Traders at the Mowe/Ofada Market in Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of Ogun State have lamented the loss of their goods worth 500 million to the demolition exercise carried out at the market by the officials of Ministry of Urban and Physical Planning.

The traders, who accused the state government of embarking on demolition without prior notice, said that the exercise revealed the government was insensitive to the plight of the dealers despite the current economic situation.

A visit to the market showed some of the traders counting their losses over their dismantled stalls. While some were seen with sad faces, other sat down on a stood or demolished parts of their stalls thinking on the next step for survival.

One of the traders, Mrs. Kabira Ajiboye expressed disappointment over the exercise, saying the traders were never officially notified of the government’s plan to demolish the market.

Ajiboye said that the government out to have given the dealers a notice or little time to evacuate some of their goods before the demolition commence last Friday, insisting that such action was not required of a government seeking the support the people in forthcoming elections.

She lamented that many of the traders had taken out loans to start their small businesses, expressing concern that the demolition had left them distraught and unsure of how they would earn a living going forward.

“At the very least, they should have shown a human face, compassion while carrying out the exercise. They should have allowed us to remove our goods before demolishing our shops. This is a bad omen for a government seeking the support of the people.

“How can you whip people and still expect them to smile? We got here this morning and saw armed policemen stationed everywhere,” Ajiboye said.

She went down the memory lane in 2023 when the officials of the ministry visited the market before the local council elections to carry out the exercise but suspended it on hearing that the traders paid their rent to the council authority.

“There was no demolition notice whatsoever. In 2023, officials from the Ministry of Environment came here during the local government election period, but when we explained that we paid our rents to the local government, they left and did not carry out any demolition.”

“This time around, they did not issue any notice. We arrived at our stalls this morning only to discover that everything had been demolished. Goods worth over N500 million have been destroyed.” The market woman said.

She called on Governor Dapo Abiodun to step in by allocating a new location where the affected traders could relocate and continue operating their various ventures.

However, the Ogun State Commissioner for Urban and Physical Planning, Tpl. Tunji Odunlami, when contacted declined to comment about the development. (The Guardian)

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