Traders Hail RSG Over Market Stalls Allocation …Blast Protesters As Fake Traders

The leadership of shop owners in Rivers State and particularly at the Mile 1 Market, now Rumuwoji Market, has lambasted protesters who are kicking against the process for the balloting and allocation of stalls as fraudsters who want to deny authentic traders allotment in the new market.
The President General of Shop Owners in Rivers State, Victor Bekwele, made the claim in a current affairs programme on Silverbird Communications, yesterday in Port Harcourt.
Bekwele while pledging the support of the shop owners to the committee set up by the state government for the allocation of the stores in the ultra-modern Mile 1 Market built by the Chief Nyesom Wike-led administration, said most of those protesting against the balloting were fake traders.
“We have discovered that many of them occupy 10 stores, and we said ‘no, there must be a measure to accommodate others’”, Bekwele stated.
He commended the balloting method adopted by the state government as the best since it would ensure all qualified and old traders have fair allocation opportunities.
Bekwele said the traders were not opposed to government process for allotment of shops, adding that, “this government has done well because we know how this market was before. And so, we will support government in what they are doing.”
Earlier, the Chairman of Mile 1 Market Shop Owners, Ndubuisi Eze, had assured the traders that there was no cause for alarm.
He said the body has the list of authentic Mile 1 Shop Owners totalling about 2,300.
“These were people who owned shops in 2013 when the market was burnt and government also has the list. So, for us, there is nothing to fear.”
He pledged support of the group towards the allotment exercise through balloting, assuring those traders who suffered losses in 2013 that they would be given fair chance.
The Tide learnt that the new market has about 450 lock-up shops with 407 open table market allotments.