The Market Traders Association of Nigeria (MATAN) has appealed to the state and Federal Governments to release some of its members arrested during the #EndSARS protest which was hijacked by hoodlums.
The President of the association, Alhaji Jamilu Abbas, made the appeal while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in an interview in Abuja on Thursday.
Abbas said some traders, who were moving their goods from one part of the country to another to sell, were caught in between the crisis and were arrested and detained.
He noted that the plea became necessary because the detained traders were hardworking and contributing their quota to the economy of the country.
He, however, stated that the activities of hoodlums during the #EndSARS protest had caused a lot of havoc to members that were already affected by the impact of COVID-19 pandemic.
According to him, before the #EndSARS protest, the impact of COVID-19 pandemic has taken a lot of traders out of business.
The president, however, pleaded with the government to compensate the affected traders with a view to support them to bounce back to business.
Meanwhile, Abbas also enjoined the Federal Government to find a lasting solution to the plight of Nigerian traders in Ghana whose shops were destroyed while others were shut down.
He appealed to the Minister of Foreign Affairs not to relent efforts in resolving the misunderstanding between Nigerian traders and the Ghanaian authorities.
He emphasised the need for the Foreign Affairs Minister to sit with the Ghanaian Ambassador to Nigeria and have robust engagement with him with a view to resolve the matter once and for all.
The president noted that the action of Ghanaian authorities was not in conformity with ECOWAS treaty which allowed free trade among member countries.
He said Nigerians in Ghana should be allowed to do their lawful businesses as Ghanaians and other foreigners were allowed to carry out their legitimate business activities in the country without hindrance. (NAN)
