The name Abigail Oyiko Ochai may not readily strike a chord, but Susan Peters certainly does. Just in case you don’t know, Abigail Oyiko Ochai and Susan Peters are one and the same person. She is one of Nigeria’s finest movie stars
Her reputation as a thespian transcends the Nigerian borders. Brought up in several military barracks across the country and under strict discipline by her Air Force father, she has earned for herself international repute and accolade. Besides strutting the stage, she has also established a reputation for her unrelenting efforts towards the advancement and emancipation of the Nigerian youths.
Peters speaks on the need for government and the society to rise against all crimes against women.
Excepts:
What is your definition of a true Nigerian?
A true Nigerian, to me, is someone who impacts positively on the nation or on individuals, one that contributes immensely towards the national growth.
You own Susplace Saloon; what is your advice to ladies who do all manner of wrongs just to earn cheap social status?
First, I will say that we (women) are like flowers that blossom for sometimes, but after a while go down. If you misuse your body when you are growing up, it will definitely tell on you when you are aging. I advise young women not to misuse their body for monetary reasons. Secondly, I will advise them to go to school and try to complete their education. They should be well focused on a particular vocation and develop on it.
Although in our country today, you do not get jobs based on merit, but if you keep trying, you will definitely find a place. It is quite true to say that the frustration is very high at some point because of the way and manner people live their lives in the country, which sometimes affect young women negatively. Due to what happens, sometimes they try to go out of the ways of their parental upbringing.
Some of them would say, ‘my friend has a human hair, I must have a human hair too.’ But neither have a job that can fetch you the money to buy the human hair nor do you even know how she got her human hair. But in a bid to seem to belong, some people tend to go out of their way to do things that they are not supposed to do, which is very wrong. I will strongly advice that they wait until their time, when they will be able to afford all these things.
Were there times you were in some situations as you described and how did you got though them?
I would not say that I was in such a situation because I was born, as they say with a silver spoon (a child born by a middle classed parents). My father was in the Air Force and then we were always being transferred from one state to another. So we were never permanent in one state. Although it affected my schooling a bit, everything was provided for us in the house.
We never had access to friends, because once we were back from school, they would lock the main gate or the main door. So, it was either you were forced to watch a certain TV programme, face your homework or go for siesta. I did not really have the privilege of mixing up with people as a child.
When we were growing up, we were not even allowed to bring home our girlfriends because my father had this idea that the girl always coming has a guy hiding at the backyard and so she would come to get information to feed him (the guy in hiding behind the back fence). Basically, I will say that I was brought up under strict military supervision. I started with a job at the Nigerian Breweries in Kaduna. After a while, I stopped because of some office frustrations. I decided not to continue with the work anymore.
What kinds of frustrations are you talking about?
(Laughter) Do not go there. Well, there were some harassment that I did not like, so I left. After that, I opened my saloon.
Before you go on, must you quit your job before such sexual harassment can stop?
Well, I did not just lose the job due to any act of incompetence. What happened was that they wanted to retain me, but I refused.
You studied Computer and Food Engineering. What relationship does food has with engineering?
It is from the starting of food process to its very end. It is just like using barley to get the beer, or your dairy product like beverage and others.
You have driven from Lagos to Maiduguri. What do you think of the driving habit of Nigerians?
Well, some of our roads are not encouraging.
Let us talk about the drivers’ habit.
I love speed, but I am definitely not a rough driver. You know that there are some cars meant for speed; cars like the four-wheel drive. If I am driving such a car meant to cover certain kilometres per hour and I am just crawling, then it is a waste. So, speeding and rough driving are two separate things.
I advocate for good roads and moderate driving. I love to speed, but not to over-speed. Now about our driving habit, I will say that some of our drivers are really rough on the road.
I use to live in Kaduna which is much more quiet for me, because everyone wants to use the public bus. The bus driver would stop for you to enter before continuing. When I came to Lagos, what I saw was quite different. In Lagos, you do not wait for the busses to stop for you, rather you have to find a way to hop on the moving vehicle.
At first, I found it hard to cope. In Lagos, the Danfo (Yellow commercial mini buses) and the Molue (long commercial buses in Lagos) drivers are the worse anywhere, because while driving on your lane, they can just swerve into your front without any notice. These have caused a lot of accidents in Lagos, and it is not a good practice.
What can be done?
I think that the Federal Road Safety Commission, FRSC, have tried a lot, but they have a lot of homework to do, because on the major roads, there are no one to curb their excesses and call them to order. These motorists drive anyhow they like. It is only at congested roads that you find FRSC officials. They need to be at the major roads. I mean, the highways.
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