World of moving bill boards

Photos: Wale Azeez

Stickers on commercial vehicles, before now, used to contain messages that are understandable only to commercial drivers and their conductors. The trend now is that companies, individuals and politicians use commercial vehicles to advertise and propagate their ideologies. Yejide Gbenga-Ogundare reports.

All over the country, commercial drivers have devised ways of informing people about their beliefs and at a relatively cheap price too. The messages which are usually loud and ubiquitous are boldly placed at strategic points on their vehicles to attract the attention of people. These messages are common place and it is rare to see any commercial vehicle devoid of a particular kind of message.

The assumption of many people is that these bold signs give an indication of how a driver’s mind operates. The messages vary in form. Some messages are religious, some philosophical, some give advice to passengers, while others are vulgar and obscene or quite meaningless to the average individual who does not know the rudiments of street language.

Often, these messages are filled with grammatical errors and spelling mistakes. Words like man must wack, Eddy Morphy, fear man, the man are not only inane but also quite banal. Other common messages are Omo eleru, yeri e, Jeun soke, ko soro and a host others. In addition to this, drivers also paste quotes from their favourite foreign European soccer team or player, musicians or their pictures on their vehicles.

There are an array of these messages. Trying to not only read but understand these messages is usually a real intellectual assignment as they fly across one’s view from different directions rapidly while some buses are so covered that the messages run into each other and become very difficult to read.

In times past, it was only commercial buses and wooded lorries used to transport farm produce and rural traders, which is popularly called ‘tanlese’ in Yoruba speaking areas that are covered with graffiti. But now, the culture has extended to cabs, motorcycles and even luxury buses. As the culture spreads, so do the messages get more lucid on most vehicles.

Check out words like Orobokibo, ori olori, Aya Gbangba, Jeun soke, Obinrin lesu, Jeun lo and some meaningful ones like Prince of peace, no king as God, Somi Olorun, kiku ma pa alaanu mi, The world is a stage, money is the root of evil, Ero toju eru e are other common ones.

Why these messages and for what purpose? There are diverse opinions on this. What it means to passengers is quite different from what it means to the drivers and their conductors. In fact, drivers inculcate this culture for different reasons that are personal to each of them. Though many of the inscriptions seem meaningless to the observer, the drivers understand the messages quite well.

There are various reasons for these inscribed messages. Some drivers do it for fun, others to feel among and others to beautify their vehicles. Mid-week Tribune spoke to many drivers and while some revealed that they had cogent reasons for using graffiti while others just do it because it seems to be the fad.

Osaze Benedict, a bus driver, told Mid-week Tribune that all the messages on his bus are for certain purposes. “Those messages are not there for fun. They all have a reason.

When I find myself moody, angry or unhappy due to a particular incident or something someone did to me, I just look at any of those messages and meditate on it. Before long, I feel better. It is like reading a particular bible verse because I experience many trying situations daily,” he said.

“Putting those inscriptions on the buses is something any driver worth his salt must do because it is a way of life. It is just normal if one wants to feel among. I cannot afford not to do it because it gives recognition.”

Biodun, a commercial bus driver plying Ikotun - Iyana area of Lagos told Mid-week Tribune.

For K.B. Beckam, as he identified himself, not using graffiti on his bus is like loosing his identity. “How do you differentiate commercial vehicles from privately owned ones? It is through those inscriptions. It is our identity, we must use it or else, one would be lost in the crowd,” he said.

Nurudeen’s reason is quite different from others. “I used to be an ‘Agbero’ with no hope of doing anything worthwhile in life than that. Though I got money to feed myself, I often felt bad because people look down on us. As a result, I tried to be different, I did not abuse people or fight. One driver later gave me this bus when he bought a new one, he gave me on credit because he said I was respectful. That is why I put inscriptions like patience is a virtue, Oluwa kii gbagbe eni, leyin onisuuru l’Olorun wa and from grass to grace on the vehicle to remind me of my past so that I would not misbehave,” he said.

Aikigbe on his own part merely uses the stickers to beautify his bus and sometimes show admiration for any individual that catches his fancy. “Many times I put Paso’s pictures and Arsenal football club’s emblem on my bus to show my affection,” he said.

