MALE prostitution is on the rise across Lagos despite the recent promulgation of a law making homosexuality a criminal offence punishable for 14 years in prison as young men openly tout their bodies across the city for as little as N12,000 (£45) per night.
According to recent findings, Friday night happens to be the busiest day in Lagos, with business booming for male prostitutes and strippers. Over recent weeks, there has been a rise in the emergence of gay men at nightclubs and bars.
These men, who appear, behave and speak like girls, now compete with the ladies of the night, who had been regulars on major streets across the state. They charge between N12,000 and N15,000 for an all night bout.
On January 7 this year, President Goodluck Jonathan signed Nigeria's Draconian bill Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act into law, making anyone convicted of being homosexual liable to 14 years in prison. Since the law came into effect, the police have swung into action arresting lesbians and gays across Nigeria, while homophobic vigilante groups have also stepped up attacks on suspected victims.
Due to the harassment by security forces, gay’s clubs have sprung up in some areas of Lagos, where membership is vetted and man can quietly go there to seek the services of male prostitutes. Leading Lagos gay movement, the Alliance Rights, headed by Dare Odumuye disclosed that there is nothing wrong in the practise.
Mr Odumuye said: "There is a lot of misconception out there. When we talk of homosexuality it’s not just about anal sex, some do masturbation, some have sex and some just comfort each other."
According to industry sources, some of these homosexuals are mostly bisexual who are married with wives and children yet they come out at night to satisfy their unusual sexual urges. One source added that some of them were said to have married to escape the stigma of being seen as a homosexual and cover whatever suspicion and danger that their real identities could lead to.
