ABSTRACT
The hotel was regarded as the height of modernity when it was built in the 1980s but, in the 21st century, is looking markedly faded and worn. The street outside is busy during the day, with a jumble of poorly maintained cars, motorbikes, wooden carts and many people, about half of whom are going somewhere and the other half trying to eke out a living selling mobile phone credit, pens, fruit or trinkets. The street sometimes sees flashes of wealth when a new car, sometimes a European model, glides past. The economic gulf between the opulence of the car and the life lived by its owner and that of the people on the street is vast. Politics is usually understood in relation to government, which is how political processes manifest most obviously for most people. Development, it is said, when it is working properly, promotes justice, reduces poverty and builds environments for people to lead productive, creative and fulfilling lives.
