The Lagos State Government has restated its readiness to rid the state of street trading, with plans on track to fully enforce the provisions of the law restricting street trading in the metropolis.
Chairman of the State Task Force on Environmental and Other Special Offences (Enforcement Unit), Police Superintendent Olubukola Abe, disclosed this to journalists in Alausa, Ikeja. According to him, the new drive is to reduce the traffic congestion on the road, often caused by the activities of street trading.
He quoted Section 1 of the Street Trading and Illegal Market Prohibition Law 2003, which restricts street trading and hawking in the metropolis.
“Section 7 and 8 of the same law gives jurisdiction and power to the special court to order the seizure and public auction of items impounded for street tradition,” he said.
He expressed his men’s preparedness to step up enforcement of the relevant sections of the law, urging motorists not to encourage their activities by patronizing them.
According to him, Section 10 of the law prescribes a N5,000 fine or three months imprisonment upon conviction.
He explained that the implication of the violation of the law is multifaceted. “Aside from the far reaching implication of street trading in terms of accidents which in most cases are fatal, street trading also affects the free flow of traffic in the metropolis as well as contradicting the environmental sanitation laws by littering our streets with waste generated from the act”.
“We’ve had reports on the activities of persons who pose as beggars, especially in traffic, but their sole aim is to perpetrate evil. We are putting a search light on this trend and one way to do that is to ensure that we take preemptive measures to forestall this development,” he said.
Abe, while urging residents to refrain from patronizing street traders, also appealed to Lagosians to be safety conscious and ensure they seek for spaces in various markets designated for trading in the state.
“There is no way any responsible government will allow street trading to continue after providing stalls in designated market places all over the state,” he said.
Currently, street trading is the only source of lively hood to thousands of families. There is no job in this country.
I think the real solution to the problem is not by stopping street trading, rather by empowering people to engage in more meaningful ventures.
By so doing, the problem will be solved by itself.
Stopping street trending will bring more hungry to the people. most Nigerians depend on trending and street trending is the major source of selling.
Empowering youth should be the only way I think.
Yes it would appear to be right but is there a palliative measure for those who would be displaced?
This is why advanced countries perform better than us. They know that a man’s source of living can’t be taken out without adequate and reasonable alternative provision to cover for the loss.
So, let government please ensure that those things are put in place before any disruption.
Thank you.
It is very pathetic that when street trading will be stoped, the question is; what becomes of those who make street trading a means of livelihood.
The government cannot encourage young people into something bad as trading is better than carrying guns
I’m so glad they never succeeded with this plan or the level of crime rate in the country would have been out of this world.