The Cross River State government has moved to legalise hawking in the state
Governor Ben Ayade made this known during an interaction with newsmen in his office in Calabar.
He disclosed that he has sent a Hawkers’ Right Bill to the State House of Assembly.
Ayade said it was insensitive for a government to ban hawking without any alternative.
“I have just sent the Hawkers’ Right Bill to the House of Assembly, to provide a right for hawking,” he said.
“You cannot tell a man not to sell his goods because he does not have money to rent a store. And you tell the man not to steal?
“Just provide a regulatory framework; there should be reflective outfits, there should be a minimum age of 18 to hawk, you will have a time frame when you come out so that you don’t constitute nuisance.
“But to prohibit hawking is to tell a man I don’t want to give you food, and I don’t want you to steal. It is unfair.
“They have right to seek and determine how they chose to live within the ambits of the law,” the governor said.
Ayade pointed out that “Cross River would be the first state that would officially recognize hawking.
He said: “The core mandate of a leader should be the social security of his people.
“If a man choses to hawk, if you are government that is sensitive and understands the real principle and objective of the law, then you will know that the hawker has a right.
“Governance is about how you protect the weakest in the society and that is why even with the way things are, Cross River is still doing tax exemption for the poor.”
The governor explained that the expansion of his new government by engaging about 800 appointees was deliberate to ensure many people were empowered financially.
He announced that he was going to announce 300 more appointees in the coming week.
Ayade said he would rather spend four years paying salaries to reduce hunger and quit as governor than spend money on projects and politicians.
The governor also said the Presidential System adopted from America was not the best in running the country.