The sorry and disgusting state of the National Archives office in Lagos portends a threat to the (documentaries) memory of a nation like Nigeria.
The centre is currently undermined by civil servants and politicians as a negligible national monument.
National Archives Lagos once referred to one of Nigeria’s prime point of pride and prestige is under sever attaches of termites, and weeds reaching the roof tops.
During a recent tour of the department of National Archives of Nigeria office in Ikoyi Lagos, by a team of Records and Information Management Awareness (RIMA) Foundation led by Dr. Oyewole Oyedokun, the president, “observed the fact that the facility is grossly underfunded and this has negatively affected the state of records/archives housed by the Lagos branch office which served as National Headquarters up till 2005”.
While recalling UNESCO’s believe that “Documentary heritage reflects the diversity of languages, peoples and cultures.
It is the mirror of the world and its memory. But this memory is fragile. Every day, irreplaceable parts of this memory disappear forever,” he added that “Records and their information contents are raw materials for administrators to direct, control, communicate, plan and formulate policies.
“Public administrators rely on available and accurate records to advise government on implications of policy options, actively promote unity, and assist government to operate an administrative system that is conscious, performance oriented, efficient and effective. Nations archives are the most important sources of information for the study of her political, social, economic and general development.
“They are also means of transmitting information about a nation’s cultural heritage, and also constitute evidence of material and intellectual growth.
However, the Lagos branch office of the National Archives of Nigeria, has in its custody important records/archives e.g. pictorial archives such as past colonial masters, Nigerian heads of state, news papers, journals, copies of Janus, records of federal ministries that relocated from the commercial nerve center of Lagos to Abuja.
The security and preservation of these records in a conducive and well equipped repository is necessary for their continuous survival.
Some findings made by RIMA’s team include that, “The repository where these records/archived materials are kept lack facilities such as , fire extinguisher, air conditioners, dehumidifier etc for the room temperature control of Stacks, boxes, steel shelves, brown paper and other preservation/records maintenance facilities. Most of the records are on the bare floor and are fast deteriorating.
“The records/archives are not secured because the office lacks security physical security (Security guards); The lack of professional training, coupled with the lack of resources; Most of the doors and windows within the building and the repository have collapsed thereby exposing Records to rodents and water from rainfall; The building was surrounded by grasses and the services of gardeners are required and Members of staff are exposed to health hazards because the office lacks conveniences and water”.
A document containing the findings indicated that, “Archivists lack personal protective equipment (overall and gloves etc) and are therefore exposed to dust during the cause of executing their duties.
“The search room is not equipped for usage and no provision for official vehicle or van required for the acquisition of records”.
The RIMA’s president lamented that unless action is taken now, much of mankind’s documentary heritage in the facility may vanish.
“In the light of the above, we would like to call on all relevant government agencies, local and international donors to come to the rescue of these national monuments before being left to deteriorate beyond recovery,” he said.
The National Archives of Nigeria presently operates under the provision of the National Archives Act of 1992 with laid down objectives to locate, assemble and rationalize the documentary source material of the country and preserve them permanently for research and other purposes; to enhance efficiency and economy in the running of government Ministries and departments, by developing and advising on methods for the elimination of non-current records and for their eventual transfer to the Federal Records Centers and the National Archives.
Others are to extend the interest of the department beyond that of non-current records and semi-current records in creating agencies through records management programmes; restore and preserve historical records through conservation activities; serve as an information bank for government documentary source materials and to publish guides and historical materials for the benefit of the people and to educate through training the citizenry on the importance of records and their documentary heritage as well as reservation and management of records of individuals, private bodies, Companies and business organizations.