Osinbajo Urges For Peace Between Northern Traders, Southwest People, Says Sasha Represents Unity, Recent Mayhem Unfortunate

By AbuSatar Hamed

LAGOS – Vice President Yemi Osinbajo (SAN) has said that it’s unfortunate for the mayhem and tragic loss of lives at the Shasha market, Ibadan in the past few days.

Osinbajo made this comments by the Vice President on Sunday, February 14, 2021 in Lagos when reporters asked him about the situation in Ibadan. He had just paid a condolence visit to the Jakande family in Ilupeju.
He described Shasha Market as a melting  pot for traders bringing foodstuff from the North to the Southwest for decades.

His words, “For decades traders from the North have done business with their brothers from the Southwest  and  they have lived in peace  and even inter-married. Shasha is a place of unity.

“So when a disagreement arises between individuals or a criminal act is committed by one against the other we must ensure that we see it for what it is,  a criminal act, which must be punished according to law. Not an ethnic conflict.

“Every Nigerian has a constitutional right to live, work and enjoy their lives  in safety, peace under the law.”

The Vice President stated further, “It is the duty of government through the police and other law enforcement agencies to arrest and prosecute any person who commits a crime against a citizen of this nation. It is the role of the citizen to assist the police to identify the criminals.

“We must never take the law into our own hands, if we do we will be promoting chaos, and a breakdown of law and order, and all of us especially the most vulnerable amongst us, will be at risk.  I urge all community leaders to work together to preserve the brotherly co-existence that our people from different parts of the country have enjoyed in Shasha market for several decades.

“I commend the Governor Seyi Makinde for his swift and decisive action  and all the law enforcement agencies for their prompt intervention.”