Mrs Folashade Tinubu-Ojo, who is the Lagos State Market leader and daughter of Bola Tinubu, former Lagos state governor, and an All Progressives Congress, APC Chieftain, has closed down Iponri Market located in Surulere along Western Avenue, Lagos, indefinitely.
This has led to various lamentations from the traders whose only means of livelihood appears to have been suspended.
One of the traders interrogated by Skytrend News who pleaded anonymity for fear of being victimised alleged that the market was closed down by the Iyaloja of Lagos Market, Mrs Tinubu-Ojo, because the Local Government circulated a memo that a fee of N500 a month be paid as as levy for the year 2012 and N1,500 a month for the year 2013 and 2014. She said they were asked to pay the whole money at once and then some of the traders objected.
Our source also revealed that certain boys collecting gate fee at the market and some market committee members were involved in a fracas over the collection of their own gate fees.
Skytrend News investigation among the traders revealed that Mrs Tinubu-Ojo, the Iyaloja called for a meeting to settle all factions but the market Committee members refused to attend the meeting and next they saw was that she came with a legion of Rapid Response Squad (RRS) policemen to lock the market last Saturday at around 3pm.
Since then commercial activities have been grounded in the market and a team of RRS Police has been keeping watch with their truck parked in front of the market. Some of the traders sat in different groups, lamenting the situation.
One of the trader told Skytrend News that some of them went to the Iyaloja’s residence in Alausa on Monday to beg her to re-open the market.
According to her, “It was not a small begging. With plenty dancing and praise singing involved using Yoruba style. We decided to go and beg because we just want the market reopened. The market committee that is supposed to be on the traders side were nowhere to be found. It’s better we beg. This is Lagos. If we didn’t beg now, the next thing you will hear is Iponri market caught fire one night.
“She told us to return on Thursday (tomorrow) and said we must all bring our APC registration slips when coming,” our source lamented.
The traders expressed dismay being asked to come along with their APC Registration slips.
One of them interviewed by Skytrend News who wouldn’t want to be mentioned said:
“Now, I registered on the second day the registration started. Not because I was forced but because I chose to. I resent the fact that she made it seem like it was compulsory. How does party registration translate to votes I keep asking? Is it not closed ballot we do in Nigeria again? The whole thing annoyed me to no end,” she enthused.
As at the time we were going to press, Skytrend News could not get through to the Iyaloja to speak on the development.
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