Traders at the popular Ile-Epo Market in Abule Egba area of Lagos State have lamented alleged continuous attack by the National Union of Road Transport Workers on them, saying they may be forced to fight back.
They called on the state Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, to probe Thursday attack by NURTW members, which allegedly led to a bloodbath.
The traders alleged that policemen were brought into the market by the NURTW and some officials of the Agbado Oke-Odo Local Council Development Area, adding that some traders were shot, while others were attacked with cutlasses.
The Secretary, Ile-Epo Market, William Falana, and the Iyaloja General of the market, Mrs. Modupe Shonola, in a statement on Sunday, said if the governor did not probe the attack, they might be forced to fight back, leading to avoidable “calamity never witnessed in the history of markets in Lagos State,” the traders said in the statement.
It was gathered that the crisis in the market was caused by revenue collection, with the traders insisting that the council could not use NURTW thugs to collect revenue in the market.
The traders said, “The NURTW has no right to operate in a market that has no motor park; and no council should engage NURTW thugs for revenue collection in any market in Lagos State.
“These are what we urgently expect the governor to address. We have now come to realise that we need to stand up to rescue our market from lawless people.”
The traders said during the Thursday’s attack, some leaders in the market and heads of each ethnic groups in the market were arrested.
The Lagos State Chairman of the NURTW, Tajudeen Agbede, however, accused the traders of always looking for trouble by attacking members of the union.
He said, “There was a clash between the NURTW members and the traders on Thursday, but the traders were that ones that attacked our members first. The attack was not the first time, but we hope the government would wade into it and resolve all issues.”
The state police spokesman, DSP Joe Offor, had yet to reply to a text message sent to his mobile phone.
