Both street hawkers, and buyers to be jailed in Lagos

The Lagos State Government has placed a total ban on street hawking in the state, threatening to jail both hawkers and buyers.

This was disclosed by the state Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode during a live television programme of TV Continental, TVC, on Friday, adding that the enforcement of the ban will be implemented in every part of the state.

According to Ambode, the renewed enforcement was in line with Section One of the Lagos State Street Trading and Illegal Market Prohibition Law 2003.

The governor, who sympathised with the family of a street hawker who was knocked down by an articulated truck while trying to evade arrest from officials of Kick Against Indiscipline, KAI, along Maryland Bus stop on Wednesday, said it was regrettable that the situation led to the destruction of public assets.

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He said:“It is not in our DNA to allow someone to just die by road accident or the way it happened in respect of the incident. But beyond the fact that we lost one person while crossing the road as a result of evading arrest by KAI officials, I need to tell Lagosians that over 49 buses were actually destroyed and it is costing us like almost N139m to put those buses back on the road.”

Continuing, Ambode said the state executive council has resolved to enforce the law, which makes hawkers and buyers liable of the offence.

“The issue is we need to enforce our laws because we already have a law in respect of that and then there is a clause in it which says the buyer and the seller are both liable and that we are going to fine them either N90, 000 or a six month jail term.

“What we are doing on traffic is that we are introducing new strategies to eliminate traffic, but Lagos, being a cosmopolitan city, you cannot totally eliminate it but now this is the case, in the next few days, you will see on the street of Lagos signs that will be warning you that buyers and hawkers should be aware that there are consequences.”

He further stated that the state government had also concluded plans to roll out a campaign to warn motorists and hawkers of the restrictions and the penalty for defaulters.

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