by Alexander O. Onukwue

There are not many instances where you can say something similar happens between Nigeria and the United Kingdom, and even when there is, it is usually not positive.

Like the terrible fire outbreak at the Grenfell Towers in London, which have killed at least 75 persons, the story of the displaced persons of Otodo Gbame has shown the depths of the inequalities that exist in our societies. Most of the victims of the Grenfell Towers fire were refugees, working class and people of ethnic minority backgrounds.

However, the Tower is located in Kensington and Chelsea borough, one of the most affluent in London and in the whole of England. Similarly, Otodo Gbame is a water front community not very far from the multi-million estates in the Lekki area of Lagos.

In the case of Grenfell, there was no sack or eviction of the occupants. However, the suspicion that substandard materials had been used in the building and that safety standards had been neglected tell the story of neglect of those in the class of society who have been priced out of the big circles of the housing market. Some commentators believe the unfortunate occurrence has been coming for some time.

For communities in Nigeria like Otodo Gbame, the situation is direr. An article on the website of the Institute for Development Studies describes it as a situation where the poorest and most marginalized urban residents are “in constant fear of their home and their bodies being subjected to the violence of eviction”. Not only eviction, these residents are also constantly “at the mercy of local gangs” to whom they are always vulnerable.

However, while the situation in London is that of where residents cry out on the poor living conditions, calling for improvements, communities like Otodo Gbame just want to be allowed to subsist, at the very least.

Editor