There are times, not very often, when words fail me and I wished I had the talent of an impressionistic writer to capture certain scenes and even moods on paper the way a gifted artist would on canvas. Last week was one of those times. Call it the curiosity of an old journalist, but I suddenly felt the need to see how far the famed coastal road had travelled. I got more than I bargained for; not in terms of the progress on the road ? there must be over a thousand trucks working 24/7 on that road ? but on the life that had sprung up along the road. Stretching from Oniru to Elegushi and possibly beyond, you would see at intervals, rows of big, weather beaten umbrellas and makeshift sheds that serve as homes for a teeming population. On getting closer, you would find many more people than the sheds and umbrellas could ever accommodate. You could find them loitering on sand embankments or against side walls. Some found sleep wherever possible - on heaped sand, shaded corners or against perimeter fences - oblivious to the dust and noise of the construction trucks - while some walked leisurely in groups of eight, ten along the rapidly developing road. They appeared to be going nowhere in a hurry to any casual observer. They were mainly male adolescents. Their favorite colour seemed to be black, but any dark colour would do. This is probably fitting since I didn?t see any source of water around, neither did I see conveniences ? open defecation is common. Put together, they would make a small village. I know I am treading on thin ice here, but if I were to hazard a guess, I would say they were mainly from the north judging from the languages spoken. Should that be the case, leaders in the North who have weaponized religion, population and education and in the process, have forced their youths to go southwards in search of survival, should be held accountable for this socio/economic problem. They are culpable for what these children have become. Lagos State should also be careful not to create a colony of the lawless by nipping these settlements in the bud.

It was not all gloom and doom around these settlements however. There were banters and the occasional ringing sounds of laughter. You found children, some in diapers, ? products of intimacies that somehow still take place in this ?open? environment ? laughing, crying and playing. As is normal in such gatherings, there were food hawkers ? I even saw an Okada man delivering packets of raw Indomie. I found no sign of drug peddling but have no doubt it exists because it goes with the territory somehow. I found very little signs of industry among the loitering youths and I wondered how they manage to pay for their food in these inflation ridden times. I wondered about the sick and the occasional dead. How are they being taken care of? I also wondered when these people who seem to loiter and sleep during the day, do what they do to earn a living. I have a fair idea of what they do as many of us do if we are not going to be hypocritical. These are people of very little skills who have had to place survival over propriety. They would therefore do almost anything under the cover of numbers, darkness or drugs for even minor rewards. They are available for hire and not just at construction sites, but also on the streets. When that is not available, they hire themselves. Street railings, railway tracts and any loose chrome or steel are fair game for them. Goods that are unattended to by dusk are also fair game. The more brazen among them snatch phones and bags from passersby. Unfortunately, these sheds not only serve as homes for the young, under aged, they serve as survival schools as well.

We have seen clips of youngsters attacking tourists in South Africa. We have seen how they snatch phones and bags almost brazenly. We have seen clips of how youngsters attack tourists along the beaches in Rio, Brazil. We?d be na?ve to think it doesn?t happen here on the same scale. A friend lost his phone at a traffic light in broad daylight and the perpetrator simply crossed the street. Bags and phones are constantly being taken at busy and not so busy markets, again in broad daylight. Women have been gang raped in bushes and shrubs by these youngsters. I know places people avoid as much as possible as dusk approaches. It is a societal problem perpetuated if not created largely by selfish, mediocre and visionless leaders. But it will not be solved by the sentimental way we reacted to the arraignment of some Kano youths recently when many politicians decided to make some political capital out of the situation and human right organisations, including some lawyers surprisingly, left the issue of crime and justice and concentrated on age. What really galls was the politicization of crime by people who were themselves vicariously liable for what these youths have become. A State Governor was said to have received them with gifts and even financial promises. Were these youths heroes deserving of gifts? What honour did they bring to that State? Were they the youths who burnt and looted during the #End Bad Government protest in the same Kano? Were they the ones who destroyed public and private assets or should we look elsewhere? What message has been sent by this State and indeed all other ?do gooders? to youngsters who either commit crimes or are complicit? The message is that you can get away with anything including murder as long as you are deemed underage. And if this message carries, then nothing stops adults with criminal and subversive intentions from using the many youths roaming around.

Some years ago, Thierry Henry, the Arsenal FC striker and legend was asked about youngsters coming into the senior team and the inevitable weight on their young shoulders. His answer was ?if you are old enough to play for the senior team, you are old enough (for the responsibility)?. Amended slightly and put in the context of what I have been highlighting, I would say ?if you are old enough to commit adult crimes, then you are old enough?. In other words, don?t do the crime if you are not ready to do the time. Adult crime equals adult time. It is should be as simple as that.

?Muyiwa Adetiba is a veteran journalist and publisher. He can be reached via titbits2012@yahoo.com

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