Ogun traders count losses as govt demolishes Mowe/Ofada market

Traders in Ogun State's Mowe/Ofada Market are reeling from the shock and financial devastation following the early morning demolition of their stalls by the state government. The exercise, which reportedly took place around 2 a.m. on a Friday, occurred without any prior warning, leaving vendors unable to salvage their goods.

Mrs. Kabira Ajiboye, one of the affected traders, expressed deep distress, stating that goods worth over N500 million were destroyed. She recalled a previous visit by officials in 2023 who had suspended demolition plans after traders confirmed they had paid their rents to the local government. However, this time, no notice was issued, and traders arrived to find their livelihoods razed.

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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 N500m have been destroyed.

The traders lamented the lack of compassion shown by the authorities, emphasizing that many rely solely on their businesses for survival. They highlighted that several vendors had taken out loans to establish their small-scale enterprises, making the demolition a catastrophic blow to their financial stability and future prospects.

Appeals have been made to Governor Dapo Abiodun to intervene and provide an alternative site for the displaced traders. Efforts to get a comment from the state's Commissioner for Urban and Physical Planning, Tunji Odunlami, were unsuccessful as of the time of reporting.

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At the very least, they should have shown a human face and 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.