REACTIONS TRAIL MARKET’S RELOCATION
Guardian Saturday, 09 November 2013 20:56 Written by From Gordi Udeajah, Umuahia ONE of the legacies that Governor Theodore Orji of Abia State will be remembered for is the relocation of three markets in Umuahia, the state capital, especially the main market, which was moved to Ubani Ibeku, some eight kilometers from Umuahia.
The new market, which sits on about 24 hectares of land along the Umuahia-Uzuakoli-Ohafia-Arochukwu federal road, has capacity for about 7,000 stores, in long blocks of buildings, beautifully roofed in red sheets.
Described as a modern market, it has facilities like schools, motor parks for commercial operators, and another park for traders and visitors. It also boasts of banks, fire station, security posts, hospital etc. It was designed to allow smooth passage of heavy vehicles, and its entry and exit roads are dualised.
A private housing estate is already being constructed, less than a kilometer from the market. And according to the government, it will be provided with necessities like water and electricity to boost commercial activities.
The governor said that the journey to the new Ubani Ibeku market site started in 1935 by the colonial government, but that it lacked the courage to relocate the market to Ubani Ibeku. He added that subsequent governments from the old Eastern Region to the old East Central State and old Imo State, and also those before his administration could not actualise the project.
The new market is part of Orji’s drive to decongest and beautify the capital.
Prior to this time, relocation from the city to the outskirts had been executed on markets that affected timber/building materials, artisans/motor parts and allied materials.
When the actual construction started, the government gave a time frame for completion and relocation of traders. In line with the fashion in which relocation was effected in other markets completed before Ubani Ibeku, a committee was set up to oversee affairs, including sale and allocation of shops to traders at government approved rates.
To get a shop allocation, an interested trader had to apply by purchasing a form that costs N20,000. An additional N100,000 is later paid following allocation. Each shop is priced between N400,000 and N500,000.
Traders who owned shops in the old market buy a new one at N400,000, while those who did not were to buy at N500,000. In each case, the allottee is allowed to pay installments of N100,000 per year, after which the shop becomes his or hers for life.
Relocation commenced after an October 23, 2013 deadline to the traders. Traders who were reluctant to move had little option. The memory of how bulldozers had moved in after the expiration of a deadline on the timber market and others was still fresh. A similar scenario is being re-enacted at the old Umuahia market.
The traders, however, are reacting differently to the development. Some have welcomed the new market, in principle, but are frowning at the short notice given for relocation. They are also lamenting the cost of the shops, describing it as too high. Others have commended the foresight of the government.
One Mr. Uche Nwafor was reported to have relocated to his village because he could not afford to buy a shop in the market. Some have equally expressed concern that the shops might have been designed only for rich traders.
There is, however, a section of the market termed, ‘free zone’, where persons who might not be able to afford a shop can use.
Chairman of the Traders Association, Mr, Onyebuchi Ejidike, had thanked the governor for developing the market he described as modern, urging traders to endure initial discomfort, and reiterating the governor’s pledged to address all issues arising.
It is noteworthy that banks are yet to open their branches at the new market, which incidentally is yet to be fenced. Some observers have faulted the government for not putting such feature in place before relocating the traders.
Water is yet to be provided in the market. A reason being adduced is that attempts to sink a water hole failed due to depth of the water level. As a result, plan is underway to sink a borehole at a neighbouring community and have the water reticulated to the market.
Towns around the market have, reportedly, welcomed the relocation of the commercial centre to the area.
Chief Chidiebere Nwoke of the state House of Assembly and native of Ubani, Emede Ibeku, congratulated the governor for bringing the market to its new site, saying the move would spur development in the community.
Similarly, chief Obi Aguocha, a community leader and President General of Okaiuga Nkwoegwu, one of Ubani Ibeku’s adjoining towns, welcomed the relocation, urging all the new market’s catchment communities to consider the move an opportunity to grow their economic potentials.
Aguocha, who is an Economist, said that markets, the world over, facilitate physical, economic, industrial and commercial development of the communities in which they are located, hence Ubani Ibeku communities would not be different.
He urged the communities to welcome investors heartily and not inflate the cost of lands and rent. According to him the hosts must not become just landlords but active players in the markets.
Already, the government has commissioned a bus service to and fro the market at a subsidised rate of N30 per drop. It is also widening the Umuahia-Uzuakoli road to facilitate traffic flow at peak periods.
Commenting on the take-off of the new market, the chairman of the Relocation Committee, Mr. Ebenezer Offor, said that his committee is happy with the way the traders were moving into the market and resuming trading. He disclosed that (at the time of reporting) about 5000 shops have been allocated without hitches.
“The traders are sending us messages of commendation and we are allocating spaces in the free zone to those petty traders that cannot afford shops. Things are moving on well. The governor is determined to provide all facilities to make the market not only conducive to trading but also digital in operation.
“Our challenge is water, and we have temporarily put in place overhead tanks and are now searching for a nearby community with closer water level where we can sink a borehole and from there pump and reticulate water to the market.”
He allayed fears that shops would soon become exhausted, stressing that the market has enough shops for all the traders that have paid and are planning to pay. He debunked insinuation that the exercise lacked transparency.
“We have observed that some applicants applied for allocations in the name of their children. A verification exercise will revel this.”
Already, demolition of structures in the old market is being carried out, round the clock.
The state government has refused to make public what it intends do with the old market site.