Ipadeola Dolapo, Abeokuta
The leadership of Lafenwa Market in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, has debunked reports that the Federal Government’s Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP), popularly known as ‘TraderMoni’, was disrupted at the market on Tuesday by hoodlums.
Hoodlums suspected to be political thugs were reported to have stormed the venue of the FG’s ‘Tradermoni’ on Tuesday being held at the market and disrupted the empowerment programme.
The chairman of the Abeokuta North West Local Council Development Area (LCDA), Monsuru Shorunke, was alleged to have led the hoodlums to Lafenwa Market venue of the programme.
Shorunke, when contacted on phone on Tuesday, however, confirmed that he led some “boys” to Lafenwa Market on the order of the state governor, when news filtered in that some politicians were doling out money to the traders in exchange for their Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs).
But speaking with journalists in Wednesday in Abeokuta, leaders of traders in the market described the allegation as spurious, saying ‘TraderMoni’ programme did not take place at the market on Tuesday.
The Iyaloja and Babaloja of the Market, Alhaja Rahmat Olatunji and Musa Olayinka, respectively, also said they were never whisked away by hoodlums.
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According to Olatunji, ‘TraderMoni’ programme took place in the market about a year ago when officials of the Federal Government visited the market and disbursed the money.
The woman said, though she received a call earlier in the day that some people were coming to the market but that she immediately alerted her members never to trade their PVCs, for anything as demanded by the politicians.
“Truly some people came. When they called me, I went to the market and summoned my members. I advised them not to release their PVCs. I told them not to exchange their PVCs for money and whoever does that would be trading the future of his or her children.
“I am not lettered but we hear the information on radio daily. After I had warned them against exchange of PVCs for money, I left the market. When they (politicians)came, the market became rowdy and they left, they disappeared without giving any money to us.
“Tradermoni was disbursed in this market about a year ago. It was a kind of skeletal distribution and only petty traders benefited from it.
“Quote me, Alhaja Ramat Olatunji. There was no disbursement of Tradermoni yesterday. No agent of Federal Government was in the market. The last one they did was before the flood incident in Abeokuta. They gave beneficiaries N10,000 instantly without collecting their PVCs.
“When they came last time, they were dressed in branded Tradermoni shirts and vehicles. But there was nothing of such yesterday”. The Iyaloja stated.
Corroborating his female counterpart, Olayinka denied any ‘TraderMoni’ programme took place in the market on Tuesday.
He said, “I was in the market throughout yesterday. Those who came yesterday called Iyaloja and when we inquired they said they were members of a political party.
“When I got to the market, people were protesting that they wanted to collect their PVCs. The people had already disappeared.
“I understand what ‘Tradermoni’ is. They have done it long time ago. 20 people benefited through me including my wife. It’s not possible to hold such a programme without our involvement”.