PHOTO: Two of the frustrated Omega Marters waiting for the government to relocate people selling @ Redlight
By Alphonso George Devine Kalama
Scores of vendors in the Omega Market have expressed frustration over the CDC government’s failure to vacate sellers who continue to do business at the Red Light in the Paynesville suburb of Monrovia.
Some Omega marketers, who heeded government’s order to relocate from the Redlight months ago, say this has continued to keep buyers away from the newly constructed large Omega Market, which is farther away from the Redlight and would prefer to just stop at the Redlight to purchase their goods.
They are expressing dissatisfaction over what they called, the government’s inability to clear people currently selling in the Redlight area where a major road construction is taking place.
The aggrieved Omega Market vendors expressed their grievances to reporter earlier this week, saying that they are presently challenged with the division created by the sellers themselves.
The sellers are calling on the Weah’s administration to do more in evacuating sellers that have gone back to the Redlight area.
Some however, threatened to join their colleagues in resuming businesses to red light if the government through the Liberia Marketing Association (LMA) refuse to get rid of those that are violating the president’s instruction.
Explaining to reporter was one a used shoes sellers Mr. Patrick T. Keyon who mentioned that his business is at the verge of failing due to the lack of customers since their relocation in July of 2021.
“Our monies are spoiling and no customer coming, I had some goods in the whir house in Red Light when they were trying to relocate us, about six barrow everything spoil, so if the government cannot take stance against those that are in red light to bring them, we will go back to Red Light” he said.
Also speaking was one of the businesswomen Alice T. Tucker who expressed that the government should be clear as to where the market should be instead of keeping the majority of the population in red Light which is causing serious embarrassment for their business.
“If the people want us to go back in red Light, let them just say let everybody go back Red Light and if they want us to sell in omega, let them say we should sell in Omega. They should not share the market because it is bringing problem to our businesses and making us to lose” she added.
Meanwhile a rice seller madam Sophy Korluyon, added that the work of the LMA over the past time is just to collect ticket fees and their Marketing association ID Cards process but has not been able to look into the concerns of the sellers.
“We’re taking the ID cards but nothing is going on, nobody buying from us so I don’t know how they want us to live,” she said in a frustrating tone.
It can be recorded that the government of Liberia through the Liberia Marketing Association on July 6, 2021 reached a decision to demolish and relocate the Redight market to the 14 Gobachop market in the Omega Community.
The demolition of the market structures in Red Light led to the assignment of security officers in making sure that violent sellers keep away.
But as it stands, Red Light is now overcrowded with sellers that have return from the omega market which is impeding the businesses of the people who are currently selling at Omega.