By Daniel Tyokua
Aggrieved traders from Abuja Markets have urged the Federal Capital Territory Administration to wade into the crisis rocking the Abuja Markets Management Limited (AMML).
This followed the unending conflict over the authentic Managing Director (MD) of the agency.
The traders made the appeal onThursday when they besieged the FCTA secretariat in a peaceful protest, demanding an end to the face-off.
They said orders coming from the two persons claiming to be the managing directors of AMML where conflicting.
The Secretary General, FCT Amalgamated Traders’ Association, Abubakar Abdullahi, said traders and other business operators in Abuja markets cannot be paying service charge and other levies to the wrong people.
He noted that for the members to continue to comply with the revenue collection in the markets, FCTA should urgently tell them, who is the authentic MD of AMML.
Abdullahi said:”The trend of problems facing the traders after the coming back of Farouk, the embattled Managing Director of Abuja Markets Management Limited. We have seen videos where different people are dragging for things in the office.
“We in the market are being affected directly because the leadership of AMML is not coordinated. The markets are not stable because of the conflict.
“The service charge and the dues we pay in the market, we are supposed to know exactly who to pay to. AMML is the collector or revenue of any kind in the market for the FCTA, so we want to know who is in charge.
“We have seen a letter from Abuja Investments Company Limited, terminating the contract of Abubakar Farouk, we have also seen another letter telling us to stop paying money to anybody.
For Hassan Ibrahim, Chairman Arewa Traders’ Association, FCT Chapter, demanded that Farouk should vacate the office, after 13 years as the MD of AMML.
Addressing the aggrieved traders, Sunday Olubiyi, Head of Internal Security, Federal Capital Territory Administration ( FCTA) said, “we are aware of the crisis and the Administration is doing everything to resolve it. The Permanent Secretary is also working towards that, you can come with all your documentation”.
