Whenever you think of Abuja, you think of luxury, you think of comfort, you think of wealth and you think of leadership.

This is why Abuja has become a business hub and home to many Nigerians and even non-Nigerians who have come to hustle their way out of poverty in the big city, of Abuja.

Despite all this flashiness showcased on TV and Social Media, it may shock you to know that a lot of low-income and even middle-income earners do not have access to proper accommodation due to the high cost of rent in the city.

Upon visiting some areas of Apo like Chafuyi by Primary Junction, Kristina Reports discovered that a lot of 9-5 workers travel from there to areas like Mabushi, Kado, Jahi and Wuse.

These trips cost between 3,000 to 4,000 Naira per day via public transport, but these people are willing to spend all this money on transportation because the cost of rent in the aforementioned places is too expensive for them.

Mary, an office assistant who works in Central Area says that she earns 90,000 Naira in a month and upon the hike of transportation, she now spends about 65,000 naira on transportation.

Before this time, she spent about 38,000 naira on transportation each month. She lives in a self-contained house on top of the hill by the primary junction where she pays 250,000 for rent.

“The house is 250,000 and I plan to move out because I don’t even have money to pay rent again. Maybe if I go down to Kabusa Village, I will find something of around 150 that I can pay even though it means that my transport will be more.”

When asked why she did not move into town in order to be closer to work, Mary laughed dryly and said “do you know that this house that I am paying 250,000 for here will cost me more than 1 Million Naira at that side? Let me just manage here.”

“Many times, there is no water, I have to go down the hill to fetch water before I go to work, my walls are peeling, and a part of my kitchen is leaking too. But I have been living here for three years so I will manage till February next year when my rent is expiring.”

Mrs. Nice, a woman who does petty trading on the same street explained that she had just decided to set up her little stall some months ago in order to raise money for her to fix her roof which has been leaking for over four months.

She explained that she used to beg for alms at Area 1 park but decided to quit because she is old and she heard rumours about Wike picking up beggars and now her son does the begging after school while she focuses on her stall.

“My roof has been leaking for long now, I say let me start selling these small things maybe money will come out for me to fix it because if I say I want to move out where will I go to? Rent is very expensive so let me just try to fix this one that I have seen.”

“Before now, I used to beg at Area 1 but I decided to stop going because they said Wike was packing us. Instead, let my son go, he is young and can run fast. Let me stay here and sell these things.”

Kristina Reports also visited an Area in Jikowyi, the outskirts of Abuja where individuals were seen living in uncompleted buildings, houses without doors and roofs.

Sarah, a woman who lives in one of the uncompleted buildings with her three children and husband said that this is what they have been able to afford so they spend a lot of money treating diseases and have little or nothing left to eat.

“My husband is a teacher in one of these schools in this area so they don’t pay him much. Me I didn’t go to university so all I can do is try to look for who wants help in their house I will help and they will pay me and I use most of that money to buy malaria and typhoid drugs every two weeks because of the way we are living.”

“If we want to leave this place and look for a house inside town we will not find it because even a small self-con is 200,000. We don’t have it and it is not enough space for my family so it is better we stay here.”

These residents, who complained, all implored the government to do something about the difficulty they are experiencing accommodation-wise.