THERE are many mysteries to the creation of women. Though made out of men, there are things about them and their conducts which could unmake their men. One of them is feeding what should be their husbands, literally, to the dogs. Or how does one explain the resolve of some women, particularly those engaged in daily commercial activities, to turn their breasts, which should mainly be for their husbands after the children are done with them, to piggy bank where they keep money, regardless of how dirty and contaminated the notes are, all in the name of safekeeping?
Some market women still engaging in this weird behaviour said having husbands with “itchy fingers” informed the unconventional way of stopping the constant raids on their savings. They subsequently grew into the habit and now they see their brassieres as even safer than conventional banks.
Unique creature, unique feature
Breast-bank
In markets in Lagos and even other parts of the country, it is normal to see market women who, after transactions, put their sales proceeds inside their brassieres. In other words, their proceeds compete with their breasts for space in that undergarment.
Every time and again, they reach inside their brassieres to either fetch lower denominations for their customers as change or stuff their proceeds inside it, not minding the smell from the tattered notes that have been held by many with different health issues.
The weird habit, which, in the past, was mostly found with rural women, has now spread to cities like Lagos, Ibadan and Aba. As amusing and strange as this long-existing habit is, many people, particularly men, have continued to wonder what could be responsible for this “uncivilised, dirty” habit, a viewpoint which many of such market women have faulted.
Men divided
A couple of men engaged by Saturday Tribune could barely contain their disgust at such a practice. Nearly all of them said nothing could be more irritating than seeing a woman bring out money from her bra to give to somebody else. “It is so disgusting looking at such women putting such monies with all the sweat and bacteria in their brassieres. This is one of the reasons breast cancer is on the rise as the Naira contains germs”, one of the men volunteered.
But a fashion designer, Hadji Taofeek, disagreed. His wife does it and he is cool with it. In spite of the health implications and societal abhorrence of the act, he would not see anything unusual in the act. Rather, he sees the bra as a natural extension of a woman’s pocket.
“I have seen my wife do this many times, especially when going out without a bag. And if she is not carrying a bag, where else do you want her to keep her money?” he said.
According to him, since he would not allow his wife to wear trousers, which would have provided her enough pockets to keep such an item, he would not discourage her from using the bra as a temporary pocket. “Besides, I believe it is the safest place to keep such an item, especially when going out to such busy places as markets,” he stated.
A tiler, Monday Osahon, would subscribe to none of Hadji’s views. The health implications of the habit, according to him, are very grave.
“The only time I saw my wife do this was when we were courting, and I seriously rebuked her for this. And she has since changed,” explained. Osahon, a father of three from a 10-year-old marriage, who lives in Abule Egba in Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos State, would rather see her woman not go out with money than use her bra for its safekeeping. “It is highly unethical. I think it is a culture that is on the decline among our womenfolk. No decent lady would contemplate doing that today, because the implications are grave. We can only see such a spectacle, I believe, in the village,” he added.
Why we do it –Women
For Mrs Saliu who sells soup ingredients at Bammeke in Shasha, the act of keeping money inside bra by market women dates back many years, when there were no banks, a tradition which many of the present-day market women inherited from their parents. While describing the habit as old fashioned, she explained that market women, in the past, were not civilised to the extent of carrying handbags except a few of them who tie their monies on their wrappers around their waist.
Although Saliu agreed that she had stopped hiding money in her brassieres, in the defence of the habit she said she got involved in the weird habit because she believed that any money she kept in that place was secure.
Like Saliu, Mummy Abiola, a popular shoes and bags seller at Egbeda market, said she was forced to pick up the habit when she discovered that her husband was stealing her money.
According to her, the constant theft of her capital by her husband, which almost ruined her business, left her with no alternative but to begin to hide her money in her brassiere, even while sleeping. As a result of this, she got accustomed to the act which unconsciously became part of her.
For Mama Ada who is selling soup delicacies synonymous with the people of the south-eastern part of the country, majority of women hiding money in their brassieres in the markets have no choice in view of activities of area boys and other elements who rob them at the slightest opportunity.
“My decision to join the league of the women hiding money in the brassiere started some years back when trouble broke out between the agberos (touts) and area boys at Oshodi market, when my proceeds for the day amounting to N15,000 was forcibly removed by one of the hoodlums from inside the nylon bag I was carrying,” she said. According to her, she was blamed by other market women around for not hiding her money in her brassiere, and from that day she made up her mind to embrace the habit which, she said, had paid off.
At the Lagos Island markets, Dosumu, Idumota and Balogun, it was observed that those who usually keep their money in their bras are mostly hawkers.
Medinat, who hawks cotton bud, toothpicks, toothbrush, among others, explained to Saturday Tribune that keeping money in her bra was a habit she learnt quite early in life from her mother, who also sells foodstuffs in the market. She said the habit was nauseating to her until she became a frequent target of pickpockets in the market. “No matter how careful I was with my purse, they still stole my money. So, I started putting my money in my ‘surest bank’, my bra. Ever since then, I have been more accountable. My money only gets short when I give wrong change to customers,” she explained.
