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Ajimobi To Enforce Law Against Street Trading

Oyo State Governor, Abiola Ajimobi is ready to clamp down on traders who have insisted on roadside selling rather than relocating to the neighbourhood market stalls … Continue reading Ajimobi To Enforce Law Against Street Trading


Abiola Ajimobi, Oyo State, Paris Club
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  • Abiola Ajimobi, Oyo State, Paris ClubOyo State Governor, Abiola Ajimobi is ready to clamp down on traders who have insisted on roadside selling rather than relocating to the neighbourhood market stalls freely allocated to them.

The governor made the pronouncement during an unscheduled visit to the neighbourhood market at the Scout Camp, Molete, Ibadan.

Ajimobi noted that the initiative was meant to create a safety net for traders who could not afford to rent a shop and particularly as part of the administration’s long-term plan to eradicate street trading.

He therefore urged traders to join hands with the government in its determination to end the practice once and for all.

“We have preached and sensitized our people enough. We say no more to street trading.

“It’s unimaginable that some traders that were allocated spaces in this market free of charge along with you have decided to abandon them and move to the roadsides. In fact, we shall revoke their allocation. We shall start to enforce the law against street trading.

“There is nowhere in the whole of this country where government constructed this kind of modern market without collecting money from those allocated spaces.”

He, therefore, called on the leadership of the market to urgently come up with an affordable payment scheme for the sake of keeping the market environment safe and clean.

“Henceforth, you should find a way of levying yourselves so as to have the financial strength to do things like cleaning of the environment and maintenance of security.”

In response, the market leader, Mr Kehinde Tewogbade said his members would be delighted if the government could go ahead and enforce the laws against street trading to rein in recalcitrant traders as he believes that compliance could only be enforced by strict regulation.

“Ajimobi has always supported us. He promised to construct and complete the market within six months and that came to pass. We will not forget the 20 million Naira revolving loan he approved and gave us in 2013. All these are attributes of a good leader that cares for the downtrodden.

“I can say it openly that the leadership of this market is in agreement with the decision of the governor to enforce the law against those that have continued to trade by the roadside – they deserve it, he stressed.”