Every resident of the leper colony at Ita-Elega area of Abeokuta, Ogun State that our correspondent met like Adelodun, spoke with a measure of pride, in the fact that they perform their civic responsibility during every election year in the country.
But what makes the case of these old men and women different from every other Nigerian is that once election is over, and results are out, they go back to being lepers avoided by politicians like a dreaded disease.
For this reason, they are bitter and did not pretend otherwise when our correspondent spoke with them.
It is election day today, but the members of this leper colony, feel that like every other election that had been held in the past, there is no reason for them to have hope in the promises of the politicians who have come to campaign for their votes.
"That party with the cockerel sign, (Social Democratic Party) has come here to ask us to vote for them. The party with the broom sign (All Progressives Congress) and the one with the umbrella (Peoples Democratic Party) have also been here. But that is the way all the parties came in the past. Once we vote, they never come here again," Mama Adelodun said.
The old woman has lost her left leg, replaced by a prosthetic leg. She walks only with the prosthetic which bears visible signs of wear and tear as holes could be seen in them. Because the leg is no longer strong enough to support her frail frame, she has to use a walking stick as additional support.
But as haggard as she looks, the woman said she votes in every election.
Interestingly there is even a polling booth in the compound.
"Anytime we want to vote, they tell us to bring a child along to assist us. As you can see that my hands are almost useless, I cannot fold the ballot paper. So, when I thumbprint with this finger (stump of her index finger), the child helps me to fold it and drops it in the box," she said.
The Baale (community head) of the colony, 65-year-old Pa Samson Ogunrinde, who said he had spent close to 30 years in the compound, told our correspondent that the only time residents of the colony are treated like normal human beings are when politicians come to them to canvass for their votes.
He said, "They tell us many good things; about how they would increase our stipends, rebuild our homes and provide us with water.
"During those times, we feel happy because they treat us like we are still useful to the society. But unfortunately, once election ends, we never hear from them again," he said.
Ogunrinde, Solomon and Omolara
Pa Ogunrinde took our correspondent round the colony and asked that every facility in the compound should be taken note of.
"All the facilities that I have shown you; the borehole, the water tanks or the buildings, tell me, how many of them bears any sign that it was built by the government?" he said.
Truly, the facilities either bear the logo of the Lion's Club, Rotary or some other non-governmental organisations.
Sadly, the buildings in this compound have become like tattered sheds that one could not imagine human beings are living in.
There is no single room in the whole compound whose roof is not leaking.
In fact, one bitter resident, Mr. Iyanda Olasode, took our correspondent into one of the rooms. Placed on one of the tattered beds in the room was a large bowl used to collect water anytime it rains.
"We thought it was going to rain just a few hours ago, so we had to place bowls in different parts of the room. Nobody dares sleep on any bed here when it rains. It pours down from the roof," he said.
One of the members of the colony, Mrs. Olanrewaju Omolara, who told Saturday PUNCH that she started living in the compound after she developed symptoms of leprosy in 1972, explained that the problem they face, which the government and politicians have refused to find a solution to, goes beyond just leaking roofs.
She pointed to the roof of her room and it was immediately clear what she meant. The tin roof has no ceiling and in the scorching sun of any afternoon, Omolara said their rooms turn to something close to hot pots.
"We cannot stay in our rooms in the afternoon and we cannot sleep on our beds when it rains in the middle of the night. Yet, politicians come here to ask for our votes," she said.
Our correspondent was told that the stipend paid to the members of the community by the state government was recently increased from N3,000 per month to N10,000.
"We thank the government for increasing the money to N10,000 but unfortunately, it is not even frequent. We have not been paid for the last three months," a member of the colony, Mrs. Folake Solomon, who has been living in the colony for about 20 years, said.
She was corroborated by other residents, who said they had been living from hand to mouth in the last three months.
"We are thankful to the government for paying us the money, But even the N10,000 we are paid is like living with nothing, because we did little farming in the past to complement what the government gave us. But now, all the lands we use for farming have been taken away from us," she lamented.
It might be hard for many people to believe that these old men and women suffering from a disability that has set them apart from society, while many have lost their motor skills, could actually vote.
The Baale (Ogunrinde) told our correspondent that in the past, they had been told that for those who no longer have thumbs, they were allowed to vote using their index fingers.
Those who don't have any fingers like Adelodun, were allowed to print with the stumps of their fingers.
"For those, whose fingers have become unusable, they are allowed to go with a child who would thumbprint any choice they make on the ballot paper," Ogunrinde told Saturday PUNCH.
However, things have changed as a result of the introduction of the Permanent Voter Cards. Four days to election, as of the time of filing this report, only a couple of the residents of the colony had got their PVCs.
The residents of the colony said politicians as usual, came to urge them to all go out and register.
"We all registered," Ogunrinde said. "Unfortunately, only three people in this entire compound have got their cards (PVC).
Those who have got their cards are the children of some of the residents of the colony.
Despite past disappointments from politicians, the members of the colony still told our correspondent that they would have loved to vote.
"We just want to vote and feel normal like every Nigerian. We leave politicians who keep deceiving us in the hands of God," one of them said.
According to Section 2 (1) of Nigeria's Electoral Act 2002, members of this leper colony have a right to register and vote, provided they are citizens of Nigeria and have attained the age of 18.
But Section 2 (1)e states, "A person shall be qualified for registration as a voter if such a person is not subject to any legal incapacity to vote under any law, rule or regulation in force in Nigeria."
However, on whether 'the legal incapacity' clause casts a doubt on their eligibility, our correspondent contacted the Independent National Electoral Commission for clarification.
Mr. Kayode Idowu, the Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega, told our correspondent that the residents of the colony have the same right to vote like every other Nigerian.
"INEC registered them to vote. If there is any legal constraints that would not allow them to vote, we would not have registered them," he said.
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