If you ask me, I would say that the best way to describe this village is ‘‘A DOT IN A CIRCLE’’ or better still call i a ”Township Village”. It would be naturally difficult for anyone to believe it will be possible to have a typical village like Kuchibina right in Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC). Recall that Abuja Municipal Area Council is located on the eastern wing of the Federal Capital Territory and comprises of City Centre, Garki, Gwarimpa, Wuse and several other areas.
At first one will imagine that moving from a rural settlement into a city or town would make a lot of difference but this can’t be said of Kuchibina-a village settlement right inside Gwarinpa. Recall that Gwarinpa is the largest Estate in the whole of West Africa.
Having worked in an office located in Gwarinpa for about 3 years now, and just getting to hear about Kuchibina was a shock for me. To further quench my curiosity and with the mindset of a tourist, I set out with my friend to see for myself how a set of people would feel to be living like a dot in a big circle.
We got to the Abuja Model City Gate, popularly known as Galadima Gate or Charly-Boy Gate, where we took a Keke (tricycle) ride which charged NGN100 for each of us. As went, we were enjoying the city view for about 5mins before we started to descend what looked like a hill. From there we began noticing the difference between where we were coming from and where we were going.
Boom! The road became bad!!
Lo and behold, there it was; a community under Abuja Area Council (AMAC).
The good thing about the villagers is that they are very peaceful and hospitable. First, we met with Mr Philip who welcomed and showed us around the community highlighting all the important landmarks
Their traditional ruler confirmed to us that hardly do they have criminal cases and when they do, with the help of their local vigilante, matters are easily resolved.
Without electricity, no good road, no secondary school, no police station, no hospital not even a polling unit for election.
They are also very hospitable, I guess they were just excited to see strangers coming to interact with them.
For me, my journey was a memorable experience never to be forgotten and a very big lesson to learn.
