| 48 hours to Sallah
Rams, rams everywhere
…When will the buyers come?
By TESSY IGOMU
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
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Rams on display at Alaba Rago Market
Photo: THE SUN PUBLISHING
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TESSY IGOMU, who was at the Alaba Rago Market in Lagos, reports
that this year’s Eid-el-Kabir might be low keyed. Acrid
odour of animal waste and urine mixed with human sweat hung
thickly in the air. Bleating goats and rams stubbornly respond
to bashing from cow dealers as they are herded into stalls
scattered around the vast dung-filled field.
Squeaks from chickens and guinea fowls could be heard over
banters and haggling of traders and buyers.
Welcome to Alaba Rago, a unique cattle market located a short
distance from the Lagos State University (LASU) along the
Lagos-Badagry Expressway. This market, reputed to be the largest
in West Africa, is home to various breeds and sizes of goats,
rams and cows, which are first brought there before being
distributed to other parts of the city.
Over the years, the market which kicked off with just three
cattle dealers has become the home of cattle as its patronage
cuts across the states up to the neighbouring Benin Republic.
With barely 48 hours left for Muslims all over the world to
celebrate this year’s Eid-el-Kabir, you would have expected
that the 35-year-old cattle market would be bursting at the
seams with human and vehicular activities. But it is a far
cry from such expectations as no excitement associated with
the last minute shopping for rams, a must have in every Muslim
home for the Sallah celebration, is noticeable. In place of
the hustling and bustling are gloomy faces of expectant cattle
dealers scanning the horizon for potential buyers.
Along the length and breadth of the market, traders sit in
twos and threes, idling away the time, while others lounge
lazily in their sheds in anticipation of prospective buyers’arrival.
To non-Muslims, the only indicator that Sallah is around the
corner is the sight of various sizes of rams tied to the front-yard
of Muslim homes.
Days preceding Eid-el-Kabir are usually the period for ‘delinquent’
teenagers, even adults, to bask in the euphoria of having
their rams tagged ‘champions’ after head-butting
other rams in the area to submission.
But all of that is missing at Alaba Rago market that should
be a beehive of activities at this time of the year. This,
no doubt, indicates that this year’s celebration would
be low keyed as the prospect of having a lump of well spiced
ram meat on any dish might be elusive.
Even though Alaba Rago is the first and biggest cattle market
in Lagos State, it is at this festive period enjoying a low
patronage.
As trucks from the northern parts of the country berth at
the market, it now seems that their consignments offloaded
into various sheds just occupy space. There are no buyers.
“It has been terrible for us all this while. We have
not experienced this type situation before. There is no money,’
lamented Alhaji Yinusa Maihata through an interpreter, as
he tends his rams.
According to the Kano State-born cattle dealer, the number
of trucks bringing rams to the market has reduced drastically,
owing to the present downturn in the economy.
He notes that during the last year’s Sallah celebration,
he brought in 10 trailers of ram but this year only two came
in.
Alhaji Maihata, however, informs that despite the cash crunch,
people are sure of getting rams at very affordable prices.
Most of the dealers, while speaking with Daily Sun, were worried
about recouping their money after investing heavily to transport
rams to Lagos. The development has forced some of them to
reduce prices of their rams, almost selling at a loss.
“Even though we have reduced our prices to make it affordable,
people are still not coming. We are not seeing customers,”
Alhaji Rabiu, another dealer, complains bitterly.
Pulling rams one at a time by their horns to indicate their
prices, the downcast cattle dealer informs that in order not
to lose all his investments entirely, animals not sold will
be returned to the north.
“Look, a ram sold for N50, 000 last year, now sells
at N40, 000. I sold this one for N120, 000 last year but now
it is N100, 000. For us in this section, last year we got
up to 20 trucks of rams before Sallah but bad road and high
cost of diesel has reduced the consignment to 10.” He
is optimistic, however, that buyers would still storm the
market to clear their stocks.
For Alhaji Umoru Sokoto, the Seriki of Alaba Rago cattle market,
the low patronage recorded in 2009 is the worst in the history
of the market. Recalling how himself and two other cattle
sellers were ejected from Alaka at Ijora to Alaba Suru and
finally allocated the present site at Alaba Rago through the
help of the late Alhaji Shehu Musa Yar’adua, he decried
government’s neglect of the market.
“We developed this market ourselves. Up till now, no
meaningful development has been carried out here. There is
no potable water, electricity supply is zero and the market
is marshy even though we refill it every time,” he speaks
in smattering English.
The seriki agrees with his fellow cattle dealers in the market
that sales have been very low this year, noting that the situation
has given him sleepless nights.
“We have not seen this type of thing before. By this
time last year, close to one million rams were brought to
this market. By that time, there was no space for people to
pass because every place was filled with rams, even the expressway.
But now people don’t have money. Bad roads have not
helped us at all. This is the worst government I have seen”,
he further lamented.
Even those selling animal feed were not immune to low sales
in the market.
“Market no dey since morning. Na only people wey dey
sell for here dey buy our market,” bemoaned Sule Gambo.
But the sellers are not losing hope. The optimism that Muslims
would still storm the market for last minute shopping for
rams is rife in the market. And so, the sellers have continued
to wash and feed their cattle in anticipation of last minute
buyers.
Even the masara (corn) seller and mai sai (Hausa tea hawker)
share this belief.
In the words Alhaji Umoru Sokoto, perhaps, it is only the
wealthy in the society that may really celebrate this time
around.
“Allah always makes provision for His own. Anyone that
comes to the market is sure to get very cheap rams to perform
their religious obligations”, he assures.
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