Group decries neglect of traders

By Bankole Orimisan

THE Traders’ Rights Protection Initiative (TRPI), Lagos State chapter, has called on the Federal Government to accommodate the trading community in the Nigeria project for the benefit of traders in the country.

  National Co-ordinator of the group, Comrade Christopher Okpala, made the request at a press briefing yesterday in Lagos. He said the group brought together 117 delegates from all major markets within the state to contribute to the corporate existence and economic development of the Nigerian nation.

  “Our organisation will not fail to point out the utter neglect of the trading community in national affairs. It is sad that the only time the trading community is remembered is when there are elections, when politicians and political office seekers besiege various market leaders just to woo them for the votes of their members,” he said.

 However, after the election, traders become leprous and the markets became no going area as traders are no longer consulted or considered for any input in policy formulation that affect them nor their interest considered in articulating such policies. This to us is an anomaly and should be corrected by those in various political offices.

   Okpala noted that traders constitute a major percentage of the populace and contribute immensely to national development, can boast of enlightened and educated members hence should be involved in policy formulation.

Okpala, sighted that the worse scenario is a situation where agents of the same people they voted into power subject traders to various uncivilized and inhuman treatment. Cases abound where markets were indiscriminately sealed and in some cases completely brought down (demolished) they’re by depriving those affected of their sources of livehood and exposing them to untold hardship.

   He added, other cases of abuse being melted out on traders by government agents also abound. We plead to the Government to stop the act and not continually visited on traders by those that are supposed to protect the interests of the trading community.

   He explained that the group advised Government to restate condemnation on the incessant bombing in various parts of the country as we canvas that the Federal Government should apply the rod and the carrot method in proffering a lasting solution to this negative alien intrusion to clime. We subscribed that resources should be employed to educate Nigerians from all works of life on security consciousness in order to nip the monster in the bud.

   Another matter of great concern to the trading, according to him, is an aspect of legal system that denies traders of right to stand as sureties in the court of law. A situation where traders are excluded in the list of Nigerians qualified to stand as sureties for bail able offences should be revisited as we in the trading community see it as derogatory and an affront on the integrity of an average trader and violation of fundamental human rights.