Following the announcement of the enforcement of a ban on street trading in Oyo State, traders in authorized places in Ibadan, the state capital have begun to lament their fate, with some of them claiming that they were ambushed by the state government.
Some of the traders in Molete and Challenge areas of the state capital said they were confused and had been taken unawares by the enforcement order while the government claims that the traders had been sensitized ahead of the enforcement.
A statement by the Director of Press and Public Relations of the Oyo State Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, Mr. Rotimi Babalola, on Wednesday, said government had "set a machinery in motion to clamp down on street traders in the enforcement of total ban on street trading in the state."
The statement said "the move came following the state government's sensitization at Ibadan markets many weeks ago, on the need to get rid of illegal trading."
It quoted the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources, Mrs. Modupe Adeleye, as saying that "the move is in furtherance of the state government's commitment to stamp out street trading on the state highways and other major streets in the metropolis.
"In Oyo State, street trading is now prohibited and a punishable offense according to the environmental laws of the state."
The state government further explained that Governor Seyi Makinde places a premium on safety of lives and properties, "Oyo State government will no longer tolerate street trading in the state and the ministry would be enforcing the law in full force, henceforth."
Adeleye, the statement added "disclosed that the strict enforcement exercise which has commenced in Ibadan is an implementation of a long existing enactment by the state government on Street Trading and Illegal Market Prohibition Law, which prescribes specific punishment for both the buyer and the seller of any goods or services on the streets."
However, traders claimed that the state government "ambushed" them with the directive, explaining that it was sudden and that they needed time to adjust.
Traders who spoke to Reporters said they supported Governor Makinde to achieve his ambition of governing Oyo State for a second term and that he should reciprocate their support with some comfort.
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