Onitsha (Anambra), July 1, 2023: Some traders on Friday stormed Onitsha South Local Government Area (LGA) Headquarters in Anambra, to protest alleged plot by the council chairman, Mr Emeka Orji, to eject them from their Oduigbo section of the Ochanja Central market.
The protesters, who were led by their Chairman, Mr Chukwudi Eke, accused the council chairman of collaborating with the chairman of Ochanja Central market, Mr Bonaventure Muo, to eject them in the name of building modern shops.
They carried placards, some of which read “council chairman, Emeka Orji, what have we done to you”, “some of us are widows”, “we earn our living from Oduigbo market”, “Gov. Soludo come to our rescue, they want to demolish the shops in the market to acquire more shops for themselves”, among others.
Eke, addressing newsmen on the protest, said that the market chairman and the council chairman, gave them two days to vacate the market or they will use carterpillars to demolish the over 300 shops.
According to him, they said Sunday and Monday would be used for the demolition and asked us to vacate the market before they come up with their weapons of destruction.
“Eighty per cent of the traders here are widows who earn their living from the Oduigbo market,” he said.
He appealed to Gov. Charles Soludo to come to their rescue, saying they have no other person to understand their predicament except him alone.
The spokesperson for the widows, Mrs Ifeoma Emeka, lamented that the widows, who make up majority of the traders in the market, were being treated like slaves by the government.
The council chairman, Orji, declined to comment on the issue, while the Ochanja market chairman, Muo, said he was working based on instruction from Government.
