By Akanimo Sampson
Worrisome activities of roadside trading around markets in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, are still ongoing despite the ban by the Udom administration. Some of the concerned individuals in the metropolis say the sellers, the buyers and other road users are being exposed to risk.
Street trading is also thriving around the city centre, popularly known as Ibom Plaza, where traders have literally taken over the walkways meant for pedestrians thereby forcing pedestrians to use the main roads.
The Udom administration in February, 2021 banned street trading and went ahead to set up a task force to ensure the full compliance but all seemed not to be working as traders have summarily returned to streets of the market.
That ban order does not seem to be effective around the popular Itam and Akpan Andem markets. In these two markets, sellers prefer the roadsides because inside the market is constantly muddy, some with stagnant water and heaps of refuse left unattended for days.
Some market women are claiming that it is always worse during the rainy season as everywhere is flooded inside the market, making it difficult for buyers to consider buying anything that is not found on the roadside
Even some of those selling on the road are shop owners inside the market but choose to bring out their wares outside.
A yam seller at the Akpan Andem market who identified himself as Billy said that the situation got worse during lockdown occasioned by the outbreak of COVID-19, where markets were locked for supposed fumigation.
He said people who were selling on the roadsides have refused to return to their stalls inside the market even when the market was open for normal market sessions.
“There was a time everybody was forced to leave the road and return to the main market. All the chicken sellers at the chicken plaza had their kiosks along Udo Umana Street, the whole place was dirty and stinky. After several warnings, bulldozers came in and destroyed so many things’’, Billy narrated..
Continuing, he adds, “there is no proper drainage system, the internal road network is now occupied by traders, even the motor park inside the market is occupied by second hand materials (Okirika) sellers with big umbrellas and canopies, living just a little portion for vehicles.”
The visit however revealed that more than half of the lock-up shops in the market are vacant due to the bad state of the market.
It was also gathered that buyers even encourage this menace as they have noted in an interview that they prefer buying at the roadside as they claimed that inside the market is always muddy and stinky.
According to them, “if there are no sellers on the road, we will have no choice but to go inside and shop. But the unfavourable condition of the markets is something to worry about. It will be appropriate if the authorities do something urgently about the poor condition of the market in the state.”
In the same vein, a cross section of market women at Itam Market, in Itu LGA of the state who were interviewed have blamed ticket agents for encouraging the roadside trading in the area.
An Afang leaf seller who spoke in confidence for fear of reprisal attack said that is why it is difficult for the government to push the roadside sellers, especially those along the night market area back into the market.
According to her, : “Sometimes a state government taskforce will come and drive them away but those ticket boys will go and meet them to return to the streets. They will convince them that they sell more on the road side than inside the market.
“The ticket collectors know that they make more money from those Street sellers. While they collect say N100.00 for those inside the market, one agent collects up to N500.00 from a seller. Sometimes you see three different agents collecting N500 each from one trader.
“They don’t even issue them a ticket after collecting the money. Any Street trader that refuses to pay them, they will carry your goods. Sometimes you see them struggling with Vegetable sellers. Some of the collectors move about with wheelbarrows, if you don’t pay, they pack whatever you are selling inside the wheelbarrow and go.
“There are cases when you bring the money to pay them and ask them to return your goods they will not.
“If you go to that Meat building, you will see only a few people selling, most of them are outside. Unfortunately, you will find people selling very close to heaps of refuse. I don’t think that is healthy.”
However, analysts had it that the only solution to the menace is for the relevant authorities to use the money gotten from the traders as levies to make the market habitable adding that such would encourage both the traders and buyers to do their transactions inside the market.
However, efforts to get reactions from the Chairman of Traders association in the state was unsuccessful as he told journalists who visited that he was rushing for a political meeting to actualise the succession plan of the governor, Mr Udom Emmanuel.
