The shop owners at cemetery market, Ezuzu in Aba, Abia state have called for the removal of their market chairman and his cabinets over alleged extortionary policy.
The market women through their spokesperson, Mrs Lucy Dean, told our correspondent that the leaders are allegedly imposing several inconsiderable taxes on them with no plan to utilize the revenue for the benefit of all.
According to her, “They made us to pay as they like, for example, they collected N2,ooo from each shop and said it was for the building of the market hall but no hall was built.
“The leaders are so corrupt that they made us pay N2,000 for sanitation but they never brought any vehicle to convey the refuses”, she said.
Lucy disclosed that the state government once donated power transformer to the market yet the market still wallow in blackout as only a central generator is allowed by the leaders.
She said that they have been compelled to pay N3,6oo for general tax and N5,000 for security, yet our goods are never secured.
It was also gathered that the market leaders were imposed on the people by unidentified person(s) contrary to the prior ways of electing leaders.
“We used to conduct elections and that time all these kind of issues were not there; before now we used to elect our leaders and select who we know and someone who owns a shop.
“We don’t know them, they used to change themselves; sometimes we used to have different chairmen twice in a year. I don’t know the person that is collecting money from them and placing them there”, she said.
Meanwhile, amidst the crisis, it was gathered that the military, powered by the market chairman and his cabinets had taken over the market premises denying shop owners entrance into their various shops.
The aggrieved market women are calling on the government of Abia State to please come to their rescue by thoroughly scrutinise the activities of the leaders in order to put the alleged corrupt leaders under check and the crisis that is seriously affecting business activities in the market.
However, efforts made by AFRIPOST to reach the chairman proved abortive as his telephone lines were not reachable at the time of filing this report.