NewStats: 3,261,483 , 8,174,128 topics. Date: Thursday, 29 May 2025 at 11:49 AM 672d72

Having lived for exactly half his life under a bridge in Nigeria's biggest city, Lagos, Liya’u Sa’adu sees himself as the "guardian" for the many other homeless people who have ed him there.

More than 60 men now live in the tightly knit outdoor community - with the busy and noisy Obalende Bridge over them - as renting even a shack has proved unaffordable for them.
Mr Sa’adu advises the newcomers - often young people from far-away towns and villages - on how to be streetwise in fast-paced Lagos, where it is easy to fall into crime and drugs.

“I am 60 and there are young people who came here a few months ago or a few years ago. I see it as my responsibility to guide them,” he tells the BBC.

“It is so easy to lose track here in Lagos, especially for young people because there is no family to watch their steps.”

Like most of those who live under the bridge, he speaks Hausa, the most widely spoken language in the north of Nigeria.

He arrived here from the small town of Zurmi in north-western Zamfara state in 1994 - but all those he made friends with then have either died or have moved back to their hometowns or villages.

Tukur Garba, who began living under the bridge five years ago, says Mr Sa'adu’s advice has been invaluable and he commands huge respect from those who arrive to try their luck in Nigeria’s economic hub.

The 31-year-old hails down from the far northern state of Katsina, about 1,000km (621 miles) away.
“He is like our elder brother because he has been here for so long. We do need words of wisdom from him because it is easy to get in trouble in Lagos,” he says.

The area has now been dubbed "Karkashin Gada", which in the Hausa language means “Under the Bridge”.

"The people who come here know someone who is already staying here or have a who told them about Karkashin Gada," Mr Sa'adu says.

"When I came here, there were less than 10 people.”
Adamu Sahara, who has lived in an apartment close to Karkashin Gada for more than 30 years, says that homelessness is increasing in Lagos.

“Insecurity [including an insurgency by jihadist groups] and the failing economy has made a lot of people to flee northern Nigeria," Mr Sahara says.

“Nigerian leaders have to be aware of what is happening so they can fix the problem because no human being is supposed to sleep under a bridge.”

Karkashin Gada's longest resident has no plans to return to Zamfara as economic opportunities there remain bleak with kidnapping and banditry on the rise.

This has forced many people to abandon their businesses and farms as they risk being taken hostage by gangs demanding ransom payments.

To make life as comfortable as possible, Mr Sa'adu has acquired a mattress, some bedding, a wooden cabinet and a mosquito net.

He has put the mattress on top of the cabinet, and that is where he sleeps.

Mr. Sa'adu is among the better-off as some of the other men who live there have no furniture, and share sleeping mats which they roll out on the floor.

Thankfully the risk of theft is minimal as some "residents" of Karkashin Gada are usually around, either working or enjoying their time off.

They all use a nearby public bath and toilet at a cost of 100 naira ($0.06; £0.05) a visit.

Cooking - or lighting fires, even in winter - rarely happens in Karkashin Gada as most of its inhabitants buy food from vendors who sell dishes popular with northerners.

“This is one of the places in Lagos where you see a large number of people from northern Nigeria so I sell fura [millet flour mixed with fermented milk] here and I am happy to say a lot of people do buy," food vendor Aisha Hadi tells the BBC.

During his three decades in Lagos, Mr Sa’adu has progressed from being a shoe-shiner to being a scrap-metal seller - picking up metal from the streets and workshops for a business that sells it on for recycling.

It earns him an average of 5,000 naira ($3; £2) a day, above the extreme poverty threshold of $1.90 a day but barely enough for him to survive.

"Don't forget I have to also send money to my family back in Zamfara every week, so it is a continuous struggle,” Mr Sa’adu says.

It is unclear how many people sleep on Lagos' streets, but non-governmental organisations say they are up to half-a-million.

In the last few months, the Karkashin Gada community has come under heavy pressure from the Lagos state environmental task force.
Its officers carry out occasional raids as they say people are living there illegally.
Those arrested risk fines of up to 20,000 naira ($12; £9), a week's income for many of the people living under the bridge.

