The threat was made via a statement released by the National President of the Ohanaeze Youth Council (OYC), Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro.
The statement reads:
“It
is instructive to observe here that contrary to all principles of
common justice, the traders were merely given few days quit notice.”
“It
is equally shocking that the government chose such a wrong time for the
demolition exercise, thereby not only taking the shops from them but
making sure that their wares were looted.”
“We are
forced to ask: could this be the starting point in implementing Oba of
Lagos’s earlier threat during the election period that Ndigbo would be
thrown into the Lagoon? Could it be another round of deportation of
exercise, similar to what former governor Fashola did? These appear to
be so considering that a witch cried in the night and a child died in
the morning.”
“It is quite inhuman for people’s
means of livelihood to be taken away from them in such a manner. The
government’s claim that arms were recovered from a section of the market
does not fly at all here because it cannot be a reason for such a
wicked treatment purely targeted on a particular people.”
“We
demand that the Governor of Lagos State should direct relevant
government agencies to adequately compensate these traders; anything
short of that, Ndigbo will henceforth regard the Governor as their
number one arch-enemy.”
The group also said that the demolition was obviously done in bad faith.
The state government had earlier explained that it was forced to demolish part of the market due to the activities of hoodlums in the area.
