- Says Britain must pay reparation, apologise to Nigerians
- Recalls life in old Lagos where two Mushin gangsters’ names evoked fear
Ex-General Overseer of Full Gospel Pentecostal Church, Awawu, Mushin, Lagos, Joshua Ogundele Bello, clocked 90 last week, while his wife, Margaret, attained 80. Pa Bello went down memory lane to narrate how Hammocks were used as means of transportation by the colonial District Officers wherein about six to eight able-bodied men would carry them to neighbouring towns in the 1940s. He also spoke with TAIWO ABIODUN about Fela Anikulapo-Kuti of the Kalakuta Republic, the Night Soil Men, the sanitary inspectors and more.
In spite of his advanced age as a nonagenarian, Pastor Joshua Ogundele Bello can still walk fairly long distance without stress. He hardly visits the hospital because he rarely falls sick. He gait is straight when he walks, and does not need a walking stick to aid his movement. To him, age is in the mind. “I am still strong,” he said, bursting into laughter.
“I was born on the 22nd of November 1933 in Iyere-Owo, Ondo Province of the then Western Region and later Western State, now Ondo State. By then there were no hospitals and there was nothing like medical facilities.
“So I was delivered at home, in Iyere by native/traditionalist midwives, and was nurtured with local herbs and concoction. Maybe that cum God’s grace is why I am still strong,
“I attended St. Andrew’s Primary School, Owo in the then Ondo Province in the old Western State (now Ondo State) where I completed my elementary school in 1956. I went to school late because I was going to the farm to help my parents, and my illiterate parents didn’t know about Western education
“In fact, I forced myself to go to school without minding my age. From there, I proceeded to St. David’s Secondary Modern School, Owoh and left at Modern Three in 1960.
“Then, I had a brother, Samuel Ogundaisi, who is now late. He was a taxi driver in Lagos. Since I had been hearing stories about Lagos, I made up my mind and out of curiosity wanted to know and explore ‘this Lagos’ on hearing about social activities and employment opportunities.
“I boarded a vehicle for five shillings and left for Lagos to meet my brother. Our currency then was pounds, shillings and pence, the British currency, because we were under the British colonial rule.
“On some of the coins, we had the picture of Queen Elizabeth of England. On January 1, 1973 the British currency was stopped in Nigeria and we started using Naira and Kobo of different denominations, but the British currency remained in the United Kingdom.”
LAGOS AS MY DREAMLAND
According to the nonagenarian, the Lagos environment was totally different from the one in his home town, Iyere-Owo,
He said: “I was shocked when I saw the city of Lagos and what it looked like. It was totally different from where I was coming from. Back home activities were dull compared to the city life of Lagos.
“Where I came from, everyone must be indoors at 8pm.
“I lived with my brother at 25, Kosobameji Street, Mushin. Throughout my 40 years stay in Mushin, I lived at two places: 25 Kosobameji Street and 31 Onifade Street.
“But the Onifade building has been sold. I learnt they are erecting another building there.
“I saw many people wearing ties and suits, and I was curious about their jobs. I was attracted by their dressing.
“I got a job at Royal Exchange Assurance for fourteen and a half years (1961-1975). Insurance was popular and many were aware of the importance.
“I remember while I was in the Bible school, my classmate bought a Peugeot 404 car. I advised him to do comprehensive insurance and he complied. Five months later, the car was stolen and the insurance company bought another one for him.
“I went to Life Bible College of the Four Square Church Gospel Church, Ebutte Metta, Lagos between 1974 and 1977 while Rev. Farounbi of Four Square Gospel Church ordained me as a pastor.”
THE MUSHIN OF OLD
Pa Bello said the Mushin we see today is different from that of the 1960s. Mushin, he said, has developed or transformed from a shanty community in the 1960s to a modern one. Then, he said, bus stops were scarce and the population of Lagos had increased through the years.
He said: “Mushin was a place partly full of criminal activities in those days. The mere hearing of ‘ Oko Mushin” sent shivers into one’s spine. Night crawlers were high, unlike nowadays.
My first observation then was that Lagosians don’t sleep. Lagosians were always on the road till dawn.
