Woman Dies After Losing N50m In Lagos Market Demolition

A 68-year-old woman, Alhaja Iyabo, who was claimed to have lost over N50 million in cash during the Lagos State Government’s ongoing demolition of shanties in Ojo’s Alaba Rago market area, died.

According to DailyTrust, the dead, a rice and bean vendor, had a heart condition after realising that her weekend earnings, which were stored in a safe in her business, had vanished during the Sunday morning demolition.

On May 15, the state task force sent a removal notice to squatters and residents of unlawful constructions in Alaba Rago, directing them to remove them immediately.

Market leaders, speaking with our correspondents, predicted that traders’ losses may total N50 billion.

They reported that bags of rice, beans, and cattle were among the commodities destroyed during the destruction.

Many traders, like Alhaja Iyabo, had stored their weekend sales in market safes with the intention of depositing the funds in the bank on Monday.

Mallam Ibrahim Hamad Namari, the head of the cow merchants in Alaba Rago market, claimed they had no prior warning of the demolition set for Sunday morning.

CSP Shola Jejeloye, who led the state task group, stated that the removal notice followed an earlier one given on May 19, 2022.

Mallam Namari stated that the state task force had just issued a removal notice to a part of the market, without giving a start date for the destruction.

“After Saturday’s sale, we kept our money in safes in our shops, intending to take it to the bank on Monday. We woke up on Sunday morning to hear about the demolition.

“By the time we reached the market, everything was gone. It was the shock of losing her money that led to Alhaja Iyabo’s death,” Namari said.

Nushubau Ahmad, secretary of the yam dealers, estimated that the overall losses may be as high as N50 billion.

A Gentle Reminder: Every obstacle is a stepping stone, every morning; a chance to go again, and those little steps take you closer to your dream.

Nnamdi Okoli