…entertainer on crutches plays instruments and sings for money
….call girls picked and paid with mere drinks, food and fish
….reported cases of broken marriages attributed to Zimbabwe
Emmanuel Bagudu, Nassarawa
‘Zimbabwe” is a popular beer joint located along the Abuja-Nasarawa express way.
It is famously known as home to women of easy virtue who sleep with men in exchange for beer and chicken delicacies.
TNG in its usual tradition went undercover to dig deep into the activities at the spot named after Late President Robert Mugabe’s country-Zimbabwe.
Why the spot is named after the country is confusing as its activities actually have no direct link to Zimbabwe.
Also, there are no clear cut reasons given why women exchange their bodies for bowls of food, except maybe because of hunger or abject poverty ravaging the area.
It’s common knowledge that Zimbabwe is a landlocked Southern African Country, formerly called Rhodesia, and is located between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers and is bordered by South Africa, Botswana, Zambia and Mozambique.
However, unknown to many, there is another Zimbabwe located in Nigeria, the largest country in Africa. ‘Nigeria’s Zimbabwe’ is a relaxation spot located on a major highway in a village called Uke in Karu Local Goverment area of Nassarawa State, North Central Nigeria.
Just 30 kilometres to Abuja, Nigeria’s Capital, Zimbabwe over the years has given fun lovers a mishmash of pleasure. TNG’s Correspondent, Emmanuel Bagudu, recently paid Zimbabwe a surprise visit and made amazing discoveries.
THE REPORT:
Fresh Palmwine, roasted chicken and fish delicacies form the fascinating nature of Zimbabwe. But this is not just the reason fun lovers throng the out-of town relaxation spot. Most visit Zimbabwe to hunt for sexual pleasures. Most of these are motorists, who can’t help but join in the euphoria of sex freely given. They stop by at intervals to relax before continuing their journey.
“I am a driver just returning from Makurdi. This is my second home; it’s good to “wine out” the stress….” says Francis Aswem a commercial driver.
I arrived Zimbabwe at exactly 5pm last Tuesday but met a very scanty scenery. At first I was confused and had to ask to confirm whether I am at the right place. “… Yes this is Zimbabwe” a young lady nicely answered to my enquiry. “…. Don’t worry sir, very soon, as work closes, this place will soon be full” the lady added. Before I could find a place to seat, I was accosted by a group of Hausa traditional singers with very fascinating musical instruments. Their job, it appears, is to sing for people relaxing in the spot and get paid stipends of any amount.
They approached and we exchanged pleasantries. Immediately they discovered I speak Hausa, they began singing, raining hurriedly formulated praises on me. I had to silence them with a Two hundred naira note before they stopped. “We are entertainers”, Abdullahi Umar, their leader said. “We came all the way from Niger State to entertain fun lovers here in Zimbabwe”. Abdullahi who is on crutches said he had an accident more than a year ago but won’t be deterred from using his talent of singing.
Women selling palmwine and other alcoholic drinks compete for costumers, some of them dressed seductively to make a case for themselves. “Come and taste sweet Palm wine sir”,
“my own sweet sir” the women kept appealing. Costumers, however, move to their usual spots without being distracted.
After about an hour, the environment began to look like the much talked about Zimbabwe, TNG was hinted, as cars began to troop in. It was dark already. And as if given a signal, Young women of easy virtue began to go round the vicinity, making advances at potential customers. I approached one. “My name is Linda” she said, “I came from school to hussle. How much you wan pay, are you taking me to hotel or your house, or na here you wan do am” Here? I exclaimed. Linda responded “ah shey you be JJC” meaning was I a new patron, in pidgin. Linda managed to explain the goings on in Zimbabwe. She said because the area is located on a major high way and is close to major cities like Abuja, Keffi, and Nassarawa, prostitutes throng Zimbabwe from different locations including the Nassarawa State University which is just 14 kilometres away.
There is no one in particular coordinating the “sexcapade” since Zimbabwe is just a road side fun spot but Linda said “big men” send their boys to pick them to their homes or guest houses. A randy pimp, named Ojo, according to Linda is reportedly fond of having sex with prostitutes in the hideouts around Zimbabwe before taking them to his boss. This, according to Linda, is a way of tasting the sexual abilities of the prostitutes.
The highway that passes through Zimbabwe leads to Kaduna, Plateau, Bauchi, Kano, Gombe, Makurdi, Adamawa, Taraba and Borno States. Its one of the busiest highways. Apart from alcohol and sex, Zimbabwe is an official market for foodstuff. Yams, Tomatoes, and many kinds of vegetables are sold there. Those selling food stuff are having a Field day. Hardly will you find a man drinking without a woman by his side. At all spots women dressed in very seductive wears. They drink alcohol while engaging in very compromising erotic activities with their male friends. They touch each other without guilt, without fear. Most of the women are said to have developed these characters on reaching these villages trying to settle in order to access the nearest urban centre to search for Greener pastures. Since Abuja and its neighboring towns of Nassarawa states are direct neighbors of Zimbabwe, alot of low income earners settle around Maraba, Ado, new Nyanya, Masaka, Kuchikau and other villages close to Zimbabwe for cheap house rents.
Young women between 20 to 40 stay alone in these areas, students from the Nassarawa State University also live in the areas. Some of the women when broke take advantage of the “Sex trade” in Zimbabwe to fend for themselves.
An elderly man named Moses Ata told TNG that most of the girls here only need food to eat. “Once you buy them small drink and some small chops, you are sure for a short time(quickie)” Ata said. Randy Married men drive from a far distance to explore the place. A woman was reportedly arrested by the police for attacking her husband’s mistress who is a call girl known in Zimbabwe, the woman later sought for divorce because of the encounter. “Most men believe this is a hide out” Ata said.
HISTORY OF ZIMBABWE
Zimbabwe has being in existence since the early 90s according to some of the traders, but there is no known reason the spot is named after the Southern African Country except that Mr Ata claimed he can give a small account. “Before now, there was only one Palmwine shop here it was owned by an Egon (tribe in Nassarawa) woman, the shop was called madam Zimbabwe. She was later joined by others who also open their spaces but since madam Zimbabwe was not popular than the rest the entire place was now called Madam Zimbabwe, when she later died, more people opened their shops and the entire place was still called Zimbabwe” Ata added.