Zuba Fruits Market: Here, dirt, chaos are commodities also

The word market brings varying connotations to mind, prominent among them is the picture of stalls and kiosks, or shops arranged orderly with buyers and sellers attending to their business transactions.
At the Zuba Fruits Market however, you get a different idea of what a market is, or the reality that markets could come in various forms. Based on the traditional structure of a market, Zuba fruits market violates that traditional definition and notion. To navigate through the Zuba Fruit Market, you may need to dispose of your fashionable shoes or sandals for basic and practical rubber shoes, mules or flip-flops. This is because of the bad and dilapidated condition of the roads. This condition is made worse during the rainy season.
This Abuja mega fruit market is situated in the outskirts of the city. The market started as a small informal rallying point for sundry sales during the Abacha regime over 20 years ago. Presently, it has over 3,700 operators whose daily lifestyle is haphazard approach to business. But they know disorder won’t pay in their deals and therefore have organised themselves under the National Fruits Sellers Association of Abuja (NAFTA).
Since its inception, the market has progressed to occupy two sections – from the Zuba roundabout to the Lagos park with a high demand for fresh fruits.  There are customers that come from Abuja and the neighbouring states. According to Chief Uchechukwu Elechukwu, a fruits dealer who hails from Orumba South Local Government area of Anambra State: “Customers come from Minna, Lambata, Izom, Agaie, Tafa, Mararaba, Masaka, Keffi, Sabon-Wuse, Lafia, Gwagwalada, Abaji and all other parts of Abuja, Niger State and its environs to patronize us.”
Farmers and bulk dealers bring goods to the market and there are available buyers that help distribute the products to customers and other dealers.
Elechukwu said: “We get our goods from some other parts of Nigeria, even far from the FCT. For instance, ube (diacryiodis edulis) come from Ogoja in Cross River State, oranges come from Benue and Yoruba land like Ondo State, pineapples are gotten from Uromi while pawpaw is supplied from Benin.
“This business has remained lucrative, and I have been in this for long. I am a member of the NAFSA here in Abuja. I love this business and have been in it for the past 14 years. I deal on all kinds of fruits depending on its availability in season and at my disposal such as watermelon, oranges, pear, pineapples, plantains, bananas.
We are the agents and dealers, people bring to us and we dispense. In fact, I have achieved a lot in this business.”
From Abuja Metro findings, the union that manages the market, NAFSA has invested creativity and management ability to make the market friendlier for business.
In the words of Chief Elechukwu: “The association made the effort to put this place in this order. But for that organisational intervention, we wouldn’t have been here. A lot of dirt and mud would have weighed down on the market and stopped it from running but NAFSA has been doing a tremendous work to ensure order is part of the business here. They have invented means of surfacing the market space with gravels, sand and other items to make sure the mud and dirt don’t grind the business.”
With the millions of naira volume of business that thrives here everyday, even part time sellers have a place for their livelihood in the market. Mrs Gloria Mgeke told Abuja Metro that: “I struggle to make ends meet by coming to this market for some business when I can to support my salary of N15,000 per month. I have seven children and the salary is barely enough for us. I work as a cleaner in a general hospital in Abuja and we are treated badly.”
With a lot of visible challenges in the market, it would not be wrong to say that government does not treat the market like a place that is important to the economy of the society. Mr Ifeanyi Uzosike, a coconut dealer who hails from Mbano, Imo State and has been in business for over 15 years said “right now, the problem we have in the market is a major renovation. When there is rain, it stops the customers from coming. We have laid our complaints with the government several times and they deny us any attention or action. But I believe that sooner or later, they will relocate or structure this market in a conducive way for us, and then business would be better and more lucrative.”
Salihu Abdulrahman also spoke with Abuja Metro and said: ‘I sell fruits in baskets. I am from Kogi State and I sell corn, ube (pear), avocado, oranges and tangerines. I have been here for almost five years; I thank God for the successful years of business here. I have found steady sustenance for my family all these years through the market.”
Abdulrahman is just a middleman to the farmers and wholesale dealers that bring the fruits from the sources. He explained that: ‘’People bring fruits and we help them sell. People from Abuja also come and buy. There are buyers that come from as far as Kaduna, Nasarawa, Kano.
On a normal business day, he revealed that a basket of avocado goes for N3000. This is because we are out of the season. Such measure of ube (pear) costs between N2000 and N3000 per basket, depending on the size.
Chizoba Okeagu popularly known as ‘’I dey ring’’ who hails from Oguta in Imo State emphasised the need for government to intervene in elevating the standard of the market, which will also help to reduce poverty in Nigeria, with a better atmosphere for their business transactions.
‘’I don’t sell fruits, but vends foods to dealers and customers and I have been in this business for over 11 years. I am sure that if government can just intervene and make this market, better, it will better story for us and the larger society. As you can see, everywhere is dirty, so we need the support and intervention of government to have an enabling environment.’’
Also speaking, Mercy Ologe, a middleman seller said she has been in this business for over four years. “Our greatest joy will be walking on a tarred ground to do business in this market, government should come to our aid to assist us provide structures and other amenities.”
Another dealer, Dorothy Uwaeze has sold plantain in the market for over seven years said, and is happy with the pace of business, but would desire more patronage and better market environment through government assistance.
NAFSA, the organising body of the market confirmed to Abuja Metro the same lamentations of the traders and dealers. The leadership affirmed that there hasn’t been much response to the plight of the market. The environmental officer, Faisal Ibrahim from Bauchi State who has been there for 13 years reiterated the same sad tales that: “We wrote two letters to the minister asking for assistance to make the market better for business. This is no doubt one of the largest markets in Abuja, we even contacted the area council chairman to help us talk to the minister on how he can assist us. We want them to come and see the condition of the market, because the market has no roads, no light and other facilities. We don’t think we would be asking for too much that government should provide us cold rooms and special storages to preserve the fruits and minimize wastage and make the entire economy better.”
He further stated that the bad conditions of the road and the poor arrangement of the market causes a congestion of people who come to the market in the early hours.
Abuja Metro was unable to reach the chairman, Alhaji Nura Mohammed who was not in the office at the time of visit. The secretary of the complaints department, Hassan Kulah held that a contract has been signed recently to begin the renovation of road.
The officer also apologised to Abuja Metro for the embarrassment the team received in the hands one of their dealers as the call of our duty. The trader had flared up, taking his protest against taking photos in the market to an unpleasant level.
Reason for hostility
The officer in his apology explained that: “There was a time we had an issue with the other market concerning the burning of the plantain head used to make sabulun solo, the local black soap. The state minister used one week to observe the market and helped settle the matter. That is why we became sceptical about who comes here to take pictures of our activities.
We are sorry about the harassment. I believe it is just a minor challenge. I believe in your profession and what you can do. Let us put aside all form of tribalism because it will not help our country grow, especially in the time of our challenges. Let us pray instead for our country. Religion should not be by reading the Koran alone. It should be by practice. I am not the chairman; I am only the secretary for complaints department. The chairman is on official duty in Gwagwalada to invite people to evacuate the waste. We have already signed a contract to start the construction of the market. We have also sent a letter to the Minister of the FCT. We have payed up to N300,000 to someone just to see the minister without much success.”