5 Crazy Things You Shouldn’t Do In Lagos Buses, By Adeniyi Ogunfowoke

Lagos is a comedy zone half the time and moving from one part of town to the other in a public bus can leave you with interesting experiences that keep you reeling with laughter for the most part of the journey.

If you lack a sense of humour, many situations you encounter can cause you to flip a switch but once you realize that public vehicles are boarded by people from various backgrounds, orientations, and mind-sets, you should feel better.

Jovago.com, Africa’s No 1 Hotel Booking Portal rounds up a few crazy things you should not do in a public bus.

Wooing a woman

Yes, you can meet your life partner anywhere. For this reason, men may want to take advantage of the opportunity of wooing a pretty girl especially when they know that the chances for seeing her again are pretty slim.

However, thing can turn awry really quick as not all ladies like the idea of being wooed in a public bus or on the high street of Ikeja. To avoid embarrassments, suppress your urge to woo the lady till she’s ready to get off the bus and then make your move. If it’s a hit or miss, the memories are all yours alone.

Dozing off on the shoulders of a fellow passenger

Sleeping in a public bus is not an unusual situation. However, what many Nigerians cannot stand is when you turn the shoulders of a fellow passenger to a pillow. It’s a little weird to have a stranger rub-off on you and if you can’t stand it, neither can they. Plus it puts you at the mercy of pickpocket’s and you run the risk of being driven past your bus stop.

Not paying for your transport fare

Some people are fond of trying to avoid paying transport fares. Other persons go as far as saying a little prayer hoping the conductor will forget his money. In Lagos, you have got a large dose of faith, this prayer may not work and it often leads to bitter fights between the conductor and passengers….you do not want tied in a fist-cuff with a bus conductor.

Offering the driver ‘driving lessons’ 

The average driver thinks of himself as king of the road. No matter their flaws, they rarely accept caution or correction from anyone. Therefore, any passenger who attempts to caution the driver may receive a vitriolic reaction from him. In classic comical Eko fashion, he may threaten to abdicate the driving sit for the passenger…in a moving vehicle, you certainly do not want him to take his threat seriously.

Intervene when arrested

Members of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA, or the police may be overzealous and aggressive but this is as a result of the habitual recklessness of drivers who disobey the driving rules. When arrested, the drivers feel remorseful while pleading with passengers to apologise on their behalf. Passengers do not need to intervene especially when the driver is at fault. To avoid getting caught in a free for all verbal onslaught, whenever the driver gets arrested, quietly disembark from the vehicle and get another one heading your way.