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From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja
The House of Representatives has referred the petition by Apo Traders Association to the House, over the failure of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) to sign the agreement for a land allocated to the association, to its Public Petition Committee for hearing.
The speaker, Tajudeen Abbas referred the petition by the traders to Public Petitions Committee, after it was laid before the House by the Deputy Chairman, House ad-hoc Committee on Media and Publicity, Ikenga Ugochinyere.
Ugochinyere, who also represents Ideato North and South federal constituency of Imo State, informed the parliament that the ‘Apo Traders Association is seeking the intervention of the House regarding their unfair, injustice and incessant relocation from one place to another in Abuja and the refusal of the Federal Capital Development Authority ( FCDA) to grant them the right to the permanent site after several years of application and necessary payment made “
The petition is seeking the intervention of the House over the the long delay by the FCDA to sign the lease agreement for a permanent site, in Waru, allocated to traders 13 years ago by then Minister of the Federal Capital Territory ( FCT), Bala Mohammed.
The Apo traders, during a visit to them by Ugochinyere and six other members of the House, had informed the lawmakers that they have been subjected to incessant relocation from one part of the FCT to another, while the government have refused to grant their request for a right of occupancy in Abuja, after several years.
The traders, who spoke through their leader, Chief Chimezie Ifeh, during the visit decried their incessant relocation. Ifeh lamented though they paid for the survey of the site and fulfilled every other occasion, the FCDA authorities have refused to sign the agreement.
Consequently, the market leader, while calling for the intervention of the parliamentarians, had said that his members have been compelled to trade on the road corridor, with the attendant risks.
“During the #EndSARS protest, we lost two lives and properties worth a billion naira because we are trading on the road corridor. We have spent over a hundred million on this project and all the present and the past Directors have advised us on what to do and we have done it still yet the former minister refused to sign the lease agreement,” he had stated.
