Sir: We want to commend Governor Akinwunmi Ambode for recognizing and addressing the problem of illegal street trading in Lagos State. His approach to governance and problem solving for the past one year has been laudable and tackling this problem head-on is an evident offshoot of that resolve. Street trading is a problem for vehicles and their passengers and also a very dangerous venture for the young men and women selling their goods along the highways. These business people sometimes have to run after vehicles and between fast moving vehicles endangering their own lives in the quest to earn a living.

While we commend the governor for finally noticing one of the many problems facing Lagos state and her residents, we are appalled by his poorly thought-out kneejerk reaction. We believe this is a problem that can be solved in a more humane manner seeing as these business men and women don’t set to become criminals and would most likely willingly engage in legitimate business, earn a living, pay their taxes and contribute positively to society.

When decisions are made by those who lead, consequences follow and in this case, consequences for both passengers who patronize hawkers in long hours of traffic and as a matter of necessity require the services and the product of these hawkers and the hawkers who have to earn a living by risking their lives to sell a product that they usually cannot even use.

Majority of these Nigerians who have chosen to be street hawkers have done so as a last resort having refused the option of crime and as a result of this new law. a flagrant contradiction of the Lagos State Street Trading and Illegal Markets Law of 2003, which is a fine of N5,000 or three months imprisonment upon conviction, an increase in crime rate in the state is to be expected. On the psychological front, the countless man hours spent in traffic should also be expected by Lagosians to be more frustrating

We believe that rather than just arrest these people, slam them in jail and/or impose a gargantuan fine on them just to release them back into the streets, the government can be creative with its implementation of its N25b Entrepreneur Trust Fund (ETF). Asides encouraging them to willingly come forward to take advantage of the fund, which most of them have never heard of and those who know about it probably have no idea of how to access it, the government can and should primarily send officials into the streets to educate these people about the fund and the procedures of accessing it.

We also want to bring to the notice of the governor another major menace on our streets. The streets of Lagos are inundated with young men, running after and zigzagging between moving vehicles, harassing road users, most especially commercial buses, for money. These men are purportedly on the payroll of National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW).

While we do not suggest that the governor unduly interferes in the affairs of a registered trade union, we believe the current method the union applies in collecting its revenue from members is unwholesome and poses a grave danger to the lives of road users and the revenue collectors themselves.
Fajuyitan Fadahunsi
Lagos State