“Big Brother shower hour vs. ladies’ dress sense”

The Guardian (Nigeria)
By ‘Labisi Talabi

THERE have been murmurs here and there about the arrest of girls not “properly” dressed on the streets of Lagos. Last week, I read a newspaper report of one of such incidents and I sighed in disgust: “so it’s true!”. The report said one of the ladies claimed to be a University of Lagos student returning home from school. She had her school identity card to show but that didn’t let her off the hook. She was bundled into the waiting police truck with a host of other ladies from all walks of life. Pity I thought to myself. But then again, I can’t really comprehend what her offence was? And what year are we in again, please remind me!

You mean to tell me that in 2007, in the present state of Nigeria (developmental and otherwise), ladies get arrested for what they are or not wearing? Who defines properly dressed? You? Me? They? Them? Who? If you ask me, properly dressed means to dress comfortable to suit oneself, and hopefully the occasion. It is not about dressing for the other person or even worse still, a democratic state. I seldom wear pants (trousers), not because I don’t think it is proper but simply because I feel more comfortable in skirts. But believe me, I wish I had lovely legs and then I’ll will wear a lot of shorts (yes, shorts) and mini skirts, if only to flaunt my legs but more to get the whoa, as I walk by.

The girl next door loves to wear tank tops as she’s comfortable flaunting a bit or much of her breast. Not appealing to me but who cares, she’s comfortable in her own skin and so I look the other way when she passes. But I bet you, others appreciate her dress sense as much as she does. Good for them, good for us all - that’s the way it should be. It’s called freedom and tolerance. But more importantly, the crux of my disgust is the misplaced priority by the arresting agents. Last week, I saw a naked, stark naked man walking down the Third Mainland bridge. He swayed as he walked in gratitude for the freedom to express his state of mind (mentally ill) to the disgust of other road users.

Why didn’t the arresting agents attempt to get him off the street? He was baring all - nothing compared to what any of the girls arrested could have barred. On major intersections and bridges on the island, a now familiar musical plays in the air and I make a conscious effort to look away from the source of the songs as it draws nearer. The sight, sometimes as offensive as a man with exposed swollen groins, is harrowing. Are the streets now a place for institutional so-called charity fairs? Isn’t it displeasing to see a man with tubes (blood in it) attached to a diseased part of his body (usually open too) seated at an intersection while his associates run around with green bags begging for money on his behalf? If nothing else, isn’t this unhygienic for the patient and we, the passersby? Imagine a six-year old boy seeing this on his way to school in the morning? Must he, must we, be subjected to it? Isn’t there a time and place for everything?

Where are the so-called arresting agents? And then to add insult to injury, there is the Big Brother Africa shower hour. A whole hour dedicated to showing contestants as they take their bath every morning. An hour of sheer disgust and the degrading of our fellow humans. Those conservative enough take their shower in their underwear (unhygienic) while the dare-all, just go ahead and shower naked. Baring it all for all to see. Nauseating! Filthy! Revolting! Where are the arresting agents? With the Big Brother show, I am actually very disappointed no governmental watch dog has commented on this, let alone sanctioned the producers. Since when did it become entertainment to watch our future leaders have their bath? Since when did it become courteous to watch others naked? Are we a sick society?

What happened to civilisation? Ironic other versions of the Big Brother syndicate, at least the U.S. and UK version know better than to subject their contestants to this humiliation. Why then do we choose to disrespect our own? Back to the very basic. The last I looked out, the whole state was still littered with filth. Everywhere. Is this proper “dressing” for our environment? Heaps of rubbish, decaying and otherwise, flies attempting to sedate our ears with their hums, foul smells marinating our air as we look the other way and use our hands to save our nose? And yet, there’s time to arrest girls for so called “improper dressing.” It’s a shame there’s a lot of moral decadence in our society but whose fault is it?

The domino effect is what we see today and neither force nor arrest is the solution. It needs a total mind set change with everyone involved - parents, teachers, sisters, brother, clergy, everyone. Lastly, I have learnt that each one of us is gradually forced to conform to our environment. It is usually the norm. No one needs to tell a job applicant what to wear for an interview if she/he really wants the job. If the applicant can’t dress properly for the occasion, he is not fit to be employed - simple as that. Please let us get our priorities right. The arresting agents should channel their time and resources properly.

They should first rid our streets of the improperly dressed mentally ill people and rehabilitate them. They should clean the streets and gutters and make our environment healthier. And also rid the streets of beggars, especially those with diseases and other ailments and give them necessarily medical needs and rehabilitation - these are enough responsibilities for the state, leave the girls to be themselves. Sooner or latter, they’ll outgrow their dress sense and mature. And if they don’t, so be it, it is their lives.

Ms. Talabi lives in Lagos