-MCC Police versus Vendors

They chase and seize their goods off the streets in reinforcement of a city ordinance that prohibits vendors from selling on sidewalks and in major streets. 

Goods seized are loaded on MCC security pickups and driven away, and allegedly, sometimes not accounted for, and if accounted for, a vendor pays a fine to reclaim his or her goods.

 Commerce authorities say the latest move to clear sellers off the sidewalks is to make the sidewalks passable and keep the streets clean.

Successive governments had imposed similar restrictions, but failed apparently because they provided no alternatives for the vendors.

A woman, whose goods and megaphone were seized, emotionally responded and hauled insults at the MCC officers as they drove away with her goods.

“Those criminals, calling themselves law enforcers, continue to steal our goods and take them to their houses to feed their families,” the angry woman alleged.

While others, on seeing the approaching officers, fled with their goods, others cqourageously tussled with them to save their goods from seizure.

As the tension between both sides escalates in the streets, there are mounting calls, asking the government to provide an alternative for the street sellers to do their business to support their families.

An investigation conducted by this Paper, has however revealed that major market buildings, such as Nancy B. Doe, Waterside, and Ma Juah, have spaces to accommodate additional sellers, but those spaces are inadequate to accommodate the growing number of sellers roaming the streets or selling on the sidewalks and in major streets.  

Street selling is not only a menace in Liberia, but a menace that also poses challenge to many countries mainly in the West African Region.

While the practice may be prevqqqalent  in African countries, it is also practiced in the developed World, but is properly controlled in a manner that sellers don’t block sidewalks and streets.