AS MEDILAG MOVES.

“When will they release hostel list?” Subby asked
“I heard after exams o” I replied.

This was the conversation my friend and I were having before we heard a loud noise like the giggle of the sky when tickled by the coming rain; alarmed, we ran out and asked “what happened?” “They just pasted hostel list at porter’s lodge” a passerby replied.

My friend and I just returned to the room and began another gist (signs that you are getting old). We were given a week to move out of our rooms, so, packing started in earnest and the trash bins were filled up faster than usual. I will never understand why students wait until the last day before they start planning hence the distortion in the ripple effect of the moving process that is she’s stuck in her room because the person that was meant to move out of her new room is still in it.

As is the tradition in Medilag, you are given an empty room, totally empty, you might even be lucky to have fluorescent in your room. Hence, you have to plan with your roommates how to contribute to the beautification of your room which includes painting, carpentry work, electrical installations, the ‘anywork’ guys that help move traveling bags, fridges and clean rooms, the list is endless.

This year, moving didn’t happen without the usual fights, stealing, arguments, fraud, walkway becoming dustbins (can we at least drop stuff beside the dustbins even if the bin is filled than litter the walkway with dirt and harmful materials) and more. In my hostel, there was a low supply of painters, carpenters and electricians compared to the supply of ‘anywork’ guys with nothing to do. This increased the demand for carpenters, painters and electricians. This led to a case of a carpenter collecting money from several students promising to go to the market to get materials and get back to do the job but he never came back. I thought porters registered these workers before gaining access into the hostel, what exactly is the criteria for registration and working in the hostel?

I had to start work in my room by evening and there was no painter to paint. Girls started painting their rooms by themselves, thanks to Stella and Ada that started the trend. The price list released wasn’t adhered to, was there a change in plan?. The manner some of the workers did their job was appalling, the extortion rate was beyond imagination, I was shocked, no be this same Lagos we all dey hustle? I don’t understand how someone will clean windows and sweep a small room for #5,000, you don see maga! The stress and trouble of moving from the hostel is just too much especially for girls moving from Radiography Hall to School.

Can we make it easier?

I was thinking could there be a way people move without trying to recover three days later. We could have an agency who would be in charge of moving, this agency have uniformed workers, each job description specified, ‘anywork’ guy doesn’t become an electrician in 5minutes and a carpenter in 20minutes and we hear a room is on fire few months down the line, ‘anywork’ guy doesn’t enter the hostel without equipment (bucket, broom, soap) and takes anyone’s bucket to do his job and abandons the bucket with dirty water!!!!!!!!. There are enough qualified staff to operate each floor, carpenters, painters, electricians, cleaners all working simultaenously. You pay for tickets depending on what you need them to do, so the amount is regulated, the accountants are in charge of that, so you give the staff the ticket and he does what he has to do peacefully, he gives the accountant the tickets with him to get paid after the day’s job.

Downstairs, we could have people selling mirrors, mattresses, pillows, curtains, curtain rods, rugs, carpets at subsidized rates.

I just took out time to share my thoughts here, still recoveing from the stress.

*Photo credit: Google.

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