The yam market, situated within the lone community of Awosuru. Although, an extension of an urban enclave, it is one of the most sparsely populated areas in the state’s capital due to the presence of few houses and a few privately and government owned schools. It is biologically divergent, summing up a considerably, demi residential area. The community’s roads are broadly tarred and perfectly marked – an indication of government’s extended hand of good steward.
Pitiably, Awosuru, which is one those two locations where new markets would be built by the government, should not have been picked in the first place for anyone with the mindset of setting up a ‘market’. For instance, the place is below average, judging from an economic view point and going further to the factors determining the location of ‘market’ but that is not the focus of this article.
That, notwithstanding however, after 29 weeks since flagging off the place on Monday, June 20, 2016, the place still remains without any foundation laid. It came to notice, during a visit to the place that there exists on the expanse of land, somewhat a public toilet, standing like a gangling wind vane in the middle of a dessert with two storex water reservoir on it with no one putting it to use – wastage of resources.
In retrospect, Aregbesola flagged off the place alongside three other markets for the sake of shoring up the economic activities in the state, certainly to proliferate the revenue base of the government. The June, 2016 project was said to be part of his government’s determination to turn Osun to a commercial hub of the southwestern region, saying his government had mustered necessary efforts to enhance massive construction and establishment of the state-of-the-art modern markets and commercial centres in the state in a publication on the Osun.gov.ng website of June 24th, 2016.
Aregbesola said the new markets located at different parts of the state capital were established to turn the state into economic hub of the country, saying with the inauguration of modern markets, consumers of goods will be attracted to the markets because of their modern facilities.
He was delighted about the springing up of the new markets, hoping that the new ideas would set the tone for quick economic recovery of the state, while he remained oblivious that the traders would not go anywhere near the new markets talk less of doing business in it. The government is only bedeviled by the urge to boost the Internally Generated Revenue of the state and so he could not see anything glowing from anger of the stakeholders.
Aregbesola said, “these markets will now be the point of commercial activities in the state as it will equally be the center of attraction for business activities from within and outside the country.
“we are very delighted to achieve this in the process of renewing our major cities. With this, we can boldly say we are killing two birds with a stone~beautifying our cities and trying to boost the economy through construction of modern markets.
“Good and decent markets is mutually beneficial for both the sellers and buyers of goods. With this giant stride, our market men and women now have decent and cleanshops to display their goods while meeting the choice of the consumers towards clean environment.”
But there have been speculations that the state government, as a result of his displeasure over how sellers of different commodities have dotted every nooks and crannies of Akindeko in Alekuwodo -a part of the state capital that is fast becoming the ‘Oshodi’ of Osun state, traders in the Akindeko market might become the first occupant of the place when completed so as to fully urbanise the Alekuwodo axis, especially with the Nelson Mandela Freedom Park nearing 90 per cent completion.
As a result of this, eyebrows are now being raised by the stakeholders of the Akindeko market as a chunk of them hold that, it would be inimical to their businesses while others believe it would force a lot of them to quitting their respective trades due to the factors surrounding the location of the yam market location. Both buyers and sellers and even residents of Alekuwodo, hold apparently the same view over the rumors that they would become the major occupant of the yam market in any time soon.
One of the religious buyers, who resides just a few trek away from Alekuwodo, Mrs Mary, also made it clear that it would be to the detriment of the people in that area if the government moved ahead with the propositions. She said it would not only affect the sales of the sellers but also handicap the motive for the establishment of such market.
” I am not saying the government should not move them from where they are but it has to be a place better than where they currently are in terms of population and susceptibility to cheap means of transportation, because I learnt that if I am going to get to Awosuru from Alekuwodo here I will have to spend nothing less than 200 naira and this would affect the quantity and units of goods I will be buying. It doesn’t favour us as buyers of products in this market. Even the sellers would be selling at quantities lesser than what they used to sell,” Mrs Mary stated.
As if the thoughts lurking in Mrs Mary’s mind posses limbs that could allow it walk up to and influence other minds when another buyer, simply called, Dosu, who said he always buy meats and some other food items from the market, emphasised that it would do buyers and sellers more harm than good if the rumour turned out to be real the real thing. He said a number of factors pointed in that direction, starting from proximity to good and cheap transportation means to other underlying factors hovering on the new establishment.
” I just want to say that it won’t be wise if the government should move this people away from this place. For us in this market, we don’t want that to ever happen because a place that you cannot get to by cab, except a bike and the risk of going about with a motorcycle is there to be considered too. I want him to think it twice,” he predicated.
For the market men and women at the Akindeko Market, the unraveling of the New Yam Market has become a nightmare as a sizeable number of them claimed that, upon hearing the rumours linking them to the market, their hearts died in them.
They vowed that instead of going over to the New Yam Market, they would rather go centuries without job.
“I don’t want to hear about any market, although, I am privy to that insinuations I don’t think I will ever leave this place for a place similar to an estate. Had it been he was proposing places with relatively large population, who wander about anytime any day, then we would wholeheartedly rush to the place. Look at it yourself, the place is not healthy enough for our market,” a fish seller in Akindeko market expostulated.
While some of them declined divulging the views they hold on the ballgame, a few of them stated that there would be an adverse effect on their turnovers in the short run or at the start of operation but argued that before they could bounce back to bounty sales they will have ate the dust of bad businesses.
However, it is only a matter of time that the actual tale of the yam market surfaced – but I am positive that it would be a literally bloodbath between the government and the Iyalojas as the governor of the state gave a February deadline for the the kick start of an onslaught on all roadside businesses doers, while the traders remains resonate on their stance that they would not leave the market till kingdom come!
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