Governor Alex Otti has reaffirmed that traders currently operating in Ariaria International Market and Ekeoha Market, Aba, will not be displaced as the state government pushes ahead with its ongoing upgrade of the two commercial hubs.
The assurance was given on Thursday, the 12th of February, 2026, at the Michael Okpara Auditorium when the governor received members of the National Executive Council of the National Association of Nigerian Traders.
Otti stressed that shop owners already occupying spaces in the markets would enjoy priority consideration once the remodelling is completed. He explained that he had given firm directives to ensure that no legitimate trader is sidelined in the allocation process.
According to him, “What we call first right of refusal will be given to existing shop owners. It is only when you elect that you don’t want your shop that it could be sold to somebody else, and that instruction is sacrosanct. Nobody can go against it. Anybody that goes against it is just taking a risk.
“If I find out that people who had shops were not given their right of first refusal, I will reverse whatever they have done.”
The governor added that the new structures under construction would be sufficient to accommodate both current traders and prospective shop owners.
Addressing concerns about affordability, Otti said his administration had partnered with financial institutions to ease the burden on traders who may struggle to pay for the remodelled spaces. He acknowledged prevailing economic challenges nationwide and said measures had been put in place to cushion the effect.
Because we understand the economic circumstances in the entire country, we have made arrangements with two or three banks.
“Just in the unlikely event that existing shop owners are unable to pay for the new shops, those banks will provide some soft accommodation for the shop owners so that you wouldn’t lose your shop, just because you didn’t have liquidity at that time.
“So, you only lose your shop if you don’t want it because if it is that you don’t have money, we have made arrangements where you can get money. So, we have made those arrangements.
“Now, what I found out is that some people want to turn themselves into developers. It is not going to work. You can’t give what you don’t have. Because if we allow you to develop the shops, you will still go and look for somebody that will do it,” Otti said.
He maintained that traders would not be allowed to handle construction themselves, noting that his government would not compromise on building standards or project quality.
Otti also directed officials overseeing the project to keep traders properly informed, emphasising transparency and fairness in the process.
He advised them, “Please communicate what we are doing. This is not a government that will be happy when people are not happy. This is a government that wants to ensure that our people are happy. Our people are taken care of. Our people are not cheated.
“Nobody can be cheated under my watch. It will not happen. So, Mr. President, I guess that’s what the issue is,” Otti concluded.
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Earlier, the National President of the National Association of Nigerian Traders, Ken Ukoha, who led the chairmen of Ariaria International Market and Ekeoha Market, along with other executives from across the country, applauded the governor’s efforts in revitalising Abia’s markets.
He noted that reports of transformation in the state had reached traders nationwide.
“We heard some stories that Abia has changed. We heard that good things have started flowing in Abia.
“We heard that the markets where we were suffering before, suffering with floods, suffering of dilapidation, poor road networks, that scared away those who used to come from other West African countries to buy goods from Abia and from other markets have been put in order.
“We have come to see things ourselves. In the last two days, we have gone round and seen the giant strides and want to say, thank you.
“We also heard that you brought in technocrats, not politicians. We heard that you brought in somebody in charge of ease of doing business.”
While commending the administration’s strides, Ukoha appealed for trader involvement in the redevelopment process, expressing fears that some members might otherwise lose their spaces in the reshuffling.