In closer interactions, shop owners claimed that fewer female shop owners indulge in such practice. In one of the big cloth shops, Alhaja, the owner, according to one of her workers, Kike, puts money in her bra because she doesn’t want any mix-up between her personal money and the sales of the day.
“Alhaja likes being accountable. She will not dip her hand in the daily proceeds. I notice when she puts petty cash in bra, money for food and transport, mainly,” Kike said.
The habit is not prevalent among members of the older generation as quite a number of members of the younger generation also keep money in their bras. A lady, who couldn’t be older than 16 years, also believes that that is the best way to keep her money. With a baby strapped to her back and a load of bread on her head, she only smiled when asked why she kept her money, wrapped in nylon, inside her bra instead of a purse.
A trader who identified herself simply as Iya Aisha told Saturday Tribune that the reason she liked to hide her money in her bra and underwear was because of Task Force officials. “I sell jewellery and makeup at Ojota bus stop. Most times, KAI officials come and harass us and ask us to leave. Sometimes we are caught unawares and in the process, we lose money and valuables. There was a day that I lost about N15,000 after KAI officials came in their van to arrest people. I know they claim that putting money in your bra puts you at risk of cancer and some other skin infections but I assure you, it is the safest way when you sell petty things like me. I will rather put my money there than trust all these bank operators who claim to keep it safe in the bank for you,” she said.
Health hazards na lie?
At the Iyana Ipaja market, most women there have similar stories to tell as to why they engaged in such a habit without recourse to the health implications. Aunty Ayo, who sells cosmetics at the Iyana Ipaja market, waived aside any health hazard that might arise from keeping money in brassieres. She said no health implication had ever been traced to the habit. According to her, those carrying such rumour “are agents of banks looking for customers to open accounts with them.” Ayo also accused banks of failing to bring their business closer to the women through the establishment of banks within the market’s vicinity to make lodgements of cash easy for them. According to her, maybe when this is done, such market women will start jettisoning the idea.
It is suicidal –Banks
Some top bank executives who spoke to Saturday Tribune said there was no deliberate policy against opening bank branches inside markets. According to them, there are some markets that have banks inside or very close by, yet most of the traders women refused to patronise them. They said every financial institution likes to take their services closer to these market women, but a number of things have to be considered first, such as space, security, access road, size of trade that will encourage profitable transactions, among others.
“If you pay them, the people you gave long-term loans cannot pay up. Then you begin to have distress in the system,” one of the bank executives said.
He said that the mutilated notes also harboured bacteria that could cause infectious diseases such as food poisoning and respiratory problems.
‘What health officials should do’
Saturday Tribune’s survey showed that many Nigerians, including women, believe that the habit of keeping money inside brassieres is filthy and hazardous to health as a larger chunk of the Naira notes smell due to the unhygienic way people handle cash. People have argued that this menace might have contributed to the increase in the new record of breast cancer among women. To save the womenfolk, those who do not engage in the behaviour have called on health officials to take enlightenment campaigns to markets and warn them about the health implications of hiding money inside brassieres.
The habit of keeping money in the bra is yet believed to pose a threat to the health of a woman as well as to others.
The chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) in Lagos State, Dr Olumuyiwa Odusote, explained that bacteria are transmitted from currency notes which had been handled by all sorts of persons to the skin of the woman who keeps it in her bra, which could cause different types of skin infection. He also noted that the woman’s breasts, especially the areas close to the armpits, are often moist and, therefore, prone to bacteria which, when in contact with money, could be transmitted to the recipient of such money.
He, however, noted that the practice is of particular danger to a child being breastfed as the baby can easily take in bacteria while suckling. This, he explained, could lead to diarrhoea and vomiting, which is dangerous for the health of the baby. “Market women are not conscious of the healthy practice of washing their breasts with mild soap before breastfeeding their babies, thus posing health dangers to their babies,” he said.
Generally, women are special creatures and they have continued to spring surprises and dumbfound men with their actions and inactions, including weird ones.
Without women, the world would have possibly been too serious, devoid of wonders and surprises. It also appears that as far as this lifetime is concerned, either deliberately or otherwise, women will continue to overwhelm their male counterparts with their strange deeds.
Women are created to be pleasing to the eyes. And one of the major attractions to their physical appearance is their breasts. From time immemorial, the mammary glands of women have captivated men who are certain to continue to drool over them, irrespective of shape or size.
Women are also eternally aware of the effect their breasts have on the opposite sex and they not only flaunt them but are wont to give them utmost care as invaluable assets.
So, why are some women ‘messing up’ these priceless gifts, turning them to safes for dirty notes?
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