The dead: Resting in dirt and decay
In the distance a young man moves slowly along the beaten path leading to the community cemetry. His movement is an unhurried one as he vaults over massive piles of refuse and crusty human remains. The stench is overpowering but he appears oblivious to the acrid smell. His languid pace shows he has all the […]
In the distance a young man moves slowly along the beaten path leading to the community cemetry. His movement is an unhurried one as he vaults over massive piles of refuse and crusty human remains. The stench is overpowering but he appears oblivious to the acrid smell. His languid pace shows he has all the time in the world. In his hand he clutches a roll of old newpspaper sheets. In a matter of minutes, his mission becomes quite clear. He lumbers into a corner of the insurmountable piles of garbage and squats. He has a good view of the burial ground from his position since the place is not fenced. He soon commences his call of nature. Not far away on the street, men, women, and children pass without even sparing him a glance. It appears that this is a common sight that has ceased to amaze anyone.
The above scenario plays itself out on a daily basis in many such burial sites around the capital city. In the suburbs particularly where due to the upsurge in human population in the city, many residential abodes have gradually taken up substantial parts of the community cemeteries, interaction between the dead and the living is a norm as humans utilise such grounds for defecation and dumping of wastes. In most cases clear lines of demarcation cannot be drawn between such sites and houses in the community. Pathways and linking routes are regular features of these community burial sites.
New Nyanyan, Kurudu…where the dead and the living live in (dis)harmony
These two community cemeteries cannot be differentiated from the adjoining houses and residential abodes. The ground slots where the dead are buried are intertwined with the physical structures housing thousands of residents of these communities. At the New Nyanyan site particularly, it is very easy to stumble over a freshly dug grave site and be totally unaware. Due to the rapid expansion of the community and the influx of more and more people into the area because of affordability of housing units, the approved limits of the burial site is being breached by harried landowners who are expanding their property thereby encroaching on the site. Effiong Mary, a public servant who recently relocated from the area reminisces about her stay in the community. ‘Then it was sickening for me when I see the way people treat the burial ground. There was no form of respect. The way the houses were located, there was no way you could differentiate which part was cemetery and which part was residential. And the people used to dump refuse anyhow there. It was also a common sight to see people using the burial ground as a place to defecate. The level of poverty is so strong in this country that people no longer behave in civilised manner anymore. How can you explain a situation where people no longer allow the dead to rest in peace?’
At the Kurudu burial site, a massive garbage site is what welcomes you. It seems the point has been transformed from being a place of solitude for the dead to a garbage trench. The stench is overpowering but residents especially those living nearby appear to be unmoved by the presence of the mounting levels of refuse. Directly opposite the burial ground are situated several relaxation spots where community members and visitors gather every night to savour music, food and drinks. Every waste generated from these nocturnal activities are dumped on the overstretched premises of the cemetery.
Gudu: In fair shape but underutilised?
Due to the fact that death remains an integral part of any human community, the capital city included, a few years back, the FCT authorities gave out a huge parcel of land located at the Gudu, Apo section of the town for the burying the dead. It was also aimed at easing the highways of multiple hearse carrying convoys that filled the roads at weekends then on their way to different parts of the country for burial rites. This was attributed to the scarcity of decent burial grounds then in the city. The land is managed by the Abuja Environmental Protection Board, AEPB and is demarcated into Christian and Moslem Burial sites. Initially one had to pay a token as high as N10 000 to get a resting place for one’s dead but findings of recent reveal that the burial at such sites has been made free. But a visit reveals a form of neglect. Right from the rusty iron sign post welcoming one to the grounds to the weed filled premises and broken portions of the wall, there is an unmistakeable feeling that the ground is not being used as much as expected by the authorities.
A manager at the cemetery noted that even though the fee that was paid before had been annulled by the authorities people still needed to get permission from the AEPB before burying their dead. They would also be required to pay one of the registered diggers at the sight an approved sum before a site could be dug for the corpse. He insisted that sites already occupied were not re-dug to accommodate a new body as done in some places. He said such corpses could be accepted from any part of the city without discrimination adding that adequate security and maintenance was assured at the cemetery.
Officials of the AEPB could not be reached for comments on what they were doing to monitor activities at the numerous burial sites in the capital city. Management of the establishment has consistently maintained that inadequate manpower and logistics have made it difficult for it to effectively carry out its numerous statutorily responsibilities. And with the ubiquitous nature of cemeteries in the city, it is assumed that monitoring and effective surveillance of these will be a Herculean task.