Why then do they have many of these inscriptions and stickers on their vehicles. It seems to be a case of the more, the merrier. Some drivers cover both windscreens of their vehicles with so much graffiti that visibility is impaired. To this, the drivers had something to say. Aikigbe feels if the stickers and inscriptions are not much, the beauty does not come out while K.B. Beckam believes it does not harm to have so many. He said, “there can never be too many stickers because the space available on the bus is even too small for the messages you have. It does not obscure visibility in any way except one is a bad driver or unserious.”

Nurudeen however subscribes that too much of anything is bad. He thinks, “those inscriptions are good but when they are too much, the bus will look somehow and people may even run from it.”

The drivers’ passion for stickers is however unreciprocated in their passengers. Few of the people that spoke to Mid-week Tribune had any strong feelings about the issue. “I do not even think about the inscriptions, it is something I have taken in my stride as a normal thing. It constitutes no danger, it’s just there,” Adefela Oni said.

For Tolu Bello, “it is nothing to worry about. Except I feel uncomfortable with the atmosphere in a bus or I think it is a one-chance vehicle, I do not look it over. The presence or absence of stickers makes no difference to me.”

In the course of its investigations, Mid-week Tribune discovered that the use of the common stickers by many vehicles is a commercial issue. This passion in some of them is a business investment. Some of the inscriptions and many of the stickers are a medium of advertisement which are paid for by individuals or institutions. Some companies give out these stickers to the drivers especially those new to the market to help launch a new product while some give out some stipends or free samples for use in the buses. Politicians also make use of commercial buses for their campaigns and they pay well for this service.

Biodun explained this concept. “It is not all inscriptions and stickers that are there just for fun. Most times when you see the same sticker especially about a product or service on a bus, it is for a specific purpose. We help organisations promote their products for a token.

The time we make good money is during politics, they give us good money to use their campaign materials,” he explained.

Generally, it is basically a fad to use inscriptions and stickers but sometimes it brings in money. At this period, it is like paying the drivers to do what they enjoy doing. Whether these inscriptions and stickers are for commercial purposes or not, it is a fact that not all vehicle owners enjoy the commercial aspect, yet, they use their hard-earned money to buy these things for use. The truth remains that the use of stickers and inscriptions is a culture that will continue to thrive for many more decades and the world of commercial transportation is incomplete without it.

All over the country, commercial drivers have devised ways of informing people about their beliefs and at a relatively cheap price too. The messages which are usually loud and ubiquitous are boldly placed at strategic points on their vehicles to attract the attention of people. These messages are common place and it is rare to see any commercial vehicle devoid of a particular kind of message.

The assumption of many people is that these bold signs give an indication of how a driver’s mind operates. The messages vary in form. Some messages are religious, some philosophical, some give advice to passengers, while others are vulgar and obscene or quite meaningless to the average individual who does not know the rudiments of street language.

Often, these messages are filled with grammatical errors and spelling mistakes. Words like man must wack, Eddy Morphy, fear man, the man are not only inane but also quite banal.

Other common messages are Omo eleru, yeri e, Jeun soke, ko soro and a host others. In addition to this, drivers also paste quotes from their favourite foreign European soccer team or player, musicians or their pictures on their vehicles.

There are an array of these messages. Trying to not only read but understand these messages is usually a real intellectual assignment as they fly across one’s view from different directions rapidly while some buses are so covered that the messages run into each other and become very difficult to read.

In times past, it was only commercial buses and wooded lorries used to transport farm produce and rural traders, which is popularly called ‘tanlese’ in Yoruba speaking areas that are covered with graffiti. But now, the culture has extended to cabs, motorcycles and even luxury buses. As the culture spreads, so do the messages get more lucid on most vehicles.

Check out words like Orobokibo, ori olori, Aya Gbangba, Jeun soke, Obinrin lesu, Jeun lo and some meaningful ones like Prince of peace, no king as God, Somi Olorun, kiku ma pa alaanu mi, The world is a stage, money is the root of evil, Ero toju eru e are other common ones.

Why these messages and for what purpose? There are diverse opinions on this. What it means to passengers is quite different from what it means to the drivers and their conductors. In fact, drivers inculcate this culture for different reasons that are personal to each of them. Though many of the inscriptions seem meaningless to the observer, the drivers understand the messages quite well.