“My brother, who was a taxi driver then, was always busy at night driving customers to brothels and other places. In some areas in Mushin were people of high caliber who lived in some areas while the middle and low-class people lived in another area.
We had dangerous and dreadful places like Bàbá Olosa, Olorunsogo, Iyana Isolo, Ìdí Oro, Akala, Ikorodu Road and Palm Groove areas regarded as flash points. I remember there were notorious people in the 1960s and 1970s. The most popular ones were Omo Pupa and Anikura; two names that struck fear in the hearts of many.
Their cruelty knew no bounds. They evaded arrest, and even when arrested, they vanished like smoke. These two men were powerful and very notorious in Mushin. They were feared and dreaded. Nobody could arrest them. Even the police could not. They were involved in all manner of criminal activities and no one could question them. They were the lords of Mushin. They got away with crimes!”
Bello, who always preached sanitation, said: “Mushin was the worst with poor hygienic conditions, for not many houses had toilets. People defecated anywhere irrespective of the places as long as there was space.
“There were night soil men, popularly called Agbe poo, who would come and remove human waste into buckets, carry them on their heads and later empty them into the lagoon. Only a few houses had water systems to flush their human waste.
“Men who worked as Agbe poo were mostly strangers in Lagos. The trick is this: those who you will never recognise in life were the ones doing the job. They would not use hood or cover their faces.
“But people from Lagos or neighborhood towns or who lived in the vicinity would cover their faces with hoods to avoid being recognised.
“In fact, Mushin in those days was horrible due to their poor sanitary conditions. In some households, a separate room was created in the building, which served as a pit toilet among the rooms. In another vein, within the building, a room would be converted into a toilet. You would just throw your faeces into the room and that was all.
“In another room converted to a toilet, you just pass your human faeces in a bucket, and when it is full, the night soil men will come at the end of the month to scoop them away.
“You could see over 100 people in a building in Mushin as they trooped out like locust in the morning, going to work. Nobody ever thought of an epidemic. On the roadsides were faeces while one could see human beings squatting to defecate. But this did not apply to high class areas.”
RELIGIOUS ACTIVITIES
“Lagos is a multi-cultural and multi-religious city. No one cared about their neighbour’s religion. We had a lot of Christians going to church on Sundays while the Muslims did not disturb anybody as they observed their Jumat services on Fridays.
“The traditional religious people too were not left behind as they did their own without disturbing anybody. There was no chaos at all.
“The traditional religion people did their own worship. In fact, there was no day or night one would not see sacrifices with cowries, dogs’ heads among other things in clay pots at crossroads. They loved and mingled with one another.”
DAY FELA’S HOUSE WAS BURNT
He was still in Mushin when the late Musician, Fela Anikulapo-Kuti ‘s house was burnt by soldiers.
He said: “I used to pass by Fela’s house called Kalakuta Republic at Ojúelégba while going to work. He also had a Shrine there. He was one of Nigeria’s best and greatest musicians.
“When the unknown soldiers burnt his house on Ìdí Oro-Agége Motor Road, in the1977, the whole Mushin shook to its foundation. Everybody scampered into safety as soldiers went haywire.
“We thought that all Mushin residents were being attacked. We all ran there and saw flames. The building was surrounded by armed-to-the-teeth soldiers. Fela was beaten and his mother was thrown from the upstairs.
“The following day when I passed the place and saw the remnants of the building, tears rolled down my cheeks. Anyway, the government took possession of the building, and a school was built there, which is still there till now.
“Fela later waxed two songs titled Unknown Soldier and Coffin for Head of State.
“People loved Fela because he was a man of the people. As a Christian, I didn’t go to Fela’s night gigs, but I loved his songs. He was a Pan Africanist and he was pro people and anti government. He was a human rights campaigner and the only musician who could challenge the government.”
MY CONVERSION INTO CHRISTIANITY
Pastor Bello said: “If you observe my name, you would see that it has three religious names: Joshua Ogundele Bello. Yes, I am from an African Traditional Religion background.
“That is where you got Ogundele. Ogun is the Yoruba god of iron. My father’s name was Bello because he converted to Islamic Religion, while I am Joshua. I was baptized after my conversion into Christianity by my brother who brought me to Lagos and preached the Gospel to me.
