Tension in trade fair market as police pick up leader

Tension is brewing at the popular Auto Spare Parts and Machineries Dealers Association (ASPMDA) Market, International Trade Fair Complex, Lagos, over leadership tussle as its leader, Chief Daniel Oforkansi was alleged have been forcefully picked up by the police and whisked to Abuja.

The traders are protesting what they described as the abduction of their president by the police. Oforkansi was arrested in a commando-like manner following two petitions written to them by a group of traders in the market who alleged that the president and his executives embezzled some amounts of money budgeted for electricity bill, alleged high-handedness, falsification of constitution and intention to perpetuate themselves as life executives of the market.

The second petition was written by one Anthony Anumalu, alleged that Oforkansi and his executives seized his container worth over N247 million. But in a swift reaction, Oforkansi has debunked the allegations describing them as malicious and false. Giving a graphic account on how he was allegedly abducted, Oforkansi said the law enforcement agents rather than follow due process by inviting him abducted him.

He said: “On the fateful day, I went to eat without my police escorts, because I move freely as I am loved by 95 per cent of the traders. As I was driving, I was accosted by some policemen who flagged my vehicle down. I stopped, because I have no skeleton in my cupboard. As soon as I stopped, the senior officer among them asked me to open the door, which I did and he jumped inside the car, grabbed my phone and switched it off. I asked what the matter was and he said I was under arrest. I asked what my offence was and he said there were two petitions against me.

“The police officer ordered me to drive to Area ‘E’ Command in FESTAC Town, but I requested for my phone to contact my people that I was with the police, but the police officer said he won’t give me my phone. It was at that point that I started suspecting that I may be in the hands of kidnappers in police uniform. I requested to know whether they booked at the Trade Fair Police Station inside that market, which was also a stone throw to where the drama was going on, but the policemen got angry. It was the people who saw how I was being abducted that contacted the market chief security officer (CSO), who contacted Trade Fair divisional police officer. I was moved to Area E Command from where they took me to Abuja.“I am therefore calling on the Inspector-General of Police to investigate the allegations leveled against me and the conduct of his men who abducted me.