By Chua Kong Ho The Straits Times Publication Date : 2006-01-30
The smell of fried plantain wafts from the deep fryer and music in the Nigerian Igbo language plays on the portable stereo.
C.L.E. African Restaurant in Sam Leong Road in Little India has become a gathering place in Singapore for Africans from Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Tanzania, Cameroon and South Africa.
But the coffee-shop stall's popularity as a hang-out spot for Africans is also causing some unhappiness in the neighbourhood, as shopkeepers in the area complain of excessive noise, drunken behaviour, fights and crime.
These complaints can be put down to the growing presence of Africans in Singapore over the past decade.
Singapore Tourism Board figures on African arrivals show that growing numbers are coming from countries other than South Africa, Egypt and Mauritius.
The numbers will probably exceed 30,000 in 2005, the highest in at least 10 years.
Singapore is a popular destination because citizens of Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Cameroon, Tanzania and South Africa do not require visas to visit Singapore.
The Republic's affluence and throw-away culture has created a flourishing second-hand goods market for African traders. Others come here hoping to play soccer for the S-League, and still others arrive with a few hundred dollars, no place to stay and try to find jobs.
Somehow, they make their way to the stall. Every night, 20 or more men occupy a dozen tables at the coffee shop; eating, drinking and talking football and politics.
They converse in their native languages, or in the pidgin African English if they are from different countries.
On weekends, the numbers swell and those who cannot find seats stand along Sam Leong Road in groups.
A security supervisor at Mustafa Centre next door said he has seen African men harrass local and foreign women in the vicinity.
"It used to be foreign workers who were the problem, now it's them," said the supervisor, who has worked at Mustafa for two years.
One coffee-shop assistant, who lives in a hostel above the African stall, said the Africans would drink and get rowdy and make a lot of noise.
"Some have no place to stay and sleep in the back alleys or on the tables," she said.
The Super Star Hotel on Desker Road, a short walk away, used to allow African tourists to settle their bills at the end of their stay.
But after a few left without paying, the hotel now asks for payment upfront every day before noon.
"If you can't pay, out you go," said the receptionist, who declined to be named.
The owner of Bee Hiang Seafood, a zi char stall located directly opposite the African stall, also said he has had problems.
The 40-year-old, who declined to be named, said that he would shoo the Africans from the tables near his stall. It is not racism, he insisted; he does it to protect his business.
"If I don't do it, I won't have any tables to do business with. They can sit there the whole day nursing one drink and one person will occupy a big table," he said.
He also claimed he was verbally threatened by Africans unhappy with his actions. One challenged him to a fight in the back alley and brandished a leather belt as a weapon. Another time, a group of Africans involved in a fight rushed into the coffee shop and grabbed empty beer bottles as instant weapons.
Business has also fallen by 20 per cent since the African stall was set up, as families stayed away from the area, he claimed.
"Would you bring your wife and children to eat here if you see these big guys quarrelling and fighting?" he said.
Ignatius Achugbu, 35, one of the owners of the African stall, said the Bee Hiang Seafood owner was just jealous of his stall's success.
But he admits that there are a few bad hats who are giving the Africans a bad name.
Just two weeks ago, the police came round to his stall past midnight looking for an African national suspected of snatching a bag in the area.
Achugbu managed to track down the suspect by calling the usual boarding houses and hotels frequented by Africans and led the police to him.
"Hopefully, by doing this, others who are thinking of committing crimes will think twice, because we will hand them over to the police."
As for the fights and drunken behaviour, he said: "We Africans talk loudly when we get excited. Others who aren't used to it think we're quarrelling or fighting, and they call the police."
He hopes the police would come by less often as it makes his customers "feel like criminals".
The police said they do not provide statistics of crime by nationality or location. Nor would they say whether they were receiving more complaints about the Africans in Little India.
We made six visits to Sam Leong Road in the past fortnight, both during the day and at night, each visit lasting a few hours.
On those visits, police patrol cars were parked on the side streets near Mustafa Centre and police officers patrolled the area on foot.
But some businesses here are benefitting from African traders who come here to buy second-hand goods.
Desmond Ng, 40, owner of Win Jing Trading at Desker Road, said half the used motorcycles he sells each month are to Nigerians, who ship them back home to sell.
African buyers also visit the Sungei Kadut and Woodlands industrial areas, where there are many used car exporters, and purchase spare parts like engines, axles and doors, said a representative of used car exporter Global Car Masters.
Business aside, the Africans say they have their own complaints of poor behaviour by locals.
Matthew Okonkwu, 24, a Nigerian footballer who has been in Singapore for three weeks, recounted an instance when a woman pinched her nose and shot him a dirty look as they passed each other on the street.
He said: "She could not have smelled me from that distance, and besides, I had just showered!"
Bill Yeboah Kyeremeh, a Ghanaian and Singapore permanent resident, has lived in Singapore for 14 years.
The IT consultant with a British multinational company said that there have been instances when Singaporeans avoided sitting beside him on the bus or MRT. But he shrugs it off, saying that "in Singapore, everyone is so tired after work. If they want to stand when there's a seat available, it's their loss".
Emeka Ukachukwu, 29, a used-goods trader, said he plans to continue visiting Singapore. He spends US$25,000 to fill a standard 20-foot container with used electronics purchased from dealers in Singapore and ships it to Lagos.
He makes an estimated profit of US$10,000 on each container of goods after costs. An office worker in Lagos makes an average S$500 a month.
Asked whether he feels welcome in Singapore, he said: "Singapore's a very nice place and the people are generally friendly.
"You can't stereotype and judge an entire country based on a few unpleasant incidents. That applies, too, to Singaporeans."
Posts: 2720 | Registered: May 2004
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posted
Nigerians are generally good traders, however over represented in shady busineses, My cousin who lives in south africa told me how they almost have monopolized the underground activities in the whole country.
Posts: 1420 | Registered: May 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Yonis: Nigerians are generally good traders, however over represented in shady busineses, My cousin who lives in south africa told me how they almost have monopolized the underground activities in the whole country.
So I've heard! Posts: 26267 | From: Atlanta, Georgia, USA | Registered: Feb 2005
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quote:Originally posted by Yonis: Nigerians are generally good traders, however over represented in shady busineses, My cousin who lives in south africa told me how they almost have monopolized the underground activities in the whole country.
So I've heard!
Lion! writes:
That is a callous stereotypification. A work of an idle mind. Since the comments are so worthless, I wonder why they have to be reiterated and then reiterated again.
No national or racial prejudices here. Rules should be observed and not broken.
Peace
The Lion!
Posts: 236 | From: Toronto, Ontario, Canada | Registered: Oct 2005
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posted
Along the lines of the title of the topic, i.e., Little Africa ... in little India, one might say that there are several little Indias in Africa. Just go to Mauritius, Kenya and South Africa, and you'll see what I mean.
-------------------- Truth - a liar penetrating device! Posts: 5964 | Registered: Jan 2005
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