The Diary Of A Naija Chickito: driving

It rained for a bit this morning in Abuja. Thankfully, when it does, there is still no traffic and water doesn't gather annoyingly on the roads. I was running a little late for work this morning, so I drove a little faster than I normally would, but no matter how fast I'm moving, I'm always very conscious of traffic rules. I don't overtake wrongly or put the lives of other drivers and passengers at stake. There was a driver who tried to overtake me wrongly, because he saw I was a female driver. (Why are Nigerian drivers so impatient?). But as an expert driver myself (if I may say so..started driving at sixteen), I maneuvered my car, making sure he didn't pass me. Normally I just let crazy, impatient drivers go with their wahala. But this morning, I was running late, so I didn't. After trying everything he possible could to scare me off and I didn't budge, he conceded defeat to prance on the next victim. I wasn't aware that a bus driver watched us with amusement and when we stopped at the next traffic light, he said,
'You be woman o, why you dey drive like tazi driva?' He was smiling. As if to say he was impressed. I wasn't sure if I liked the back handed compliment, but I just let it slide without responding.

Most times while driving, I've seen and heard other drivers insulting female drivers. Comments like 'E no sabi, na woman, no wonder,' or 'I must drive myself, you no go tell your husband to give you driver?' or 'Na so woman dey drive!' are not uncommon on the road. Are there really that few good female drivers, or are the male drivers just being sexist? It annoys me on end though, when I see a woman who has no business driving, being a nuisance on the streets. I feel it is women like that that make people generalize that women are bad drivers. If it is a man, no one says anything, they'd just write it off as one of those things, maybe he's having a bad day! *Hiss*