Despite recession, nightlife, merry gardens thrive in Abuja

Nightlife in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city, at the moment appears unaffected by Nigeria’s economic recession.

The Niational Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Wednesday declared that the country was officially in its worst recession in 29 years.

Before then, several organisations such as banks and airlines had been forced to lay-off workers and in some cases, cut down salaries due to the bad state of the economy.

As dire as the situation is, merchants of merry are still commanding a regular income stream – a situation which either suggests that Abuja hasn’t really begun to feel the effects of recession or that the residents attach great importance to having fun, regardless of the cost.

MERRY GARDENS

During the 2003-2007 administration of Nasir el-Rufai at the helm of Abuja’s affairs, a lot of illegal structures which he said were built on “green areas” ended up being demolished.

The mass demolition resulted in the springing up of many gardens around the city.

These gardens which have largely become relaxation spots, play host to social activities and leisure structures such as bars and restaurants.

TheCable LifeStyle recently observed that these social hubs, also known as “merry gardens”,  have not recorded a significant decline in patronage as a lot of people are still seen in these places.

Similarly, lounges and clubs within the Federal Capital City (FCT) have remained vibrant and buzzing with activity.

Extensive checks conducted by TCL showed that customers were forced to part with more money to have a nice time because commodities sold in these places such as drinks, grilled meat and roasted fish have gone up in price.

STANDING IN SPITE OF RECESSION

In response to the effects of a recession occasioned by forex scarcity, naira’s devaluation, global fall of crude oil price, a bottle of Orijin and other beer brands which were previously sold for N300, now go for N350.

Roasted fish which had a price tag between the range of N1,500 to N2,000, is now being sold for between N2,500 to N3,000.

At the lounges and clubs, prices of such commodities are much more higher compared to what is obtainable in the gardens, a reason why most middle class pleasure seekers prefer to go the gardens.

“No matter how things are bad, man must relax, if money no dey for anything, money for beer must dey,” a customer in one of the gardens simply identified as Onex told TCL.

“By coming out to relax with my friends, I forget all my worries and I just have a nice time”, he added.

It was also observed that the red light districts of Garki village and Wuse 2 are not left out as they are still being heavily patronised by pleasure seekers.

Perhaps, time and the recessive economy, may change the frequent attendance and consistent patronage of these merry gardens and entertainment spots.