DECENT ACCOMMODATION IS SIGN OF SUCCESS

The whole thing about public-office kleptocracy is all a game of the mind. If the mind fixates on a thing of beauty or order that gives satisfaction on a scale that can be managed, then why steal from the public coffers? As a young lad in my early teens, I had decided what constitutes a decent and manageable accommodation as retirement from one’s workplace approaches. At Otukpo in Benue State and here in Minna, Niger State, a particular architecture type made and left an indelible impression in my mind. I was too young to recall any such building type at Warri in Delta State, but the rectangular one-storey, broad-verandah, wide-windowed buildings located in broad expanse of space with short fencing is all I ever wanted to own as I approach retirement. The architecture is Africa-conscious or Afro-centric because natural ventilation is still important in our towns and cities. These buildings usually have stonewall front-facing facades and a built-in ground- floor garage in the old-school format. At Otukpo, if I recall correctly, these home types were owned by Lawyer Omaku, Brigadier Obeya, and others. In Minna the Angulus family home just before the F-Layout Junction is always eye-catching and there are a couple of them located on the road to Government House just after the Zenith Bank Junction. If Nigerians consider owning one such property a sign of success, then the propensity to do public-office “corruption” dims indeed. Sunday Adole Jonah, Department of Physics, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Niger State