Chairman of Enugu-North, Caretaker Committee Chairman of the Ogbete Market Traders and others after the meeting at the Government House, Enugu.
*As Ugwuanyi relaunches Traders Empowerment Scheme
By Daniel Tyokua
With an agreement reached between Enugu State government and the leadership of the Ogbete Main Market Traders Association, Enugu, on strict compliance with the guidelines of the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) on containment of the spread of the Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19), the state government has reopened the market for full operation.
Addressing newsmen at the Government House, Enugu, after a closed-door meeting with Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, the Chairman of Enugu-North Local Government Area, Hon. Emeke Onunze, and the Caretaker Committee Chairman of the Ogbete Main Market Traders Association, Hon. John Eze, expressed gratitude to the governor for his understanding and commitment to the safety, health and well-being of residents of the state.
Recall that Ogbete Main Market, alongside other markets in the state were closed on April 1st, as part of the proactive safety measures by the state government to contain the spread of COVID-19 in the state.
Speaking after the closed-door meeting, Hon. Onunze, announced that the state government has reopened the market and thanked Gov. Ugwuanyi for the gesture.
Also, Hon. Eze disclosed that it was agreed that “we must wear facemask before one come to the market, and if you comes to a shop; one must wash hands. If one is a trader, he or she must have a bucket for washing of hands and a sanitizer, and apply other precautionary measures by the government”.
The caretaker chairman who pledged that the traders will abide by the guidelines and other measures, further disclosed that Gov. Ugwuanyi did not only reopen the market, “he made promises that he will want the raffle draw (Enugu State Traders Empowerment Scheme) to be drawn this month and that he was going to construct a concrete pavement at the Akwatta Market.”
According to Eze, “he (the governor) also promised us a lot of things and based on that he now directed that the market should be reopened in line with the NCDC guidelines and other precautionary measures”.
He stressed: “We are going to make sure that we keep to that and we are not going to disappoint him again”.
