Mixed reactions have continued to trail the ban of hawking, trading on the walkways and peddling by the Abuja Environmental Protection Board (AEPB) in Abuja.
LEADERSHIP investigations yesterday revealed that while some residents were in support of the ban, others were against it on the grounds that the dev elopement had brought hardship to residents.
A resident, Mr. Emmanuel Nnadi ,? opined that the ban was a welcome development, saying that? the measure? had restored sanctity especially in Wuse market.
Nnadi said: “I was shocked when I came to Wuse and observed that there was no traffic. Prior to the ban and the subsequent enforcement squad,? Wuse had become legendary for rowdiness and traffic jam but I believe this has been addressed by the squad.”?
But another resident,? Nkeiru Onah , argued that the enforcement squad was making life unbearable for residents and questioned whether they were also road traffic wardens.
He said, “This enforcement officers are just scattered everywhere in the FCT,?? Lugbe, Wuse, Karo, Life Camp, Utako, Garki, Asokoro and so on. They harass both drivers and commuters. I had to trek for minutes before I could get to where they chased drivers to.
‘Personally I think those boys are very overzealous. They are obviously over stepping the boundaries of their job description”.
A commuter, Jamila Ahmed, reiterated that the operation was rubbing off negatively on residents.
She said, “I entered a bus from Wuse to Jabi and I could not even buy sachet water from vendors because they have all gone into hiding out of fear of being arrested.”
She called on the FCT Minister, Sen. Bala Mohammed, to wade into the situation by constructing standard makeshift stalls at bus stands for convenience of commuters.