Abraka Main Market Closed, As Traders, Old Women Begin Seven-Day Protest

By Daniel Dafe

The main market of Abraka, in Ethiope East Local Government Area of Delta State, has been closed for a 7-day period, as traders begin protests in the university community over alleged moves to.demi sh the market and hand it over to private individuals to run.

At the time Oasis Magazine visited the market on Monday morning, all shops were locked.

Speaking to one of the traders, Ese, she said that two years ago, the council authority said that they want to build the market for the women, saying that they were taken unaware.

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She added: “Three days later, they brought tractors and brought everything down. Unfortunately, they did not build the market. The market women later contributed money and built the market themselves.

Again, they have come again that they want to turn the market to upstairs. We refused and said we like the market like this. Why we refused is because we paid government N2000 why council officials in the market collected #20,000 from those selling inside Now, we did not allow them build the market because of what happened before. This is why they are out to destroy the market and that is why we shut the market down for the main time.”

Another trader, Onome, who spoke to Oasis Magazine, said the oldest women in Abraka shut the market because some persons want their community to be scattered.

“Remembered that Fulani herdsmen have stopped farmers from going to their farms to get what to eat. It is just only the market they now have. Now, government are coming that they want to demolish the market and build it so that traders will be paying three million naira each.”

Continuing, she confirmed that the market will be shut for one week, saying that “those that protested today are market women and the oldest women in the community.”

Speaking further, she said: “We don’t want government to build our market for us. We like it like this. If they want to build the market, they should go and look for space and build another market. Abraka is capable of having two markets. This one can be small market and they can build a larger market in another place, and if they want to build market how can we afford three million naira. What are we selling in the market that will make us to have three million naira? We can’t afford such amount of money.”

On her part, another trader, Favour, said: “Government is not the owner of the land; somebody volunteered to drop his own land so that the women can use it to trade market.”

According to her, they have done today’s protest, they will continue tomorrow till Sunday from 5am – 6am daily.

Attempts to speak with the council chairman, Hon. Victor Ofobrukueta, proved abortive at the time of publishing this report.