“They come at around 1am or 2am, to arrest people sleeping here. Where do they want us to go?” Mr Garba says, adding that by morning most “residents” will have returned.

He urges the government to show comion, and "to look into the issue of housing so that poor people like us can get good places to live”.

But in Nigeria, the government does not provide shelter for homeless people. Nor is there any plan to do so.
Instead, the current focus in Lagos is on helping people on low salaries - such as cleaners, drivers and messengers in offices - to buy homes.

For people like Mr Sa’adu, any type of housing in Lagos is unaffordable - renting a shack in an informal settlement costs around 100,000 naira ($48; £62) a year, while in a working-class area, a small apartment costs around 350,000 naira ($220; £170) annually.

Worse still, many landlords demand a year's rent at the time of occupation, with no plans by the government to regulate the market despite the fact that the cost-of-living crisis is making housing unaffordable for even some young professionals.
Against this backdrop, the likes of Mr Sa’adu have resigned themselves to continue living under Obalende Bridge.

"Considering what I do, it’s difficult to save enough to get a decent place to stay," he says as he lies on his mattress with the noise of vehicles driving just above his head.

“I am already used to the sound of cars. It doesn’t affect my sleep at all especially after a tired day,” he adds.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2elw7n31do

Smh

Na so e de take start. They are there breaking iron. Soon they start manufacturing bomb.

Nlfpmod

In Biafra no one will live under bridge.



Every citizen will be cared for.

Which kind name be liya'u saadu?


Sanwolu, you still Osun forest abi??

Some of these men are ghosts. Don't ask me how I know this.

During his three decades in Lagos, Mr Sa’adu has progressed from being a shoe-shiner to being a scrap-metal seller - picking up metal from the streets and workshops for a business that sells it on for recycling.

It earns him an average of 5,000 naira ($3; £2) a day, above the extreme poverty threshold of $1.90 a day but barely enough for him to survive.

"Don't forget I have to also send money to my family back in Zamfara every week, so it is a continuous struggle,” Mr Sa’adu says.

That man earns N5K per day and that's N150K per month. He can conveniently afford to rent an accommodation even in same Obalende. He just wants to ensure that he lives a frugal and nomadic life in Lagos.

I am sure he must have built houses in his village in Zamfara he has been sending his money to while avoiding paying Lagos Landlords house rents.

This is part of the reason LASG can not be faulted when LASG forcefully chase people like him from under the bridge for constituting environmental nuisance in Lagos. People like him travel several hundreds of kilometres to make money in Lagos and after making the money still wants to flout and keep flouting with reckless abandon the environmental laws in Lagos while their own states remain unaffected. They want to eat their cakes and eat it. That's not fair to Lagos.

May God bless Nigeria for ever! Check my signature for free stuffs!

Kudos to Tinubu. He has provided shelter with public toilets in the acclaimed city he built.

Nothing Musa no go see for gate. Making 5k a day, and choosing to live under the bridge?. Honestly cultural differences is our major issues

chiagozien:
In Biafra no one will live under bridge.



Every citizen will be cared for.

You guys should try to use your head sometimes.

What brought biafra here now?

FreeStuffsNG:
During his three decades in Lagos, Mr Sa’adu has progressed from being a shoe-shiner to being a scrap-metal seller - picking up metal from the streets and workshops for a business that sells it on for recycling.

It earns him an average of 5,000 naira ($3; £2) a day, above the extreme poverty threshold of $1.90 a day but barely enough for him to survive.

"Don't forget I have to also send money to my family back in Zamfara every week, so it is a continuous struggle,” Mr Sa’adu says.

That man earns N5K per day and that's N150K per month. He can conveniently afford to rent an accommodation even in same Obalende. He just wants to ensure that he lives a frugal and nomadic life in Lagos.

I am sure he must have built houses in his village in Zamfara he has been sending his money to while avoiding paying Lagos Landlords house rents.

