If critical attention were paid to how ABH has fared over the last two power transitions- from Folajomi Isa down to David Salami, one would have no problem coming to terms with the fact that there has been a steady decline of some basic things Brownites once enjoyed. Taking cognizance of the absence of suitable baskets on the floors, the pitch dark Quadrangle at nights, the comatose ABH Ventures or the pathetic state of the clotheslines, one could perhaps draw the inference that much priority has not been given to these things by erstwhile administrations which have overseen the affairs of the Hall.
Once upon a time in ABH, Brownites enjoyed the abundance of clotheslines. These lines were purchased in bulk, with several poles erected across the Hall. The legend states, “Fixing of the clothing lines occurred during Folajomi’s time and was supervised by Jegede, the then head of the Maintenance Committee. The lines were of good quality and perfect. We enjoyed them until we were asked to vacate the Hall when the Covid-19 Pandemic struck. Before we came back, the lines had become damaged. That was what Jegede could have worked on when he came in as Hall Chairman, considering that he was very much involved when the lines were originally fixed.”
One of the cleaners narrated that some erected poles collapsed, and the lines got damaged because they were subjected to harsh weather conditions for several months while everyone was away. Unfortunately, there was no agenda put forth by the last administration to revamp the lines. Instead, some of the underpaid cleaners elected to replace some of the broken lines from their funds. One emphatically stated that she single-handedly bought all the clothing ropes at F Block, while another purchased the ones at G Block. Of course, these women must do laundry to boost their income, so they had no choice but to do this. Indeed, a light purse is a heavy curse!
At the tail end of the long Covid holiday, the Revamped Agenda came into power and lasted about 12 months. At the terminus of this administration, just after Jegede had delivered his Account of Stewardship at the Hallowed Chambers of ABH; Hon Michael Adejumo pointed out to him with no ambiguity that one of the grave failures of the Revamped Agenda, among numerous others, was its failure to provide Brownites with clothes lines. Hon Adejumo reminded Jegede that this was one of his promises to Brownites. The lawmaker spelled it out that this, being one of the basic needs of Brownites, should have been given precedence over some other projects.
A Brownite complained, “The spaces on the lines are hardly enough, especially on weekends. If you want to get a space to spread your clothes on the lines, you probably have to wake up very early to wash. Then there are those who would pull your clothes together while they are still wet in order to create space for their own clothes. I think the Hall excos are working on the situation because I noticed that new poles are being erected. I hope they speed up the process.” Someone else recounted, “There was a time one of the cleaners told me she did not wash my clothes because there was no space to spread them.”
While the ABH 2022 Election was approaching, as usual, political aspirants all came waxing eloquent about their plans for Brownites and the Hall. For example, concerning the clothes lines, inherent in Salami’s manifesto were these words: “To increase the ease at which Brownites wash and spread clothes, I intend to repair the faulty stands as well as install new clothing ropes where necessary.” Salami is already in the second month of the Inclusion Plan Administration (projected to last for about six months), but no new line has been sighted. The ones available keep deteriorating.
Plans for this tenure for June and July were released, but nothing was said about the clotheslines- a clear indication that it is not yet a priority to the Inclusion Plan Team. No one knows when this will be attended to. However, some poles have been erected for weeks now, especially at G Block. ABH Press gathered that these were the poles that fell during Folajomi Isa’s time. However, these poles are still as good as no poles if they remain without lines. The Executive Council should prioritize and complete this as soon as possible.
