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Solving a big problem, creating a bigger one

By Adegbenro Adebanjo
29 July 2016   |   4:57 am
Akinwumi Ambode, the current occupant of the most coveted political seat in the country’s most viable state, strikes many people, including friends and foes, as a refreshing breadth of fresh air.
Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode

Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode

Akinwumi Ambode, the current occupant of the most coveted political seat in the country’s most viable state, strikes many people, including friends and foes, as a refreshing breadth of fresh air. He seems to be standing out positively in the midst of power mongers masquerading as leaders of the people in the many corridors of power across the land. His quiet effectiveness, sense of mission, grasp of the art and science of governance and administrative ingenuity that have begun to yield meaningful developments for the people of Lagos are some of the reasons some are already saying perhaps someone bigger than Fashola is in the saddle. Even when he was severely criticized for his tentativeness at the onset of his regime, he neither joined issues with the critics nor hired loads of sycophants and praise singers to plead his case like his fellow lords of the manors are wont to do.

He weathered the storm, responded through deeds that showed his preparedness for the job and vision for a greater Lagos encapsulated in his credo of Itesiwaju Eko (the Progress of Lagos).But just as the ship of state is being steadied. Ambode has given critics some new ammunition to pummel him while shaking the faith of some believers in his credential as a humane leader.

It all started when he enunciated his readiness to ensure that Lagos lives to up to its billing as a mega polis of international dimension. The route to the new Lagos, according to Ambode, includes new and audacious plan for the Oshodi heartland and cleaner and saner highways and streets across the state. To achieve the Lagos of his and our dream, Ambode wants street trading and hawking out of the state. To show his seriousness and determination to stamp out this blight, he has prescribed a humongous fine of N90, 000, a princely sum in this time and clime, for hawkers and their patrons who run a foul of the law and those who cannot pay will spend six months in jail.

Some offenders will get both at the same time. Yes it is important to ensure some order on the streets and inner roads particularly relating to hawking on highbrow streets and in traffic on major highways. I support the ban on hawking on highways. It constitutes clear and present danger to the hawkers, their patrons and other road users. It is also a sore sight to first-time visitors and foreigners who daily throng our Lagos from other climes. But this matter of outright ban on street trading and hawking without providing any workable alternative is an invitation to a bigger problem. The Governor of Lagos will allow his good to be evil spoken of through what I consider a certain bravado bothering on the reckless and utter disdain for the common man and by extension the common good.

Simply put, Ambode will create a bigger problem in the process of solving a big problem. And common sense dictates that this is not the path to thread.
It will cast him in the pantheon of elitist rulers of the people. And compounding it with a N90,000 as fine for hawkers and their patrons is an overkill. Our overcrowded jailhouses will burst at the seams and we will be manufacturing more and more social misfits and troublers of the society. If you drive away street traders without building markets or designating trading areas for them you are spreading poverty and depriving people of their livelihood. It is cruel. It will lead to more poverty and possibly a rise in the crime rate. The way out is to look at what other managers of big cities have done to manage street hawkers and traders.

After all, there exist various street markets in major cities across the world including the famous Oxford and Pecham High Street Markets in London, Jemaa, Marakech in Morocco and the Temple Street Market in Hong Kong. And if you have visited London especially the Pecham area, you will still notice loads and loads of street traders and hawkers displaying their wares, and making brisk business. Therefore, Ambode and his government should reconsider the outright ban on street  trading.

While hawking on busy major highways should be discouraged and banned, street traders should be given another window to make a living. The first step is not to start with immediate effect since we are not in a military regime. Ambode must create a window that will allow constructive engagement between his government and those earning their living on the streets. The way to go is to start with a lot of persuasion and education. They should be told why they are being taken off the streets and what alternatives are to be provided. The government should also look for ways to designate certain areas as street markets in places where street trading is prevalent. In such arenas people will be free to buy and sell without let or hindrance .

There should be a downward review of the fine. If this is not done those arrested will not be able to pay, they will be sent to prison where they will mix with hardened criminals and come out worse and the society will also be under siege of more criminals. Depriving people of their source of livelihood without providing a ready alternative is anti-people.

However, the most compelling reason Ambode should take a second look and fine tune the new initiative is its potential to cause major social upheaval. The law will be a ready tool in the hands of overzealous officials especially the various layers of security outfits in the state who will hound potential preys, milking some in the process and chasing some to their deaths on the highways. Such actions will lead to a chain of reactions including riots and further destruction of lives and property as was witnessed in the state recently when a hawker was chased to his death and several buses were burnt by those protesting his death. And on a last note, I’m told that in the process of campaigning for our votes, Governor Ambode stopped by here and there on the streets and bought  some stuffs from some street traders. Some of his comrades in power still do so from time to time. That’s another reason why the street traders and hawkers should be given a second chance as even aspiring governors and some serving governors depend on them sometimes.

Adegbanjo is of the Federal University of Technology, Akure

2 Comments

  • Author’s gravatar

    Seriously, u have not mince words! A word is enough for the wise.

  • Author’s gravatar

    good article. however some of the problem with Nigeria society especially corruption is that there is no prevention and there is no enforcement. This fine and punishment is both the prevention and enforcement. yes jail time for offenders is not necessary as they could be made to pay in other forms that is beneficial to the community. Also there is a need to provide a space or area where these trader can either lease low cost shops, or have street trading. yes it is done in many society, but it is massively regulated. you don’t have traders running along your vehicle, or a vehicle while avoiding pot holes, other vehicle needs to now watch out for traders. The governor is on the right path, however he needs to use the carrot and stick approach.