My "Serviced" Apartment Struggles

I should move, but good houses are not easy to come by.

Renting in Lagos can be frustrating especially when I’m not getting what I pay for.

I live in a “serviced” apartment building, but the reality is that residents bear so many responsibilities we should be compensated for providing the service ourselves. During my five-year stay here, we've gone through three different facility management companies, and each one has been more disappointing than the last. I'd prefer not to name them directly.

I make an effort to voice my complaints and call out poor service because, why shouldn't I? There's also a sense of reassurance knowing that my fellow residents (albeit a minority 😒 ) make it a duty to speak up too. How do we expect good service if we remain silent and act like we don’t care? I believe this applies to life generally.

Recently, the most persistent issue has been with the water supply. For about 5 months now, the water quality has been bad; it’s either dirty, over chlorinated, or not running at all. My skin and clothes have suffered. I’ve found myself lathered up in the shower waiting for water, on multiple occasions. Forget cooking, I resorted to buying my own cooking water over a year ago. This is despite the fancy water treatment system installed in the compound.

There are other concerning issues like irregularities in power billing, inadequately trained staff and ineffective communication skills. The latest problem involved threats to withhold diesel supply due to outstanding payments from half of the residents. Bizarrely, their solution was to deprive the paying customers instead of directly addressing the debtors. I find their decision-making process highly questionable, and they have repeatedly demonstrated that they cannot be trusted. Furthermore, their overall culture of "anyhow-ness", leaves much to be desired.

“Anyhow-ness” is a Nigerian slang, it doesn’t exist in the dictionary. The closest explanation I could find is in this article.

In January, they held a feedback survey, promising improvement. Surprise surprise, we haven't seen the results. It seems the only thing they do well is their ability to apologise. Their apologies could fill a 10,000 litre water tank!😏

Unfortunately, such substandard services are quite common, and folks have become so accustomed to them that they accept the mediocrity to avoid rocking the boat. People like myself who complain are often perceived as troublemakers or as doing too much. If I can't uphold acceptable standards of living in the very place I call home, where else can I expect to do so?

I like where I live, it’s in one of the few remaining serene neighbourhoods left in Lekki. It’s not too much to ask that I enjoy what I am paying for.

Rant over. ☺️

What I am currently enjoying:

⭐️ Happy World Book Day! Today, I'm shouting out The Sex Lives of African Women by Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah. Reading the real life stories of women like me made me feel seen.

⭐️This hilarious thread on X showing why love always wins.👀