This is part of the reason LASG can not be faulted when LASG forcefully chase people like him from under the bridge for constituting environmental nuisance in Lagos while people like him travel several hundreds of kilometres to make money and after making the money still want to flout environmental laws in Lagos while their own states remain unaffected. They want to eat their cakes and eat it.

You see now. But you people have never given a general eviction notice to such people. Instead, the people you keep targeting are those who don't only pay costly rents to Lagos landlord's but also build countless real estates and help the city stay commercially afloat.

Bendeco2020:


You guys should try to use your head sometimes.

What brought biafra here now?

I'm surprised you don't know what brought in Biafra, yet you are telling someone else to use his head. So, let me explain it to you...

One of the major causes of Biafra agitation is an issue that came clear in the story here under discussion. It's about a country that cares so little about her citizens.

So, the guy you quoted used associative reasoning which made him draw a comparison. Unfortunately, you're not able to reason at his level and you started to resort to insults as usual.

Nlfpmod this story was reported by a foremost foreign media house. So, our own local media shouldn't ignore it.

naija4life247:
Na Ogun go kee him Mama under that bridge before 7 market days

Ogun will do nothing because there's no power in Ogun.

dumahi:
Na so e de take start. They are there breaking iron. Soon they start manufacturing bomb.

Nlfpmod

These are not IPOB .

drlateef:




These are not IPOB .

😭🤣

Crazy stuff

30 year wth 😒

Na wa o. Is this a course or what?





If you can speak good English and with forain highcent, chances of you getting a job in Abuja are always hi.

Seeing the headline my mind pictured obalende and I wasnt disappointed after reading the details. In fact it is not only under the bridge people sleep, some men even sleep on top of the bridge as under is already saturated with people. .. Chai poverty na bastard ooo..."men hustle ooo as government now no send una papa".....

Obalende is another realm in Lagos on its own...12am 1am 2am people still dey outside dey flex life as na that time day dey break for dem ...it is that time some mama put,beer palour and POS venders starts making their money.

What of oloshoism...that area is like the hub of olossho levels in lagos....as women from 18 years and above just choke for street dey hustle..

Hard drugs nko..that one has turn many young boys and girls on colos to walking zombiees ..Obalende matter ehnnnn sighsss

For someone to stay in such a place for thirty years flips to bare his scarcity mindset. The man need to be pursued from that place.. If it were a recent immigrant hustler who sleeps under the bridge, it's understandable in a place like Lagos. But not for a man who earns at least 150k a month!

Verbalsets:
Hope they helped him find a house after using his story

You go soon see one Politician's Wife or Child go run come to his rescue

*** Some First Ladies 😒

*** Some First sons and daughters 😒

*** Some Mugu Politicians 😑

FreeStuffsNG:
During his three decades in Lagos, Mr Sa’adu has progressed from being a shoe-shiner to being a scrap-metal seller - picking up metal from the streets and workshops for a business that sells it on for recycling.

It earns him an average of 5,000 naira ($3; £2) a day, above the extreme poverty threshold of $1.90 a day but barely enough for him to survive.

"Don't forget I have to also send money to my family back in Zamfara every week, so it is a continuous struggle,” Mr Sa’adu says.

That man earns N5K per day and that's N150K per month. He can conveniently afford to rent an accommodation even in same Obalende. He just wants to ensure that he lives a frugal and nomadic life in Lagos.

I am sure he must have built houses in his village in Zamfara he has been sending his money to while avoiding paying Lagos Landlords house rents.

This is part of the reason LASG can not be faulted when LASG forcefully chase people like him from under the bridge for constituting environmental nuisance in Lagos while people like him travel several hundreds of kilometres to make money and after making the money still want to flout environmental laws in Lagos while their own states remain unaffected. They want to eat their cakes and eat it.

go and sit down. Go back to Oyo, your state. Defender of Lagos. As if you own a single brick in lagos

Hahaha, freestuffsng, yarimo, helinues, writerNG, other paid bots, come and see thiefnubun Lagos....

Chaii