There are various reasons for these inscribed messages. Some drivers do it for fun, others to feel among and others to beautify their vehicles. Mid-week Tribune spoke to many drivers and while some revealed that they had cogent reasons for using graffiti while others just do it because it seems to be the fad.

Osaze Benedict, a bus driver, told Mid-week Tribune that all the messages on his bus are for certain purposes. “Those messages are not there for fun. They all have a reason.

When I find myself moody, angry or unhappy due to a particular incident or something someone did to me, I just look at any of those messages and meditate on it. Before long, I feel better. It is like reading a particular bible verse because I experience many trying situations daily,” he said.

“Putting those inscriptions on the buses is something any driver worth his salt must do because it is a way of life. It is just normal if one wants to feel among. I cannot afford not to do it because it gives recognition.”

Biodun, a commercial bus driver plying Ikotun - Iyana area of Lagos told Mid-week Tribune.

For K.B. Beckam, as he identified himself, not using graffiti on his bus is like loosing his identity. “How do you differentiate commercial vehicles from privately owned ones? It is through those inscriptions. It is our identity, we must use it or else, one would be lost in the crowd,” he said.

Nurudeen’s reason is quite different from others. “I used to be an ‘Agbero’ with no hope of doing anything worthwhile in life than that. Though I got money to feed myself, I often felt bad because people look down on us. As a result, I tried to be different, I did not abuse people or fight. One driver later gave me this bus when he bought a new one, he gave me on credit because he said I was respectful. That is why I put inscriptions like patience is a virtue, Oluwa kii gbagbe eni, leyin onisuuru l’Olorun wa and from grass to grace on the vehicle to remind me of my past so that I would not misbehave,” he said.

Aikigbe on his own part merely uses the stickers to beautify his bus and sometimes show admiration for any individual that catches his fancy. “Many times I put Paso’s pictures and Arsenal football club’s emblem on my bus to show my affection,” he said.

Why then do they have many of these inscriptions and stickers on their vehicles. It seems to be a case of the more, the merrier. Some drivers cover both windscreens of their vehicles with so much graffiti that visibility is impaired. To this, the drivers had something to say. Aikigbe feels if the stickers and inscriptions are not much, the beauty does not come out while K.B. Beckam believes it does not harm to have so many. He said, “there can never be too many stickers because the space available on the bus is even too small for the messages you have. It does not obscure visibility in any way except one is a bad driver or unserious.”

Nurudeen however subscribes that too much of anything is bad. He thinks, “those inscriptions are good but when they are too much, the bus will look somehow and people may even run from it.”

The drivers’ passion for stickers is however unreciprocated in their passengers. Few of the people that spoke to Mid-week Tribune had any strong feelings about the issue. “I do not even think about the inscriptions, it is something I have taken in my stride as a normal thing. It constitutes no danger, it’s just there,” Adefela Oni said.

For Tolu Bello, “it is nothing to worry about. Except I feel uncomfortable with the atmosphere in a bus or I think it is a one-chance vehicle, I do not look it over. The presence or absence of stickers makes no difference to me.”

In the course of its investigations, Mid-week Tribune discovered that the use of the common stickers by many vehicles is a commercial issue. This passion in some of them is a business investment. Some of the inscriptions and many of the stickers are a medium of advertisement which are paid for by individuals or institutions. Some companies give out these stickers to the drivers especially those new to the market to help launch a new product while some give out some stipends or free samples for use in the buses.

Politicians also make use of commercial buses for their campaigns and they pay well for this service.

Biodun explained this concept. “It is not all inscriptions and stickers that are there just for fun. Most times when you see the same sticker especially about a product or service on a bus, it is for a specific purpose. We help organisations promote their products for a token.

The time we make good money is during politics, they give us good money to use their campaign materials,” he explained.

Generally, it is basically a fad to use inscriptions and stickers but sometimes it brings in money. At this period, it is like paying the drivers to do what they enjoy doing. Whether these inscriptions and stickers are for commercial purposes or not, it is a fact that not all vehicle owners enjoy the commercial aspect, yet, they use their hard-earned money to buy these things for use. The truth remains that the use of stickers and inscriptions is a culture that will continue to thrive for many more decades and the world of commercial transportation is incomplete without it.