When locals in Yobe’s Ngalda market speak

When locals in Yobe’s Ngalda market speak

By: Yahaya Wakili

For the residents of Ngalda in Yobe State, Northeastern Nigeria, Monday is a significant day. This was due to the fact that Mondays are market days, when both locals and visitors from neighboring states gather to trade. When the market was first formed in 1981, local leaders and Imams prayed fervently to keep it moving forward. The market is now referred to as an international market because it draws visitors from nearby nations as well. Ngalda Market is still one of the least violent in existence today. There have never been any reported conflicts between vendors.

According to Alhaji Ahmadun Kano Wakilin Hakimin Ngalda, Ngalda Market was on the boundary between the states of Yobe and Gombe and had a long and honorable history and purpose. First of all, we gave thanks to Almighty Allah that our Governor Mai Mala Buni has returned for a second term, as he delegated the people to come and call for his second term, and the people of Ngalda answered the call because they saw the difference for so many reasons.

“First of all, we won’t forget it because Governor Mala has returned for a second term. Second, His Excellency, we continue to urge you to start building the modern market in Ngalda because we know how much you care about the people of Ngalda. As a result, we continue to urge you to start building the modern market in Ngalda during your second term,” Alhaji Ahmadun Kano said. “Thirdly, there are numerous issues in Ngalda, but the three biggest ones are the lack of drainage in the town, the high population there without any healthcare facilities, and the lack of a hospital.

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“Additionally, there are many children in Ngalda, and H.E. has urged us to send them to school so they can learn, but there is only one Government Day Secondary School; we would like His Excellency to expand the school because there are many students and it cannot accommodate them all. We are pleading with Governor Mai Mala Buni to take our issues into account when he returns for a second term because if he did things to us, he would have left Yobe to us. His Excellency Governor Mai Mala Buni stayed behind because he left us with a legacy and a history that will live on in our memories.

“As we mentioned earlier, we share a border with Gombe. Our neighbors used to tell us that if we were to say that the Ngalda International Market was built by the Gombe State Government and that it is now an International Market, many people would travel great distances to visit it. “

Ngalda Market has a long history. According to Mallam Audu Liman, Chairman of the Fadama Farmers Association in the Fika local government area, our leaders constantly pray for the market to advance. God answers their prayers; God protects the market from anything that would cause a setback to the market; and everyone who comes to this market will get his own share.

“Since we are near the border with Gombe and any market like this near a border is likely to receive government attention,” Mallam Audu Liman “revealed that there is no market in Fika Local Government or Yobe State that can be compared to Ngalda Market. Instead, the market needs to be modernized. We hope that His Excellency Governor Mai Mala Buni will keep his word since he promised during his first term to take action on the Ngalda market. Since the government is now reaping greater benefits from this market, we also hope that His Excellency will look into our concern regarding the development of a modern Ngalda market.”

The secretary of the Ngalda central market, Mallam Idriss Alhaji Bomai, also spoke. He stated that during His Excellency Governor Mai Mala Buni’s first term, he promised to build modern markets in seven towns of the state, of which Ngalda is one, and he has already built in six of them. As such, in this second term, we are remaining with His Excellency to fulfill his promise to build Ngalda’s own, and we anticipate that.

Ngalda Market

In his opinion, if this modern market had been built, 90% of the problems facing the Ngalda people would have been resolved. We pray to Almighty Allah that Governor Mai Mala Buni will successfully complete his term because the current market lacks drainage systems and there is no road leading into it in the event of heavy rain. The secretary added that between Monday and Tuesday, 30 vans with animals from Ngalda Market were loaded.

People from the South-South, South-East, South-West, Lagos, Aba, and even from our neighboring countries are coming to Ngalda to buy livestock, and the market is peaceful, and our leaders are praying for the market, according to Mallam Musa Abdulhamid, the chairman of livestock (Sarkin Tiken Shanu). In addition, we want the government to provide us with a loading place (Kara) in the market, as we are finding it extremely difficult to load the cows there because the current loading place is an old modern; as a result, we want the government to modernize the market. He made an appeal to Governor Mai Mala Buni.

The market is known as the market of settling liabilities because if you come to Ngalda market with your liabilities, if you return home, you will be able to pay off your debts because you will receive the money for settling your liabilities from Ngalda market by the Grace of God. Also, the people of Ngalda are proud of Ngalda market, according to Alhaji Gambo Mamman Ngalda, Secretary Market Grains Ngalda.

“Therefore, we are pleading with Governor Mai Mala Buni to build the new market he promised to build in Ngalda.” He continued, “We also thank Governor Mai Mala Buni for building the road from Ngalda to Gujba, which is being built day and night. Once the road is finished, there will be no need to travel through Potiskum on the way to Maiduguri from Ngalda, so Governor Buni has left us with a legacy and a piece of history.”

In addition, Mallam Muhammed Sani Babayo Sarkin Tiken Awaki stated that the Ngalda cattle market has been operating for over 40 years, is constantly growing, and is one of the markets that generates income for both the state and local governments. Since the market operates year-round, whether it is dry or rainy, there are four main issues that are causing us concern in our cattle market.

One: The market has to be fenced in because it is now too open to do so, even for security reasons. Two: The cattle market has no drainage systems. Three: If it rains, there is nowhere to park or stay because there is no temporary shade. The government should increase the market because it is too small and crowded for cattle.

When locals in Yobe’s Ngalda market speak