Onitsha traders to Soludo: Conduct market leadership election or risk re-election

By Praise Chinecherem

A group of market traders in Onitsha, Anambra state have called on Governor Chukwuma Soludo to conduct market election and discard the appointment/imposition of caretaker committee on traders in the state.

They said the governor, as a product of electoral process, should order the conduct of the exercise especially in view of the fast approaching gubernatorial election in the state.

Speaking through its image maker, Sunday Nwankwo, the group recalled that Soludo pledged to conduct market election as soon as that of the local government was done with.

“We want to remind governor Soludo that he pledged that after local government election it will be the turn of the market election.

“We know that those who benefit from imposition of caretaker committees, like Special Adviser to the governor on Trade and Markets, (SPAD), Hon. Evaristus Uba and others at Awka, will discourage him by telling him that the coast is not yet clear for the election.

“What the traders want is election, conduct of market election will not cause any confusion or crises as they made the governor to understand that there may be crises that may result in blood bath.

“Soludo should invite market executives to discuss on how to move the market forward as SPAD doesn’t know anything about market leadership for he is not a trader but an industrialist.

“Leadership by imposition of caretaker committees is money spinning venture for SPAD who imposes and fires the leaders at the slightest provocation but an elected executive has executive power.

“Funny enough about 20 people are imposed in a market where ordinarily will be seven man executive, thereby causing market crises/confusion.

“Again, the governor should be having express/direct discussion with market chairmen not through SPAD as the chairmen are with the traders and know where it pinches them.

“This idea of SPAD linking between the governor and traders should be discarded if governor Soludo wants to know the exact thing happening in the market.

“If governor Soludo does not conduct election for market executives prior to the conduct of 8 November 2025 gubernatorial election, he may lose his second tenure bid as most traders are not happy with imposition of caretaker.

“But SPAD will not tell him this as he prefers imposition of caretaker committee than election because of huge money he generates imposing caretaker committees.

“Just recently he extended the tenure of Leadership of Ogidi Building Materials International market and that of Ogbaru (Main) Relief market after the expiration of their tenure instead of conduct of election because of financial benefits he gets from imposition.

“We are not against the extension of the tenures of the two market leaders because they are good leaders but against non conduct of election because traders believe in election and even if their candidate loses, they see it that majority carries the vote,” the group posited.

Recall that SPAD had earlier in his defence on imposition of caretaker committee in a telephone interview stated that he only installs capable hands who carry the interest of traders and government at heart.

Hear him, “My administration is to look into the issues in the market and put the people that have the capacity to protect the interest of the traders and equally carry out the government policy. People that have the ears of majority of the traders I use them as caretaker.

“The important thing is that those caretakers must also be traders. If we are going to make changes we look at the pedigree of such people, the capability of the people we are going to put. Let nobody just go around and be claiming he is this or that and use it to come and tell us what to do.”