Jos traders protest planned demolition of shops by Railway Station
Traders situated adjacent the Nigeria Railway Station in Jos, the Plateau State Capital on Monday came out in their numbers to peacefully protest the alleged planned demolition their shops by the management of the station.
The traders said the planed demolition was against a valid court order halting any attempt at dislodging them from their business area pending the determination of the suit filed by the traders against the Nigeria Railway Station.
Addressing journalists, Chairman of the traders at the market, Rabiu Muhammad, argued that none of them is trading close to the railway
He noted that they legally occupied the shops more than twenty years ago, as the land was leased to them by the Railway Authority some years back.
He said, “It is the railway people that give us the building permission. We got building permit from Jos Metropolitan Development Board (JMDB), in the last twenty years. We believe that some management staff of the railway are trying to dislodge us for their interests.”
“The place where the train is moving is far away from where we are trading. All the structures erected here followed due process. Nobody erected it illegally. They are the ones that gave us permission and the papers to occupy the shops are from the Nigeria Railway Association”, he added.
The market chairman further told journalists that they have filed a suit and secured an injunction, ordering the management to halt the planed eviction and demolition.
“We went to court to seek for intervention, but still they violated the court order and demolished some of our properties. They are now targeting more than 400 shops to demolish,” he said.
Also speaking, Charity Okorapo, a trader in the market said, “what is happening here is too much. They are driving us while we are paying. This place was just a bush, but we used our hands and cleared the place some 20 years ago. After that, we begin to pay money every year because the place has been leased to us. Let them leave us to do our business.”
However, when contacted on the development, the Spokesman of the Railway Station in Jos, Adamu Muhammad, declined comment to journalists, saying he was not authorised to speak on the matter.
Jos traders protest planned demolition of shops by Railway Station
