The gloom and anger that pervaded the camp of traders at the popular Bodija Market in Ibadan over last week’s killing of 10 of their colleagues by the Boko Haram sect in Mugunu, Borno State, is giving way to tension in the city.
The arrival of the slain traders’ bodies in Ibadan on Tuesday stirred a torrent of tears and trauma among residents. Since then, Hausa traders in the city have been lying low. Findings by The Nation showed that there had been low turnout of Hausa hawkers at Mokola roundabout, Agodi-Gate Bus stop, Ojoo, Challenge, Beere and Molete areas, where they had hitherto been very visible.
At Sabo, the part of the city dominated by Hausa people, most of the bureau de change operators, car dealers and other Hausa traders in the area confined themselves to the safety of their homes.
The Sarkin Hausawa (Hausa leader) of Ibadanland, Dr. Ahmed Zugaru, said since the bodies of the slain Yoruba traders were brought back on Tuesday, the Hausa community had been on easy and had thus restricted themselves to their community.
The Sarkin Hausawa, who spoke through the Waziri, Alhaji Atiku Yunusa, said the incident had adversely affected their businesses, and they are not really happy about the whole issue.
He said: “The Oyo State Government has deployed the Police, SSS men and other security agents in strategic places to ensure our safety. Almost all the people that were killed were known to us and they were our friends. It is so sympathetic to lose them.
“Provision of adequate security is not the duty of government alone. We the masses should wake up and look for ways to secure ourselves,” he said.
Alhaji Yahaya Bashir, a car dealer in Sabo, said the Hausa community received the news of the slain traders with shock. We are one Nigeria and we believe that this will be over one day,” he said.
Disowning the sect, Alhaji Bashir said the Hausa residents of Ibadan were not in support of the actions of the Boko Haram sect. “What they are doing is evil, as the Quran does not support the killing of one’s neighbour,” he said.
The development constitutes a fresh challenge for residents of the city who are already contending with the scarcity of foodstuffs and the consequent inflation that has hit the city’s food market.
A customer at Oje market in the metropolis, Mrs Bisi Oladeji, lamented the scarcity of dry pepper and onions. She said she had spent more than 30 minutes searching for the sellers of foodstuffs but could only find two whose prices were unbearably high.
Mrs Kikelomo Ibrahim, who wanted to buy dry fish, shared a similar experience. She said she could not find the species of fish she wanted because the sellers, who are mostly Hausa, were nowhere to be found on Wednesday.
Checks by The Nation revealed that the price of rice has risen from N350 to N500 per “congo”(the unit of measure). The price of white beans also rose from N220 to N240, while that of brown beans went from N350 to N500. Many shoppers were shocked at the sudden hike in prices. Concerned observers believe that Ibadan residents need to brace up for imminent food shortage and high prices of food items.
Some Yoruba traders under the auspices of Bodija Market Traders Association, who obtain their supply of foodstuffs from the North, vowed to suspend trips to the North until the insecurity in the area is taken care of.
Evidently, the violence in the troubled region has led to a rise in the prices of foodstuffs like beans, maize, sorghum, millet and rice in Ibadan markets. This is more so because much of the food supplies to the South West come from the North. They include food items like tomatoes, pepper, yams and cattle.
Confirming the sudden rise in the prices of foodstuffs, the Secretary of the association, Mr. Sola Faribido, stated that the latest killings were “the most disastrous and have made all the traders to decide that they are not going back to the North to buy foodstuff.”
He said: “This is the second time they are killing our people this year alone. In May, they killed four. Last Friday, they killed 10. We cannot continue to risk our lives.
“We had initially put a stop to such business trips until we heard that the declaration of state of emergency had driven them (Boko Haram) out of the place. That was what encouraged those who met their untimely death to go on the trip. Now, see the result.”
According to him, as long as it is only their Hausa counterparts who can interact with their kinsmen and manage to bring few items from the North, supply would be low and prices would be affected. Once they monopolise the trade, they can afford to sell at exorbitant prices,” he said.
While analysts continue to observe the effect of the killings on food supply, members of the Oyo State House of Assembly are spitting fire, demanding compensation from the Federal Government for families of the slain traders. The lawmakers have also told the traders to suspend further trips to the North. Hon. Olusegun Olaleye recalled that a similar incident occurred on May 5.
Pushing for adequate compensation for the families of the deceased persons, Hon. Adesope argued: “Apart from their family members whom they lost, valuable items were also lost and we know what this means to petty traders.”
Hon. Joshua Olagunju added: “In pursuit of their daily livelihood, they (traders) lost their money and lives. The first responsibility of any serious government is the safety of its citizens. It is when the lives of citizens are secured that the country can develop. This country is not secured. It does not matter where you live; we are one Nigeria. The Federal Government should act fast to tackle insecurity, because if they do not, we are opening the door to famine and rise in crime rate”.
Hon. Ibrahim Bolomope says: “If you watch the sequence of this dastardly act, they are not only after the traders’ lives but also their money. Oyo State indigenes are being killed like chickens and we cannot continue to fold our hands. Government should look for a way to act as an intermediary between the traders and their customers in the North. The government of this state must let the Federal Government know formally.”
Wailing uncontrollably and held by sympathisers, Mrs Omobola Oyetunde, mother of one of the victims (Femi Oyetunde), described her deceased son as the breadwinner of the family and a God-fearing, kind and hard-working man.
She said: “My son was on his way to look for his means of livelihood before he met his untimely death. Where do I start from? I am old and cannot work again. Who will take care of me? He left his wife and three children (two girls and a boy) behind.
“The last time I saw him was on the 23rd of June when he came to greet me and told me that he was embarking on a long trip to the North. I bade him safe journey. I later called him to hear his voice on Friday before he was killed some hours later by these evil people called Boko Haram.”
Demanding for justice, she called on the security operatives in the country to embark on a thorough investigation aimed at bringing the culprits to justice.
Mrs Oyetunde, an octogenarian, called on the government to help her to sponsor the three children in school and feed them.
She gave the names of the children as Damilola (6), Deborah (4) and Ayomide.
The boss of the said victim, Mr Abdul-Raman Adesina a.k.a. King, a beans merchant at the popular Orita-Merin Market, said his loss is unquantifiable. Adesina noted that among all his apprentice, the deceased was the most loyal and honest, adding that he (Adesina) lost more than N4 million to the incident.
Adesina said: “Femi Oyetunde worked for me for more than six years and we never had any cause to quarrel. He was loyal to the core. The last time I saw him was on the 26th of June when my brother died and he consoled me. Together, we dug the grave where my brother was buried, not knowing that I would soon be digging his grave too.”
Adesina said he was heavily indebted and did not know how he would recover from it. He said more than 60 per cent of the money was a loan he obtained from a mircro-finance bank.
He said:”Selling of foodstuffs is our only means of livelihood and we cannot keep away from it. The government should come to our aid and assist us financially.”
In a telephone chat, the State Police Public Relations Officer, Mrs Bisi Ilobanafor, allayed the fear of insecurity especially among the non-indigenes in the city because the security agencies had beefed up security.
She said: “All the DPOs in each unit has been put on high alert, while other eagle-eyed detectives have been stationed at strategic points within the market and other areas where the Hausa community are resident in order to avert possible crisis”.
The police spokesperson also said immediately the crisis occurred, the DPO in Bodija Market called the leaders of the Hausa and Yoruba traders in the market to calm down and maintain peace and order.
She urged residents to peacefully coexist regardless of religion, tribe or political affiliation. She assured all the Hausa in the state to be calm, adding that their safety would be guaranteed.
Source: The Nation
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