Why we closed the Panteka Market in Abuja – FCT Police boss

The Federal Capital Territory Police Commissioner, CP Olatunji Disu, has said the command closed the Panteka International Market in Dei-Dei, a suburb of Abuja, to guarantee adequate screening of scrap sellers at the market.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, CP Disu decried the persistent scavenging theft of manhole covers and other public and private infrastructure.
According to him, to properly profile the scrap merchants, a joint security team visited the shops of the scrap dealers and found various stolen products.
Consequently, he said that scavengers are no longer permitted to scavenge on Abuja’s streets, and they are now only allowed to dump outside of the city centre.
Any scavenger or person found violating the restriction would be detained and charged, he said.
To retrieve stolen manhole covers and other public amenities from scavengers, a joint task force led by FCT Minister Nyesom Wike had raided scrap merchants’ stores throughout the FCT.
The Panteka International Market is to be shut for two weeks.