At Eid-el-Kabir, fun-seekers besiege recreational parks in Lagos, Oyo states

Fun seekers yesterday besieged recreational parks in the Lagos metropolis. The Shoprite outlets in Ikeja and Lekki witnessed a large turnout of Lagosians, who trooped out to celebrate the Eid-el-Kabir in spite of the slump in the nation’s economy.

Many fun-seekers were seen dining and having fun with others at the cinemas and game outlets. In an interview with The Guardian, one of the picnickers, Tola Awe, said he came to Shoprite because home was becoming boring since being indoors all through the weekend.

Also, Mr. Hassan Onabule, said he was still happy to celebrate in spite of the fact that he was not able to kill any ram. “Really, it is very tough and hard for us, no money, fuel, frequent hike in the prices of foodstuffs, I could not slaughter any ram but at least am still celebrating with my family.“Only God can deliver us with the situation of things in the country now. We can’t kill ourselves, but have to take things the way we see it,” he said.

At Oshodi Heritage Park, however, the place was unusually scanty unlike what it used to be at festive periods and public holidays. A middle-aged man at the park attributed this to the nation’s present economic problem.

In the same vein, Agodi garden and Shoprite, in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, also witnessed large turnout of fun seekers yesterday.Both the old and the young were seen at the centres eating, drinking, and having fun. In spite of the N500 gate fee at the Agodi garden and N300 paid by children to access the playground at Shoprite, many parents still brought a number of children to celebrate.

A father, Mohammed Sani, said his family tried to celebrate in their own little way in spite of the economic situation.“Witnessing another Sallah alone is worth celebrating and I am thanking God, even though we may not slaughter ram now, but we will sometime in the future. We believe the government is aware of the economic situation and trust God that something will be done soon,” he said.

Similarly, a mother, Mrs. Olabisi Ali, said it was not easy for them to celebrate in such a time but that they had to in order to appreciate the children. “We just had to make ourselves happy regardless of the economic situation; our being alive alone to witness another Sallah makes us joyful.”