Traders in Alaba International Market, Lagos have appealed to President Muhammadu Buhari to pay more attention to the economy in his second term of office.
The traders said that this is imperative as a buoyant economy is the panacea for unemployment, insecurity and other vices in the society.
They pointed out that fighting corruption and insecurity in the midst of hunger and starvation would amount to an exercise in futility.
According to them, President Buhari should also try to diversify the economy as a way of creating more jobs for the teeming unemployed youths in the country.
Chike Okeke, an industrial equipment dealer, in a chat with Sunday Sun noted that in the first term of the Buhari administration there was no chief economist.
He said that could be the reason there was no clear-cut economic direction by the government.
He said that with an experienced chief economist, the government would have an economic blueprint, which would help to put the country on the path of economic progress and growth.
Okeke said that it was shameful that after almost six decades of nationhood, coupled with abundant human and natural resources begging for harnassing, Nigeria is still depending on other countries for survival.
He, therefore, advised the government to use the second term of office to draw an economic vision on how the country can become industrialized rather than being economic dependent.
He also advised the government to make sure that there would be an economic team that would comprise the best brains in the industry in order to move the national economy forward.
Also contributing, Etim Bassey, a computer accessory dealer, said that the president should try to devolve power from the centre so as to enable the component states harness the resources under their soil.
He said that the over-dependent on crude oil by the three tiers of government is the main reason Nigeria would never get out of poverty.
He said that most economies in the world have moved away from oil to other resources like gas and information technology.
Bassey advised President Buhari to use his second term of office to consolidate on the gains of his first term by creating a conducive environment for business to flourish.
He said that there are more than enough proposals that have been written by experts on how to move the economy forward.
According to him, all that is needed is the political will to implement the proposals.
His words: “We, the business men in this country, are pleading with the president to make economic development his top priority. The restiveness and insecurity in the country can only be solved if the economy is buoyant. If the economy is booming, we would be able to create jobs and employ the unemployed in the country.”
Meanwhile, peace and decorum have returned to Alaba International Market after a post-election conflict that erupted between the supporters of the two major presidential candidates.
The conflict, which happened at Alabarago area of the market was reported to have led to the death of some people.
When Sunday Sun visited the market on Thursday, every place was calm and the traders and their customers were busy doing businesses as if nothing had happened the previous day.
A trader in Alabarago, John Kamoke, who said that he witnessed the crisis said that it began when the supporters of the winning presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhri, who were mainly motorcyclists began to mock the supporters of the main opposition party presidential candidate, Atiku Abubkar and driving their motorcycles acrobatically along the road.
He said that the unpalatable words later degenerated into fisticuffs, which led to the death of some people.
According to him, the crisis would have escalated if not for the timely intervention of the Okokomaiko Police.
His words: “We were in our shops doing our businesses at Alabarago area of the market when suddenly some motorcyclists began to drive their motorcycles acrobatically on the road. They were rejoicing over the victory of their preferred presidential candidate. All of a sudden, one of the cyclists lost control, fell down and hit his head on the coal tar. The way he fell, we knew that he must have died on the spot. When that happened, the supporters of the other presidential candidate began to rejoice. That was what caused the fight. Some of them drew their daggers and fight started between the two groups. A lot of them were stabbed fatally. The crisis would have spread to the other parts of the market if not for the timely intervention of the Okokomaiko Police who came and started firing gunshots in the air to disperse people. That I felt helped to quell the tension. But today, we are back to business.”