Kwara Government has in the early hours of Thursday shut down the Mandate market, in Ilorin due to non-compliance with the environmental law.
The State Commissioner for Environment, Mallam Shehu Usman directed that the market should be shut down after several warnings to the market leaders, following a violation of environmental law.
He said, “We decided to close the market after several meetings with market leaders and the Ministry in charge, on the need to adhere to the environmental law strictly.
“They turned deaf ears to all our warnings and we still reminded them severally of the need to clean their environment and evacuate the refuse which may cause an outbreak of epidemics in the state.
“To our dismay, there is no compliance to the environmental law and this warranted our actions today,” the Commissioner explained.
Usman said that the action taken was enough warning to all other markets located in the state, to desist from violating environmental laws.
He threatened that the ministry would not have any option than to close down erring markets.
The commissioner therefore reiterated the commitment of the present administration to sustain a clean and hygienic environment and ensure healthy living of Kwara residents.
Geeky Nigeria reports that after several hours of closure, the market was however reopened, following the intervention of some stakeholders in the state.
The market leaders therefore promised to comply with environmental laws.
