Yoruba vs Hausa: Why we won’t accept relocation of Shasa market—Traditional ruler

Chief Amusa Akinade Ajani, the Baale of Shasha Village, on Friday said the community would not allow the government or individuals to move the troubled Shasha market to another location in the state.

He said truly there was a problem and it had been resolved between the two aggrieved groups.

The traditional chief who spoke with reporters at his Shasha residence in the Akinyele Local Government Area of Ibadan, the Oyo state capital, said he heard that Hausa traders had gone to Iroko in the same local government.

He said the community would accept that.

Iroko is one of the villages surrounding Ibadan.

Shasha market has been in the news in the past one week following a clash between Yoruba and Hausa communities, which led to the burning of houses and the killing of an unknown number of people.

The Baale of Shasha, while addressing traders in the market, pleaded with them to live peacefully with one another, saying Yoruba and Hausa people had been living peacefully for many years without any crisis.

He said, “When God created us, He didn’t identify anyone as Hausa, Igbo, or Yoruba. We are all one from the same parent. We are one. We have inter-marriages among the ethnic groups and we have children. Why can’t we live together in peace? The only difference among all the tribes is the language we speak but even with language differences, we have to be fair to each other.

“The government should help us to live in peace. The government can do it. This market has been in existence for more than 60 years, can somebody now say he wants to take it away from here? It is dangerous to take such a step. We cannot accept the relocation of the market because the issue has been resolved. Are those people who asked them to come to their village behind our woes? I keep wondering why they are calling them to come to their village. We are all in the same local government area. Governor should come and open the market, we are no more fighting.

“Hausa people can move freely in Shasha if he has nothing in mind, but those harbouring grudges against any ethnic group should not come to Shasha, even if he is a Yoruba man. We arey peace-loving people and we don’t encourage violence. The government should not encourage them to move this market elsewhere.

“Initially, some of the traders were giving us onions to sell and we used to remit money to them the following day.

At a point, they stopped it and convinced two other traders who were given us to stop it. Our people protested and I told them not to fight. I even told them never to mention my name if they embarked on any unholy fight. I don’t want any crisis in Shasha.

“Our people didn’t go against my order, if not that some of our Hausa friends believe in fighting rather than amicable resolution of the crisis. When your people killed a Yoruba man, I appealed to their family to be calm because even if they began to fight, it would not bring back the dead. But before we woke up the following day, they had started burning the houses in the market.”