The Eke Modern Market, Kwale
By Juliet Ogbodu
ASABA/Nigeria: There is a saying that for everything you win, there is always something lost. The other day, we reported how Delta State government completed the market complex at Utagba-Ogbe.
It is customary for a project of this nature to be commissioned before it is put to use. This formality has not been performed and so there is an order for traders to stay away until further notice.
The traders now opted for selling along the roadside, both along Isumpe road and Eke lane axes of the market. The roads in question are not wide enough to accommodate commuters and the traders. The result is that it became difficult for cars plying those routes as the traders display their commodities beyond the drainage system thereby encroaching.
Furthermore, motorcycle operators otherwise known as Okada riders have not helped in this matter. Sometimes, their impatience leads to the road being completely blocked that people will be stranded for a reasonable length of time.
Sequel to all these, the local government authorities ordered traders to vacate the space they are using but they kept on disobeying the order. On Thursday, the 2nd of July, law enforcement agents were deployed to enforce the order. This met with opposition from the traders and some of them who spoke under anonymity maintained that sending them out meant taking their daily bread away from them.
With the corona virus pandemic still rampaging, one does not know when the government will consider the commissioning of the market complex so that traders can be settled.
