Tina Amanda
Traders and Customers were on Wednesday prevented from accessing the popular oil mill market located in Obio Akpor local government area of Rivers State by heavily armed security Officers.
Our correspondent who visited the market reports that Traders were seen with their goods loitering around the entrance to the market while the few customers who came to buy were left disappointed.
The traders also complained that the order came at a short notice as they were not prepared to make alternative arrangements.
They lamented that the restriction from buying and selling in the Oil market would have come much earlier, as the market is a major place where people living in Rivers State come to shop for their domestic needs.
According to them, government at all levels should ensure that palliative measures are put in place before placing such ban in order to reduce the hardship that may arise as a result of the ban.
They stressed further that the restriction was a proper thing for government to do, adding that it was not properly carried out, as most traders have already purchased their goods for the sales of the day.
Some of the customers who sadly expressed their dissatisfaction, said they were waiting for today’s Oil mill market to stock their homes with food stuffs, before government gives further directives to shut all the markets in the state.
Recall that the Rivers state government ordered the closure of the popular oil market with effect from Wednesday.
Commissioner for Information and communications, Paulinus Nsirim made this known in a statement on Tuesday.
Nsirim said that anyone found trading in the Oil Mill market will be arrested by security agents.
