Society Gists

Traders at Ile-Epo market in Alimoso area of Lagos State are lamenting the loss they incurred during Sunday’s scavengers and miscreants clash.

They said they lost goods worth millions of Naira.

Although peace has been restored, a police van was seen yesterday at the market.

Many of the traders are yet to get over their losses.

A yam seller, who identified himself as Musa, said he lost N150, 000 tubers of yam.

He said other yam sellers lost large quantities of yam.

He said the Yoruba and the Hausa lost goods worth millions of Naira.

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Musa begged the government to assist them restart their business, saying he does not know where to start from.

A trader selling soaps, detergents and provisions, who preferred anonymity, said the suffering was too much.

She said she lost goods worth thousands of Naira to what she knew nothing about.

“We are suffering in this market. The fight has affected us. My goods were destroyed over what I knew nothing about. I was not involved. This is unfair.”

“I saw my soaps, detergents and provisions on the floor damaged on Sunday. I was helpless. There was nothing I could do, so also were other traders.”

She implored the government to help them ensure peace at the market.

The trader said they now do business at the market under fear.

“We are afraid of reprisal. The Hausa used to fight here before the Sunday clash, but the Yoruba retaliated on Sunday. The government should intervene to prevent causalities,” she added.

Another trader, Ekundayo Lateef, who sells rice and beans at the market with his mother, said he could not leave his goods because they belonged to his mother.

He said many goods, including pepper, onions, provisions, yam, gari and soaps were destroyed in the fight.

“We lost millions of Naira at this market. I don’t know what caused the fight, but I saw boys turning everybody’s goods upside down and marching them. They vandalised three commercial buses and a tricycle.”

Lateef urged the government to intervene and ensure peace is restored.

A resident, Ekundayo Onilude, advised the government and market leaders to prevent a recurrence.

He advocated standby security at the market, saying the government was making money from the place.

Ekundayo alleged that some boys at the market own illegal structures on a big refuse dump called Oribola (between Gotangowa and IIe Epo market), saying the government should ensure that there are no illegal structures at the market.

“Most of those guys are from the North. As soon as goods arrive, they sleep in the market. They cannot be traced, as they don’t belong to any association or union. Nobody can control them; they have no regard for anybody. Something has to be done about Oribola,” he said.