Market women and other shop owners in Osogbo have said that they will not close their shops when President Goodluck Jonathan visits the state capital, on Tuesday, in continuation of his presidential campaign.
The traders’ stance came on the heels of an unconfirmed order, allegedly directing traders in the state capital not to open their shops during the President’s visit.
Some market women told our correspondent that they had been ordered not to open on Tuesday for security reasons because of the President’s visit but they vowed to open their shops.
However, the Iyaloja General of Osun State, Alhaja Awawu Asindemade, in an interview with our correspondent, on Monday, asked all market men and women to open their shops.
She said that it was only when a monarch died that markets could be closed down in line with Yoruba tradition.
Asindemade stated that she also heard of the alleged order but that nobody came to inform her officially.
She said the alleged order was not from the Presidency but it might be from some politicians.
The Commissioner of Police, Osun State, Mr. Abubakar Marafa, when contacted on the telephone by our correspondent said he was not aware of such an order.
He said, “You can find out from the state government. They are the ones in charge of the markets.”
But a group, Justice Now Foundation, in a statement made available to our correspondent on Monday, frowned at the alleged order.
The Executive Secretary of NF, Mr. Bello Adebayo, said the alleged closure order was anti-masses and insensitivity to the plights of traders who were living from hand to mouth.
Adebayo said, “We were informed that there is an order that market men and women at Old Garage, MDS, Akindeko and their environs should not open their shops or go to the market on Monday and Tuesday because President Jonathan is coming to campaign on Tuesday in Osogbo.
“We have gone round the markets and we observed that some people did not open their shops in line with the directive, while the few that opened were panicking and they abruptly closed their shops around noon.
“We need to say that the closure of the markets for President Jonathan’s visit is a way of impoverishing the people as they are not allowed to go about their commercial activities where they make money on daily basis. This is clear impunity and abuse of power.
“It is even more painful when one remembers that the Jonathan presidency has unleashed economic suffering on the people because of the inability to address brazen corruption and mismanagement of the country’s resources.”


http://www.osundefender.org/?p=205396

dem de rake....

nor be women??...

nor mind dem jor...na so dem be...

y on earth sud they close dia shop...che na d otuoke dude built dos shop 4 dem ...

..

Na only osun defender abi na goal keeper them call am, go fit report this kind news.

Did anyone ever ask them to close shop today?

Yeye tori

erunz:
Na only osun defender abi na goal keeper them call am, go fit report this kind news.

forget! SW has rejected the clueless man, which is evident in the low turnout in ibadan and ogun, where he made use of a street for his campaign (in a city that has 2 stadiums) and a half filled stadium respectively. Imagine him now using freedom park in osun state (a state which he lost woefully in 2011) instead of a stadium. You see what an incumbent president has become.

Who cares?

No one closes shop for anyone..except Boko Haram.

Osun peoe love aregbesola even to a fault. That is what we call a leader.
The same with that tyrant called mimiko. Though, not this second term. He was busy amassing enemies for himself rather than continue his good works like the first term

Why should they? Is it GEJ that has been feeding them all along? Who's GEJ btw? Is he not a president(servant) employed by the same people to serve them? Why should I close the shop because a servant is visiting my house? Especially when the servant has not been respecting me!