Perspectives:
Sulaimon Olanrewaju, a researcher who conducted a study about the state if cemeteries in parts of the country made a startling discovery on the gradual erosion of people’s value of the sacredness of such sites and the deteriorating state of facilities of most sites. He documented thus: ‘once the remains of the dead are interred and the tomb is designed to their taste, the relations, in most cases, cease to bother about the dead. In many parts of the country, the dead are buried in public cemeteries but in recent times, the public cemeteries have become a threat even to the dead. Unlike what obtains in other countries where the cemeteries are well kept in honour of the departed beloved ones, many of the public cemeteries in Nigeria are eyesored. Many of them are overgrown with weeds and trees, and are more like a jungle than the final resting place of compatriots. Those saddled with the responsibility of taking care of the places do no such thing. The situation in these public cemeteries is so bad that a family, which recently held a memorial service for a dead patriarch with a plan to lay wreath at the sepulchre at Sango Public Cemetery in Ibadan, Oyo State, had a tough time getting to where the dead man’s tomb was as the cemetery had become a jungle. A quick arrangement had to be made by the family for someone to clear the way to the sepulchre even as they waited at the entrance, bearing the wreaths they planned to lay as a result of the neglect of the cemeteries, they have become home to rodents and other carnivorous animals that feed on human parts. On a visit to any of the public cemeteries, one is likely to meet a herd of grasscutters and other rodents feasting on human bones, even while the cemetery attendants chat away.’
He paints a sharp contrast too: ‘But in the United Kingdom, for instance, public cemeteries are envisaged as public open spaces, and are professionally designed as places to be visited. It was gathered that many of the great 19th century urban cemeteries in the UK were designed and laid out by the same people who created public parks, and are considered to belong to the park family. They are regarded as much as public landscapes as they are functional burial places. The pattern is much the same in the United States. In these two countries, among others, the cemeteries are sights to behold; no overgrown shrubs, no threatening rodents. There exists a system of repairing and replacing tomb stones when they fall so that the cemeteries do not lose their attraction to those who flock to those places for sight seeing. In other words, cemeteries are treated as monuments that have tourism values in the UK and the USA…’
Olusina Ayodele a public affairs analyst says the rot in the human society coupled with disregard for human life makes such practices a common trend. ‘When people do not even have value for human life, how will they have regards for the dead? Our society places value on the things that do not matter while neglecting the values that are eternal and spritual. That is why someone would be comfortable desecrating a graveyard or treating the dead with disdain. It is when we change our orientation that such things will cease…’
Surge in private cemeteries in the country:
Investigations reveal that due to the dilapidation in most cemeteries across the country, many private firms, religious bodies and establishments have commenced the building of private cemeteries to address the yearnings of people who want a better deal for their departed relatives and friends. For the well to do particularly who place great value to their dead, the point of call now is private cemeteries many of which can now be found in different towns and cities in the country. Churches especially have delved into the business of private cemeteries which they construct to meet the taste and aspirations of many a family. Findings reveal that a vault goes for between N500, 000 and N2million. Some churches give a lower rate especially for members of such religious bodies.
‘Some private cemeteries have different classes of vaults, such as single for just a corpse; double, which can take two; and triple, which has capacity for three corpses…the double and triple vaults are bought by people who wish to be buried in the same tomb when they die. So, the triple vault is larger than the double, which is also bigger than the single. Not unexpectedly, vault type variation also determines variation in prices. The single is the cheapest with the triple being the most expensive,’ a source revels.
What religious leaders say:
Elder Gabriel Elachi of the Methodist Church, Jibi chapter says that the church does not condone any acts targeted at ridiculing the dead either consciously or otherwise. He adds that unless the government steps in with adequate enlightenment, such acts will continue unimpeded. ‘In the Bible we hear about Joseph of Arimathea who treated the body of Jesus Christ with reverence and even ensured that the sepulchre that he was placed in was in top condition. The Bible enjoins us to treat the dead with reverence as that is the ultimate end of all humans. What we see today is in sharp contrast with what the scriptures preach and it shows the level of decadence in the human society. I am a retired police officer. There was a time I used to guard cemeteries as part of my work schedule. We always made sure that the environment was clean and did not hesitate to deal appropriately y with anyone who treated the grounds with disrespect. That is why I am pleased with the way the Moslems treat their burial ground and make sure it is always clean and devoid of garbage. Both faiths however need to encourage their followers to do the same.’
An Islamic scholar, Abdulwasiu Hassan agrees when he opines: ‘Islam frowns at such acts. It is recorded that the Holy Prophet enjoined faithful to always treat the dead with respect as this is the destiny of all humans. A true Muslim would not do anything to bring the dead to ridicule either by defecating of dumping refuse on gravesites. It is bad ethically even if you remove spirituality. Many people would not even be found trampling on the burial sites of the dead. No religion will ever condone such acts of irresponsibility.’