops, I first show him my breast. I even make some to touch them before we negotiate price. When I’m lucky, I get N20,000 in a night. But most times, I make between N2,000 and N10,000 in a night. I save a part of the money, because I have a daughter back home in Kaduna who my mother and siblings are taking care of. I also plan to further my education. That is why I save too. As for my customers, there are some that will not want to take you home. So, we just do ‘it’ in the car. Some, in the street corner, whiles others will rent a cheap hotel. I didn’t plan to be a prostitute, it was my friend that introduced me to it and I can’t say I regret it, because I use the money to feed my family.”
Vicky, another prostitute, told LEADERSHIP Sunday that “I am not a prostitute. I am a sex worker. I work and get paid instantly. So, I don’t see what I do as play or fun. That is why I don’t let women near me anyhow. I cannot leave Abuja because this is where we make more money. I have lived in Port Harcourt, but things are not easy there. I make at least N10,000 to 20,000 in a night here. When I am lucky, I make some dollars. Since I moved to Abuja from Port four years ago, I have been able to make enough money to buy land in the village. I will soon build my house and put my mother there, because we don’t have our personal house. I don’t enjoy what I am doing, but so do many Nigerians.”
At the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, they operate in a coded manner. They hang around within the piano lounge, lobby bar, Safari Night Club and the Capital Bar. But most times, they stroll within the premises pretending to be waiting for a cab. The regulars are allowed to enter without any questioning or harassment, while others look for a man to accompany them inside, because the hotel does not permit prostitution nor allow single ladies in without serious business transaction. When they get inside, they buy themselves bottles of drink, hunting for the first “prey” that would make their day. When LEADERSHIP Sunday approached one of them, she requested for as much as N50,000 for the night, and N20,000 for short time. After some findings, it was discovered that some of them, if lucky, end up going home with a whopping sum of N200,000 and above, but it’s not applicable to everyone. But some of them go home with nothing.
The management of Transcorp Hilton Hotel has since tried to stop the activities of these sex workers, but have yet to succeed. It is said that these prostitutes also aid the hotel’s business as many patronise the place because of them, while others lodge there too just to catch fun with the lustfully looking girls that troop into the hotel daily.
Garki also has its share. This is another hub for commercial sex workers, from Gimbiya Street to Port Harcourt Crescent in Area 11 where you see different ladies in different classes moving from one end to the other, trying to use what they have in stock to lure prospective customers.
These places have different hideouts where people go for quick “fun”. Here, their charges range from N5,000 to N30,000 per night.
In a chat with Tinuke, at Garki, she complained bitterly that this January had not been fruitful for her and some of her colleagues. She explained how she spent money from her residence in Lugbe to a popular hotel everyday insisting that it had always been “bad market”. She went further to say on a good day, she could make about N8,000, because there, they charge between N1,000 to N3,000 for a short session, and between N3,000 and N4,000 till dawn.
Lagos Street, also known as Abuja Obalende, is another haven of prostitution. Almost all the security posts of the guest inns and hotels are being used by sex workers for their business. They give the security men stipends after every round of sex. This class of night workers charge as low as N500 to N1,000 for a short session while the low-class rooms go for N500 per hour. The Apo-Kabusa axis is not left out as well. Here you see semi-nude girls sitting in front of their rooms waiting patiently for their customers. Their countenances are hunger for sex and money, and they collect as low as N1,000.
The Gwarimpa axis, known to be the largest estate in West Africa, has on every corner hives of prostitutes. On the most popular street in the estate, the 3rd Avenue, girls are seen hanging around, waiting for patronage. In Gwarimpa, they operate 24 hours prostitution services, because most of them live there. They give you their contacts and you can link them up whenever you need them.
Jabi Masalaci is a zone notorious for cheap but beautiful young ladies and old women, who though don’t look like prostitutes, live in the area while men come in their numbers to patronise them. Sometimes, stern-looking men are seen with the girls who flaunt their bodies with recklessness. Some of the good-looking girls are said to be students from various institutions around the country. Utako sees girls from Jabi-Airport Road hanging out to do their bits. The charges in this area go as high as N20,000 to N30,000. Abuja big boys find girls here more adorable due to proximity. While in Zone 4, some of them now dress like “Hajiyas”. Their new format of disguise is good for market, as those within that vicinity know them and continue to patronise them. Majority of the ladies here are usually foreigners. Pyankasa, a suburb along Lugbe Airport Road, and the Federal Housing Estate, Lugbe are marketplace of prostitutes. These places have been thriving for years.
In 2013, the FCTA earmarked about N5 billion for the rehabilitation of prostitutes and destitute in the country’s capital city. But since the ban of prostitution, the trade has spread, because the girls have deviced new means of doing their business.
Dr Habila Pwankat, a gynecologist in Abuja, stated that “prostitution leaves lots of devastating effects on the girls, and these include HIV/AIDS, Chlamydia, gonorrhea, herpes, human papilloma virus, and syphilis. General gynecological problems with prostitute are chronic pelvic pain and pelvic inflammatory disease (PID). Another physical effect of prostitution is unwanted pregnancy, and most of them abort several pregnancies during their time in prostitution, while others end up with irritable bowel syndrome, as well as partial and permanent disability. It is also on record that prostitutes suffer emotional health consequences like trauma, stress, depression, anxiety, and self-medication through alcohol and drug abuse, and eating disorders. Most of them also use drugs like marijuana, cocaine and alcohol frequently.”
Paul Adoka, a psychologist, said, “I am happy with the law, but making it work is our problem. Some of these girls suffer in the process of selling their bodies. When wicked men pick them, some are left with broken bones, concussions, STDs, chronic pelvic pain, raped and some sexually abused.”
But Aliyu Hamza, a staff of the FCTA said that “the task force mandated with the ban is not doing enough. If the law is enforced, these girls will stop parading themselves in the city at night. Those patronizing them should also be arrested and prosecuted. Prostitution breaches Section 183 of the Penal Code of Northern Nigeria, because they constitute public nuisance. They should be jailed when they are arrested instead of made to pay a small fine and released the next day.”
And Garba Modibbo, a residence in the FCT, wants the government to create more jobs and open skill acquisition centres for youths so that jobless girls can learn and become self-employed. That will discourage them from becoming prostitute, she insisted. It is not every prostitute you see on the street that wants to do that. Some are pushed into it out of desperation.
When LEADERSHIP Sunday contacted AEPB, the information officer said that the AEPB only enforces the ban on prostitution and cannot comment on the issues. He however directed us to the Social Welfare Department, where the director could not be reached, as she was said to be in a meeting. When the PRO was reached on phone, he asked LEADERSHIP Sunday to write him a letter through the secretary, Social Development Secretariat, making it clear that he could not respond until the letter has been written to him.
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