By Stanley Onyekwere
T
he Federal Capital Territory (FCT) city sanitation team yesterday removed obstructions and illegal attachments, constituting potential disaster to Dutse Community market and other parts of Dutse, in the Bwari Area Council of Abuja.
The team while removing several illegal structures around the community, warned residents to desist from blocking roads and creating traffic gridlock.
The exercise was carried out barely two years after the FCT Administration shutdown and rehabilitated the Dutse market, due to the level of degeneration and contraventions that have made the market an eyesore again.
It was gathered that original plan of the modern market that is strategically located in the FCT, was purportedly altered with the help of the market managers, who introduced all manner of illegalities.
Speaking during the removal operation, the Senior Special Assistant to FCT Minister on Monitoring, Inspection and Enforcement, Ikharo Attah, threatened that the market may be shutdown for one month, to enable team halt the looming disaster in the area.
Attah disclosed that the FCT Minister had spent so much money cleaning and securing the market that any form of contraventions can’t be allowed.
He added that urgent steps have to be taken to restore sanity to the market, in order to avoid any disaster that could lead to loss of lives and property.
According to him, the administration will not allow any individual to rubbish the good works the administration had made to put in place for the benefit of all residents.
“The FCT Minister has actually shown interest in the Dutse market because he had put in more resources and time. He has visited the market regularly more than any other market in the city.
“ Sadly, Dutse market is a disaster waiting to happen. The place has become badly choked up. The walkway and car parks are blocked and turned to a selling point.
“There are so much anomalies in the market. In the advent of fire incident, even a wheel barrow can’t carry water inside to fight the fire.
“ The traders also moved to the main road, shade their wares and thereby causing traffic gridlock. In all these, the market managers have not really helped us.
“ The team members have agreed to propose to the Minister a one-month closure to enable us clean up the market”, he stressed.
However, the Market Manager, Sunday Makus, who debunked the allegations of bribery against him, also expressed helplessness, saying he has been trying to curtail the illegal activities of traders, but to no avail.
Reacting to the development, a petty trader, Mrs. Confidence Oguru, whose roadside trading tables were destroyed by the team, decried the actions of government, saying it has become very frustrating.
The middle-aged woman who operates a Point of Sale ( PoS) and other petty materials, said she lost up to N50,000 to the exercise.
“ I feel so bad because it is unfair to us by government coming to destroy our things without notice.
“ I have lost up to N50, 000 today . As a graduate I have no job, but have to be doing the PoS business and other things just to make ends meet”, she added.
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