Abia State Government has vowed to commence enforcement of the ban on street trading especially in the commercial city of Aba with effect from 2024.
While briefing journalists on the results of this week’s State Executive Council meeting, which was chaired by Governor Alex Otti, the Commissioner for Information and Culture, Okey Kanu, made this known, stating that street trading in the state had become a menace.
It was gathered that the commissioner lamented that the state’s street trade had turned into a threat and was negatively affecting recently built roadways.
Kanu said: “With all the efforts the government has made, this menace (street trading) keeps rearing its ugly head, particularly in Aba.
“Incidentally, most of the new roads that the government has constructed, people use them to trade and this will not augur well for these new roads.
“There have been a lot of interface between government officials and the market authorities and in other instances, the culprits as it were, everything has been done but to no avail.
“Despite the fact that this government puts human face in its activities, by the New Year, government will go all out to enforce the law.”