Inside Abuja’s confusing car market

While speaking with Sunday Trust, one of the car dealers at the Gwarimpa section of the busy Kubwa road who gave his name as Abubakar Tanko, opined that he was forced to relocate his trade to the Kubwa express way when, in the first quarter of 2007, he and his colleagues were forced by the […]

While speaking with Sunday Trust, one of the car dealers at the Gwarimpa section of the busy Kubwa road who gave his name as Abubakar Tanko, opined that he was forced to relocate his trade to the Kubwa express way when, in the first quarter of 2007, he and his colleagues were forced by the then minister of the federal capital city, Malam Nasir el-Rufai, out of the city centre. “I have been operating in this part of the city since 2007, although I was formerly at Garki, Area 7 before we were forced to leave by the former minster who accused us of encroaching on the city’s green areas.”

Asked whether his present location affected his sales in any way, Tanko explained that “since we moved here in 2007 our sales records have reduced, compared to the period when we were in the city centre. There are more customers in town than this present location. Besides, a lot of people get to see our products on display in town than where we are now. But even at that we still make our sales because a lot of people are getting to know that we are no longer in town, so they come all the way here to patronise us.”

While commenting on the present sales record in view of the prevailing global economic crunch, Tanko said that “definitely the economic crisis is affecting our sales, especially as it relates to the fluctuating exchange rate. For instance, the car we used to buy at the rate of seven hundred and fifty naira is now going for as high as N900,000 above. So invariably, we had to increase the prices, which has slowed down the sales. For instance, I used to sell an average of two to three cars weekly, but now, I barely sell two cars in three weeks. It is really bad.”

However, for Malam Adamu Damisa of Millennium Motors, the sales record is not bad, especially considering the fact that the present location does not expose them to their primary clients. According to him, “since the former minister drove us out of Abuja town since May 2007, we have been struggling with sales fluctuation. Besides the sales issue, another worrisome factor for us is the proposed dualisation of the road which is threatening to displace us again. Although when we left the city centre, we were promised that we would be relocated to Tunga Maje, along Gwagwalada-Zuba road where the former minster said he would settle us permanently, but almost four years after, we are yet to hear from the FCT authorities.”

While corroborating Malam Damisa’s view, Ikechukwu Modebei, who also operates an auto market opposite the federal housing junction in Kubwa, expressed, fears that when construction work on the proposed dualisation of the Kubwa road commences, “we would be displaced and be looking for where to put our cars. What we are saying is that the FCT should put in place structures that would enhance our trade, like the development of the permanent site in Tunga Maje, provision of banks and security post.”

But while maintaining a different position, Malam Aminu Sale who operates along the express road informed this medium that “when we were asked to move to Tunga Maje in 2007, some of us protested and our efforts yielded some results, as former FCT minister Aliyu Modibbo promised to relocate us to a location between Deidei and Zuba. He was about to implement some of his promises when he was suddenly dropped as minster. For now, our fate lies in the present administration to kindly assist in giving us a proper place because we are operating dangerously on the side of a busy express way.”

It could be recalled that the former administration of Aliyu Modibo   had earmarked a two hundred-hectare parcel of land for Abuja car dealers, with the hope that such moves would go a long  way in boosting the economic base of the Federal Capital Territory. Part of the proposed permanent site was billed to be utilized as car market, while the other half was to be developed into a dry port terminal where all containers would offload their cargo for distribution to the entire northern states.