Govt to rebuild Alade Market with N6.9 billion

Notwithstanding the protest by over 500 shop owners, the Lagos State government has said there is no going back on the demolition and redevelopment of the popular Alade Market, Ikeja, Lagos, into a mega shopping mall.
 
The redevelopment, valued at the cost N6.9 billion, was scheduled to begin this week but for the fresh resistance by the shop-owners.
 
It was gathered that the contractor, Master Reality International Concepts Limited, is investing the sum N6.9 billion on the project under a 30-year Built-Own-and-Transfer, (BOT) concession.

But for the aggrieved shop-owners alleged to be frustrating efforts of the contractor, the redevelopment work had delayed since 2010.
 
It would be recalled that traders had some months ago staged a protest at the Lagos Assembly, against what they described as “illegal quit notice and relocation order” against some officials of the Ikeja Local Government Area, under whose control falls the one-stop market.   
 
But since the early hours of Sunday, the concessionaire forcibly deployed its men by shutting down the market and took possession to begin the redevelopment in accordance with the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that was signed in 2010.
 
The intervention of the Executive Secretary of Ikeja Local Government, Adekunle Adeokun led to the re-opening of the market as a 15-man committee had been set up to fashion out the relocation of the traders to a new place, which had been built for them besides Alade Market.
   
Adeokun, who spoke on behalf of the state government and the council, which approved the redevelopment of the market, said the redevelopment of the market into a mega mall was not negotiable, as the traders must be relocated soonest to pave way for the contractor to move to site.
   
He said that most of the traders kicking against the project were not the original shop owners and that the contractor had invested money on the project since five years ago and that since the money must be paid back, the project must be completed on time.
   
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Masters Reality International Concepts Limited, Lai Omotola said the company came to take possession of the property as early as 6am on Sunday in a bid to start work since the traders had been frustrating the project for long.