Abuja arts and craft artisans petition Buhari over harassment
Traders and artisans in the Abuja Arts and Crafts Village have petitioned President Muhammadu Buhari over what they called constant harassment by the leadership of the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC). The petition dated February 5, and signed by the President of the African Arts and Cultural Heritage Association Nze Kanayo Chukwumeze and […]
Traders and artisans in the Abuja Arts and Crafts Village have petitioned President Muhammadu Buhari over what they called constant harassment by the leadership of the National Council for Arts and Culture (NCAC).
The petition dated February 5, and signed by the President of the African Arts and Cultural Heritage Association Nze Kanayo Chukwumeze and Board of Trustees chairman, Alhaji Mustapha Kidama; urged President Buhari and to restrain NCAC director
general Otunba Segun Runsawe from using police officers to harass them and scare away tourists from the market.
They said that since the December 11, 2017, fire incident that razed down 36 shops and reportedly destroyed N400 million worth of goods in the market under questionable circumstances, the NCAC boss failed to visit this market until last Saturday when he stormed the market with a seven truckload of policemen.
“On arrival, the DG hastily summoned us and demanded that we should vacate this facility from Monday and that a renovation work on the affected shops would commence immediately and last for about two to three months,” the artisans said.
The traders who have been having a running battle with Runsawe since his appointment, said they believe “this is a hatchet plan to realize a failed long ambitious of taking over our allocated shops.”
The artisans said the NCAC leadership had painted the arts village in black before various security agencies all in an effort to have his way.
“Just last week, he took me along with our secretary Shuaibu Lawal to the headquarters of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over an allegation of extorting money, just because we solicited the assistance of some foreign embassies who happened to be friends of such markets, to aid us in rehabilitating the affected shops, similar to what they have done to the sister of this market along the Abuja Airport road, when a similar incidence happened to them.
They said the association’s bank account with about N1 million given to them by the chairman of the Abuja Municipal Area Council has been frozen “after we have been made to spend a night in the EFCC custody while the case is still ongoing.”
The artisans said the DG of NCAC has locked their pedestrian gates since last year scaring away customers and tourists despite a subsisting court order. “The DG of NCAC and the Abuja police command have refused to comply with the order of the FCT High Court, presided by Justice A.S. Umar, and dated December 19, 2017,” artisans said.
Attempts to seek reaction of Chief Runsawe for three consecutive days over the matter were not successful. When our reporters contacted the office of the NCAC on Tuesday, the DG’s media assistant, Charles Nwam said: “the proper thing to do is get across to the DG, I suggest you come over to the office and talk to the DG because I can’t give information on such lengthy issues. So, tomorrow when I get to the office we will schedule a time to meet with the DG.”
But Runsawe’s spokesperson didn’t answer his calls on Wednesday. But when he finally did on Thursday, Mr Nwam said “the DG is unavailable because he is occupied with the preparation of the upcoming Ladies Open Golf tournament scheduled to start on Friday.”