Saturday I had another Nigerian experience. As of January 1st, the Nigerian government decided to no longer subsidize the cost of gasoline to the masses. The pump price increased 220% overnight, sending folks into a meltdown and sparking a nationwide labor strike. The government caved under the pressure and began subsidizing again at only 150% increase – still large but the strike ended and things began to move again. However, in this not-so-well orchestrated scheme, many small private stations have not been able to get fuel at a cost where they can sell and make a profit. So they are not selling. This leaves all the traffic to a few government stations, causing ridiculously long gas lines.
Having 15 miles to empty according to my gauge, I had little choice but enter the fray. So I packed up my laptop and modem, a thermos of coffee, a book, and a portable hard drive with tons of movies (thanks Alex, Corey, and Luke) and joined the end of the queue; about 1.5 miles from the station. Upon opening my computer, I realized that because we had not had power at home for a while, I had little battery left. I had to scratch the movie idea and go with the book. As it turned out the book was not half as interesting as all the activity going on around me.
At times the traffic whizzed by and other times it crept along with the taxis swapping paint like a night race at Martinsville. I saw various fender-benders but none too serious. At one point, leaving a little too big of a gap between the guy in front and myself, a car cut in line.
I gave him a few minutes, thinking surely he was just discharging passengers and would move on. When the line inched forward he went with it, clearly intending to stay. Seeing that a great injustice had been done to all those behind me who had already been in line for an hour, I got out of my car and confronted the driver.
The adrenaline was pumping but I calmly addressed him. “My friend,” I said, “ you cannot possibly think you are going to join the queue ahead of all these people who have already been waiting.” In the most contrite manner, he and his passengers replied, “Sorry, sorry sir, so sorry,” and he made moves like he was going to leave the line. Feeling good that I had gotten my point across in a gentle manner, I returned to my car. But the guy didn’t leave. After we moved forward a few more times, he was still there.
Before I’d been a bit miffed and even a little amused. Now I was angry. I said a quick prayer, which really helped because when I got out of the car this time, it occurred to me to go back to the car behind me and ask advice from a local. His response was, “The way things are around here right now; just let him be.” Realizing he was probably right, I unhappily slipped back into to my car. Maybe it was his conscience, maybe he was just too impatient, or maybe it was the cold, dirty looks, but after another 20-30 minutes he took off.
This string of cars was a perfect opportunity for all the street hawkers. They were selling everything from fruit to fire extinguishers, air fresheners to rattraps. An old guy came by selling “shim-shams” (I think that was what he was saying). He stopped at my window. With a glint in his eye, he broke into a big smile (complete with gold tooth), and said “Oga, shim-sham? You need shim-sham.” I replied, laughing, “ No, I don’t need, but I appreciate the encouragement.” He was selling condoms.
After 3 hours of creeping along, I was thirty-or-so cars from the station. A man dressed in very fine native dress, robe, and cap got out and began walking around. Hoping for someone to recognize his importance, he was obviously angling to get in at the front. It was wonderful to see a security person scold him and point down the road toward the end of the line. He was not to be deterred, for as I left the station with my tank as full as possible, he was still trying to find someone who would realize what an injustice it would be for him to wait like the rest.
I hope they solve the supply issue soon. After several trips to the village I am down to ¾ of a tank and dreading the possibility of another long queue. One experience was plenty. Not to mention the fact that Ibro told me today the line was twice as long as Saturday.
Sai anjima,
Brian
