The secret bars of Northern Nigeria

In the northern part of Nigeria, an area which measures about the size of Kansas, Missouri and bits of Iowa, Nebraska and Illinois together, alcohol is prohibited by the Sharia law. However, in the cover of night and when all is quiet, the secret bars of Northern Nigeria open for business.

Sharia is an Islamic law which is practiced by Muslims in Nigeria. It is enforced in many states in northern Nigeria with a predominantly Islamic population. However, the Sharia practiced in Nigeria has been classified by many of the orthodox muslim community as being too mild; a fact which the Christians and the not so devout Muslims have embraced with joy. One of the classical tenets of the Islamic law is the prohibition of alcohol consumption. As a result, bars which serve alcohol are not allowed in Northern Nigeria. However, some of them do exist.

In Kano, one of the oldest cities in Nigeria and centre of economic activity in the region, the sharia law is in force. Due to the presence of non-indigenes, tourists and non-Muslims, some sections of the city have been dedicated to non-Muslim community members. It is in these areas – such as Sabon Gari, that one would normally find the secret bars of Northern Nigeria. These bars open only in the evenings, when their clientele would feel safe to arrive. The bars are open air affairs, with plastic tables and chairs arranged outside and music usually blaring from loudspeakers mounted in front or hanging from trusses. Because of the demand for the amber liquid, the prices tags of the beers sold here are usually higher than you would find in other parts of the country.

The Islamic police force, The Hisbah,  sometimes arrests their Muslim clients in sudden raids. These clients are paraded on television, a situation that sometimes leads to a loss of clients for a period. However, in many instances, the clients soon overcome their pride and return to old haunts and the taste of the cold brew. On other occasions, their goods may be seized by the Hisbah. When this happens, a drought can ensue as beer becomes scarce in the entire city, inflating prices further beyond imaginable limits.

Despite all of the challenges posed by the laws of the dusty north, as the sun slips beneath the horizon and day cools off its heat, the midnight revelers, irrespective of ethnic group or religious inclination appear as dust wraiths, drawn in one motion to the secret bars, throats parched with longing and and a desire tosavour the inevitable bottle of chilled lager or stout.