Why You Should not Expect Lagbaja Open After 10:00pm

By Saint 

Sometime last week, a message was posted across Zik hall WhatsApp groups from the management of Lagbaja Creations, a tuck shop situated adjacent Block C, notifying Zikites of early closure. The message reads, “we the management of Lagbaja Creations, Nnamdi Azikiwe Hall University of Ibadan, wish to inform you that our shop will be closed by 10pm henceforth. Kindly bear with us. Order from Zik Hall Management.”

The imaginable reaction to this notice by Zikites will most probably be a perplexing one. The reason is not far-fetched. Lagbaja Creations is not only one of the popular and most patronised retailers in Zik hall, it is largely reputed for keeping its doors open for sales till the wee hours of the night. 

Certainly, many a Zikite appreciate this late night business practice since it sustains the option of making eleventh-hour purchases and even getting a late dinner – an option you won’t get elsewhere. To the unfamiliar eye, it might be astonishing that Lagbaja is still open at 12:00 am but for Zikites it’s just another Thursday. 

However, the latest notice by Lagbaja creations may change the narrative of late night buying and selling in Zik hall, not just for Lagbaja but for all traders within the four walls of the hall. While the 10:00pm rule was made by the management of the hall, ZHPO investigated deeper into the reasons for the order.

At a stakeholder meeting of Zik Hall’s Management, which included the management staff and Zik hall’s student leaders held on Friday, 2nd of December, Mr Durowoju, the Hall’s Supervisor clarified that a meeting was held between the management and traders in Zik hall on Wednesday, to review the business practices permissible within the hall. 

According to Mr. Durowoju, it came to the attention of the management that some retailers within the hall were acting beyond their tenancy powers by using the shop for more than just business. He stated that some of them sleep inside the shops, sometimes with their families. Mr. Durowoju made it clear that the practice was in contravention of the hall’s rules.

The Hall Supervisor elaborated further on the no-sleeping rule by alluding to a tragic event that occurred years ago in Tedder Hall. He explained that a fire incident occurred at that time and the cause was traced to one of the retail outlets in Tedder hall where the owners were sleeping. This fateful occurrence snowballed into one of the reasons behind the rule against traders converting their shops into alternative accommodation.  

On the approved business hours in the hall, the management resolved during the meeting that all traders within the hall must close business for the day by 10:00 pm. The rule is to affect all traders including the cafeteria owners. Speaking further on the rationale for the rule, Mr Seyi, one of the porters present at the stakeholders’ meeting stated that maintaining optimal security in the hall is among the reasons for the new time regime.

To illustrate his point, Mr. Seyi gave an hypothetical instance where a suspected thief is being pursued and he is able to seek cover in Lagbaja’s shop by mingling with customers. It becomes difficult to then identify who the suspect is especially when his identity has not been clearly confirmed.