“I was convinced and have no regrets about the conversion till this day.”
RAW DEAL WITH COLONIAL MASTERS
The nonagenarian who witnessed the colonial administration described the colonialists as wicked. Reason: “In Owo where we had District Officers, the natives treated the colonialists as if they were gods. They oppressed with the colour of their skin.
“They were worshipped like gods just because of the colour of their skin. Anytime a District Officers was going out, no matter the distance, about six to eight hefty men would carry him on their heads.
“Yes, I mean it. The DOs had hefty men with hammock on their shoulders. They were called “Hammock Boys” because they carried the hammock on their heads or shoulders as a transportation system.
“There were no vehicles in Owo in those days, so they carried the DOs in the hammock to Ifon, Ipele, Imoru, among other nearby villages (now towns).
“In fact they carried them through the forests and across the rivers because their feet must not touch the ground or water. To add insult to injury, the colonialists would defecate and urinate on the Hammock Boys who carried them on their shoulders.
“Such was the man inhumanity to man they subjected us to, just because we are black.
“Whenever I look back and remembered how the British maltreated us, I feel sad. It was such a terrible experience. Even the invention of the bicycle and the cart made little or no difference.
“Carts, which was supposed to be pulled by horses, were pulled by human beings while the colonial masters or District Officers would sit in the cart alone! Only those who were highly educated could go near them.”
Bello added: “They need to pay us reparations for what they did to us. They should pay compensation to us and beg for forgiveness. They dehumanised us.
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“They came to Africa, especially Nigeria, to strip us of our dignity. The British who came to colonise us really maltreated us, because the colour of their skin placed them too high.”
“Before the colonial period our monarchs were treated like next to God. But the arrival of the colonialists brought different strategies and rules. Instead of fearing the monarchs, it was the government that was feared.
“I was young when Oba Olagbegi Atanneye 1 reigned between 1921-1938, Olowo Ajike Atanneye II 1938-1941, Olowo Olateru Olagbegi I ,1941-1968. Olowo Adekola Ogunoye II,1968-1993,Olowo Olateru Olagbegi II 1993-1998,Olowo David Folagbade Olateru Olagbegi III 1999-2019 and Olowo Gbadegeshin Ajibade Ogunoye 2019 to date.
“I witnessed the crisis that sent Olateru Olagbegi I into exile. Owo people were annoyed about his activities, but this was because of politics in those days, as many houses were burnt and many people were killed.
“He was accused of sending policemen to Uso where many were killed. Later, he was sent on exile. It was predicted that he would spend 25 years in exile and come back 25 years after. The prediction later came to pass.
“Then, Owo was inflamed. Many houses were burnt.”
SANITARY INSPECTORS
Bello described the sanitary conditions in Lagos and many towns as bad and caused a lot of misunderstanding among the natives and colonialists.
He said: “Due to the level of our education then, many didn’t care about their hygiene conditions. The colonialists introduced sanitary I\inspectors called wolewole. These officers were powerful and therefore feared and respected.
“They were like today’s public health officials/eEnvironmental health officials who would come into your compound to inspect the environment.
“We also had these police officers called Olopa Akoda. The sanitary inspectors were quickly noticed by their dressing; same with police officers.
“A lot of quarrels, misunderstanding and confusion broke out whenever the sanitary inspectors came to inspect the environment and living conditions of the residents.
“Many were arrested and charged to local courts. This was a wake-up call to good hygiene conditions.’
MARRIAGE
The clergyman is married to his heartthrob, Margaret.
Speaking with the reporter, Margaret said: “I got married to my husband in 1966 and later changed my name from Mulikatu Saka after baptism in 1967 to Margaret, because I didn’t want to miss the letter ‘M’ in my name.
“I had a friend whose name was Fatimo. She too changed it to Florence because she didn’t want to miss the letter ‘F’.
“My parents did not complain because I was married and therefore could bear any name.”
Madam Margaret, who clocked 80 recently, recalled that she met her husband at Pentecostal Assembly, Soremekun, Mushin.
She said: “I was living with my Cousin at No 6, Kings Street, Lagos Island. He came with his friend Engr. Otokiti, now late. The rest became history, as they say.”