It is imperative for Nigerian leaders to address the various forms of disorder in our society and propose ways of reversing the situation. This disorderliness manifests in a variety of ways: lack of respect for laws, be they traffic laws or the unwritten laws of acceptable public behaviour (e.g., disturbing neighbours with loud music far into the night); the misuse of public spaces (e.g., parking trailers or selling wares on roadsides); total disrespect for time, which makes it impossible for us to organise events properly; etc. When we travel around the world and marvel at how things work without hitches, as well as at the beauty of the environment, we do not realise how much work goes into maintaining that order.
Legislation is vital for establishing order, for where there is no law, there is no offence. Our nation could do with more legislation; and where the laws exist already, they need to be enforced. There ought to be a law on the use of public spaces – roads and roadsides, markets, public buildings, etc. Basically, the guiding principle underlying such a law should be: “If you didn’t build it, you can’t use it for private business.” Thus, erecting stalls, displaying wares or parking vehicles on the roadsides would be forbidden, since roads are built by the government for the use of all. Mechanics would be required to have their own garages; and the law would equally apply to the spreading cassava by the roadside! The misuse of public spaces for private ends is equally seen in the indiscriminate and irresponsible pasting of posters at roundabouts, on electricity poles and public buildings. This should be a punishable offence, with a fine that would be sufficient to serve as a deterrent to others.
The manner of conveying goods is another area that requires legislation, for basic rules of safety are often ignored. Ropes that are not sufficiently strong for the purpose are frequently used to attach goods to vehicles, leading to incidents of logs rolling off from lorries, and floor tiles spilling on to the roads. My daughter once had a bottle of Coca-Cola fall from a lorry going ahead of her, shattering her car’s windscreen. Indeed, transporting bags of cement, planks and other materials on flatbed vehicles without any support at the sides constitutes a real danger to road users and should be against the law.
The justification for such legislation is anchored on the proven fact that people usually require deterrents or incentives to spur them to proper behaviour. Individuals cannot be depended upon to always conduct themselves in a manner that shows consideration for the rights and wellbeing of others. Orderly societies have clear laws governing public behaviour; for example, several Western countries forbid talking to a bus driver while the person is driving, and the law is displayed on the bus. Even where all actions are not regulated through the enactment of laws, appropriate authorities may give specific directives which will result in greater orderliness, as in the examples given below.
Roads should be categorised according to the types of vehicles which may ply them. Trailers and tankers seriously hamper the flow of traffic on neighbourhood roads and end up destroying the road surfaces. Neighbourhood petrol stations and shops should therefore be serviced by much smaller trucks and lorries; the smaller the road, the smaller should be the type of commercial vehicles allowed on it. Moreover, there should be specific times for deliveries to be made; say, between 11 p.m. and 5.30 a.m., as it happens in many developed countries, so that big vehicles do not obstruct movement during rush hours. Of course, this has direct implications for security, for the safety of those who have to work during the night must be guaranteed through the provision of street lights and security patrols. Indeed, the night hours should be used to do any kind of work which might hinder the flow of traffic during the day. There is no reason to patch up potholes in the daytime and cause hours of delay for road users, as it regularly happens now.
The logical conclusion of certain aspects of what has gone before is that we should evolve into a country that works in shifts. It does not make sense for all of us to be working and sleeping at the same time – wasting the night hours and seriously compromising our productivity during the daytime by everybody being out on the streets together. We are far too many for such a system to be effective, as we have seen, especially in our bigger towns where much time is wasted in traffic. Street cleaners, garbage disposal and road maintenance personnel, as well as delivery men and women can do much of their work before the day begins for the others.
Furthermore, the task of building and rehabilitating our roads, railways, schools, hospitals and electricity generating plants that lies ahead of us is so great that we cannot accomplish it working only eight hours of the day. We MUST be in a hurry to change the face of the nation and give ourselves a better life. If every construction company hires at least two sets of workers, the work will move faster and more Nigerians will find immediate employment. If we boot out corruption, there will be enough money to do the work and pay the workers fair wages. And our lives will be more orderly.
