Aliquid Novi
From \I ARK TYLOR
LAGOS
TT would be pleasant to record that Lagos had 'enjoyed its finest hour this week, that it was bursting with pride at the honour of being the first African host to a Commonwealth Conference, that it felt the e.) es of the world upon it, and all that sort of thing. It would be pleasant : but it would not be true. When my taxi took me up to the Federal Palace Hotel on the morning before the conference, I asked the driver if there was much excitement about it. 'It should not have been held.' was his blunt response. 'We have enough problems of our own. We should deal with them first.' Perhaps this was an extreme view. He came from the Western Region. But there is much evi- dence that the average citizen of Lagos is treat- ing the conference with a monumental calm and is far more excited about the local disorders.
Such things are absorbing much more popular attention than the proceedings in the Federal Palace Hotel, a modern building that at least in appearances does not mock its name. The hotels may be full, the conference telephone system may have its frustrations, but the general arrange- ments have been efficient. Only the correspondent of The Times is designated as a cameraman and the political correspondent of the Evening Stan- dard is described as operating on behalf of British Information Services.
Should the conference have been held at Lagos at all? There may be two opinions on its political advisability. However much Mr. Wilson may deny it, and however well he may have acquitted him- self, Britain has been in the dock. The conference has been an examination of British policies to- wards Rhodesia. It could possibly set unfortunate precedents. But some of the precedents could also be welcome. Despite minor frustrations, Lagos has shown that it can stage a Commonwealth Conference successfully and with a degree of panache. The big reception at the State House on Tuesday evening showed that Nigeria can put on that sort of event with as much splendour as any imperial power. All this has meant that there has been a closer relationship between conference rhetoric and private conversation than is usual on such occasions. Other Commonwealth countries have taken a genuine pride in Nigeria's capacity to play the host. What makes it all the more sig- nificant for them is that the initiative for the meeting also came from Nigeria. This possibility of independent initiatives has certainly increased the prestige of the Commonwealth in the eyes of a good many Afro-Asian members. There is also satisfaction at the number of Heads of Govern- ment and other high-level delegations who have turned up.
The absentees have not been mourned—beyond the frequent playing of "Waltzing Matilda' on the muzak system at the Federal Palace. There is even a suspicion that one of them may regret its decision. Ghanaian officials flew into Lagos on the opening morning of the conference and spent their time moving quietly around the corridors. Perhaps President Nkrumah might have been reflecting that Lagos, with its interesting mixture of good modern architecture and shanty town, and its busy, friendly streets might have had its attractions for him that day. Possibly the Com- monwealth only comes to matter when you are not there.
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