…As government, agencies look away
…Everything reduced to money, morals gone – Entrepreneur
Lagos, the commercial nerve centre of Nigeria, has always been a city that never sleeps. From the bustling markets of Balogun to the high-rise offices on Victoria Island, the megacity thrives on all forms of commerce, both conventional and unconventional.
But in recent times, a new wave of business has raised concern: the brazen proliferation of brothels and strip clubs in public spaces, often within plain sight of children and unsuspecting passersby.
From Oshodi to Agege and even into the mainland suburbs, establishments that were once discreetly tucked away have now taken over street corners. Unlike the past, where such businesses operated behind closed doors, today they openly advertise their services with banners bearing suggestive images. Some even go as far as displaying nude photos, further eroding societal boundaries and exposing children to content far beyond their maturity level.
Parents and community leaders are growing increasingly alarmed. “We can no longer walk past some places without shielding our children’s eyes,” said Olanike Babatunde, a mother of three in Oshodi. “These establishments do not care about the moral fabric of society anymore. They are pushing the boundaries too far.”
Beyond the exposure to explicit imagery, these nightclubs and brothels have also become hotspots for illicit drug trade. Young boys and girls, some barely out of their teenage years, now frequent these locations, engaging in drug abuse and other vices. The accessibility of such places means that minors who should be under adult supervision are instead drawn into dangerous lifestyles.
“The most troubling aspect is that the authorities seem to turn a blind eye. These businesses are operating freely, even when they clearly violate laws and child protection regulations,” said a community leader in Oshodi who spoke anonymously.
Many recall a time when brothels and adult entertainment establishments operated discreetly, far removed from public spaces and prying eyes. But as moral boundaries continue to blur in the name of profit, some business owners have thrown caution to the wind, focusing only on revenue without considering the wider implications.
This change in attitude is partly driven by economic desperation and the pursuit of quick money. Many landlords, in a bid to earn high rents, now lease their properties to such businesses without considering the long-term impact on the community.
The Lagos State Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy categorises “exhibitionism, exposure to pornographic or sexual imagery, inappropriate photography or depictions of sexual or suggestive behaviours or comments” as non-contact abuse of children. However, enforcement remains weak.
Meanwhile, security operatives and local authorities often look the other way, either due to corruption or negligence.
With the situation spiraling out of control, concerned citizens are calling for immediate government intervention. Law enforcement agencies must begin to clamp down on businesses that operate in violation of public decency laws.
In 70s and 80s, those who earned a living from sleeping with men were not too proud of their job.
They plied their trade with utmost secrecy, in faraway places from their homes and preying eyes of relatives and friends.
Also, the promoters and owners of properties used for such businesses were unknown, and hardly associated with such properties in the open.
Again, brothels are usually located in obscure places and patrons usually visit at night.
Today, the “business” has taken a different turn, with the ‘prostitutes’ more emboldened, brothels springing up in places they couldn’t be found some years back, the promoters are more daring with near pornographic adverts, and more properties being turned into brothels by “proud” owners.
“It is business. The prostitutes make money from their clients, they pay rent to the property owners for the rooms allocated to them, the landlords pay levies and taxes to local and state governments. Why is the government not rejecting the levies and taxes from brothels?
“It is a growing business and source of employment for many; food and drinks suppliers, DJs, bouncers and others,” Ikenna Oforma, a landlord in Ajegunle, Lagos, said.
In the same vein, Jide Ogunkoya, a property owner, noted that many landlords are after good returns and do not care what the property is used for or who occupies it as long as their rent is paid as and when due.
“Brothels are on the rise because everything boils down to money for most property owners now. Again, it is a reflection of the rising moral decadence in society. More girls are willing to do the job and more promoters are ready to expand their business.
“Some are after school dropouts, runaway teenage girls and young adult divorcees,” he noted.
Differing from the above views, Margaret Itunu, a school proprietress, decried that the operators are crossing the line in the business nowadays.
“The kind of posters on the gates and walls of these brothels nowadays are pornographic and we have children, with impressionable minds around and seeing them every day and the girls are simply stack naked nowadays, ” Itunu lamented.
She blamed the high exposure of children to pornography, sexual abuse and moral decadence on the influence from brothel activities, which are no longer discreet like before.
“I am a mother and school administrator. Some parents are losing their bright girls to these brothels because of the open lure. Many wives have also lost their husbands to these easy ladies in there, who they empty their pockets to and come home to their wives dry and frustrated,” she said.
She noted that some girls who have been declared missing are often discovered later in brothels. When there is nowhere to go, no relative to run to, some girls seek succour in brothels and mess up their destiny and future.
“Once in the brothel, it is difficult to recover because it is the least level anyone can go in life,” she noted.
Edwin Ogufere, a father of three, equally decried that the “easy ladies” are not rich despite sleeping with countless men, and wonder why many are still doing the job today.
“If you say it is because of unemployment, they can sell recharge cards, do PoS, sales girl, or even petty trading. These are honourable and give more income than sleeping with men they don’t know,” the concerned father said.
He is also wondering why brothel business is thriving when ritualists are taking advantage of the girls for their evil desires.
But the sad thing for Itunu is that the government and other agencies, and even women groups are doing little to curb the growing trend.
“The government claims it is worried about the growing rate of school dropouts, women groups shout over neglect of the girl-child and society celebrate women every March. But less actions match these claims, especially saving girls from pressures that lure them out of school and to brothels. The government should clampdown on brothels because everything is not all about taxes and levies. Some people argue that brothels are licensed overseas, but this is Nigeria, we have culture and we also claim to be religious,” she said.
On the government side, a top official in the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, who pleaded for anonymity, noted that there are regulations for setting up such and the authorities have been clamping down on many defaulters.
“The issue is that they don’t have names, they operate in obscure places, some disguise as restaurants, event centres, good hotels and all manner of genuine businesses.
“But we are going after the property owners, who often come clean of their business and many have been closed on such discoveries,” the official explained.
However, such businesses are regulated by the Nigerian Tourism Development Authority (NTDA), at the federal level and tourism, event centre and hotel registration agencies at the state level.
But the growing boldness of the brothels reflect the lapses in the enforcement of the law by the various government agencies, many observed.
An entrepreneur, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said: “A number of brothels along the Old-Ojo Road in Amuwo-Odofin Local Government Area occasionally organise strippers’ night on Fridays and that its usually to drive human traffic to their brothels.”
The father of two who resides at Ojo Road in the Ajeromi-Ifelodun LCDA said that he engages his children from time to time on such topics and how to better manage the unwelcoming sites across the community.
“As a parent of course, what runs through my mind will be that my kids may be exposed to nudity which is not a good idea for them at that age because they are not mature to handle such exposure and what this implies for parents is more moral attention to our kids such as what they do and talk about.”
According to him, “Having images of unclad ladies vividly displayed on banners in public places without consideration for its offensive nature to children and other adults says a lot about the moral decadence in the society.
“Nowadays, people naturally show offensive images with the mindset that nothing would happen – sometimes, it is that they will pay their way through.
“Some have also argued that inadequate manpower to drive enforcement is making government agencies responsible for clapping down on such act to mainly focus on highbrow areas of the state. But nothing justifies the lewdness going on.” (BusinessDay)
