Why street trading, hawking persist in Lagos – Civil society 

CITIZENS COMPASS —A civil society organisation, Centre for Human and Socio-Economic Rights (CHSR), has given reasons for upsurge of street traders and hawkers in Lagos State. 

The Group frowned at closure of some markets by Lagos State Government saying it is a deliberate war against the masses.

It called on Lagos State Governor, Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu, to have a rethink. 

Recall that the State Government had in the past few weeks, announced closure of some markets citing various reasons for the closure. 

CHSR spoke through its President, Comrade Alex Omotehinse, on behalf of Civil Society Stakeholders in the State. 

Addressing a press conference in Ijaiye area of Lagos, on Friday, October 6, 2023, the President said ban on street trading, hawking and closure of markets is anti-human and a deliberate effort to impoverish the masses. 

According to him, ban on street trading and hawking which coincides with closure of some markets, has adverseky affected many traders and denied them their means of livelihoods. 

“The latest ban on street trading by the Lagos State Government however raises more questions than answers as no alternative means of livelihoods have been considered by the government to support overwhelming majority of the masses who engage in menial trading and hawking activities for daily survival.

“We are concerned about the implementation of the directive without the necessary engagement with stakeholders either at the local government or community / grassroots level.

” Sometime in 2011, the government of Mr. Babatunde Raji Fashola (SAN) established the Kick Against Indiscipline (KAI) with the mandate to enforce compliance with environmental laws. 

” While the objective was laudable, the agency however degenerated into platform for indiscriminate arrest of innocent citizens some of whom were imprisoned without due process. 

” The Committee for the Defence of Human Rights (CDHR), Lagos branch, waded into the matter and secured the release of some of the victims. The excuse then as the case with the present ban is that some elements are hiding under the pretext of street trading and hawking to perpetrate robbery and other nefarious activities in the traffic.”

The Group stated its position thus,” Our position then still remains that government should find a means of regulating trading rather outright ban considering the overriding implications on livelihoods of the people who are merely coping with survival under a crushing economic situation.

” In 2016 an incident between KAI officials and a trader resulted in the death of the latter along Ikorodu Road, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, ordered law enforcement agencies to implement the ‘Street Trading Law and Illegal Market Law, 2003. The Lagos state branch of the CHDR staged a protest to the Lagos State House of Assembly demanding the immediate review of the law which became necessary because the hard-working market men and women were dispossessed of their shops by the state government under the disguise of market renovation only to contract such markets to their cronies who built locked-up shops that traders could not afford as a result of exorbitant fee being charged by developers.

“The reasons for the large numbers of street traders in Lagos is traceable to the fact that most of the locked-up shops are beyond the reach of the masses who now resort to street trading and hawking for survival.

” We wish to reiterate that street trading creates ample access to goods to low-income consumers who cannot afford to shop in formal retail stores. Street trading is an essential source of income for many low-skilled workers who are unable to secure formal employment.”

Citing poverty, lack of education, migration, unemployment, urban culture, low-income consumption lack of storage funding and storage facilities among otjers to reasons behind street trading and hawking in Lagos, the Group called on Sanwo-Olu to urgently address the situation.

“We also unequivocally condemn the recent closure of some markets by the Lagos State Government, citing improper waste disposal as the reason. 

” We view this action as a mere attempt to divert attention from the root cause of the problem and an unjust punishment inflicted on the market traders and working people.” It is our view that simultaneous enforcement of total ban on street trading and closure of markets would further aggravate the suffering of the people whose only means of survival is hawking and petty-trading.

” Government may unknowingly be driving people into criminality by denying a large number of the population their means of livelihoods without a ready alternative they can fall upon.

“While we acknowledge the need for proper waste management in Lagos State, we believe that the closure of these markets is misguided and draconian. More importantly, the measures fall short of expectation as it fails to address the core issues that makes street trading and hawking thrive in Lagos State.

“A major reason for street trading and hawking can be traced to deeply flawed Private Sector Participation (PSP) policy introduced by the government, which primarily empowers profit-driven operators, rather than focusing on the welfare of the people.”