Business at Lira main market is back to normal after the Monday morning confrontations between street vendors and those operating along the streets, and walkways.
This morning, the disgrantled market vendors emptied their goods on the streets as a way of protesting the City Council’s failure to evict street vendors. This sparked off confrontations between the two groups, forcing police to deploy and use fire teargas to quell the situation.
Lira main market, which was temporarily closed by the authorities for fear of losing goods has now reopened and normal business resumed. According to Joseph Bakaleke the Lira City Division Police Commander, the market will remain open because there are people whose livelihood is generated from their sales in the market.
He called on the market vendors to focus on their business and leave the city authorities to deal with the street vendors. Adding that the market should be opened for business.
Bakaleke says security together with the City council technical team will meet the vendors to find a lasting solution to the street vending challenge.
Bazil Edwoku, the chairperson Lira Main Market Vendors’ Association confirms that most vendors transacting business on the streets are those with stalls in the market but they are just being stubborn.
He wondered why the City Council keeps telling them there is no money to remove the street vendors despite receiving lots of revenue from the them.
Meanwhile, Chris Odongo the chairperson Street Vendors Association, says that although his members are willing to leave the streets, they have no better place to go and the empty stalls inside the market have no entry points, which makes them inaccessible to customers.
