A video shared on X by user Chief Ikukuoma shows traders marching through Lagos Trade Fair Market with placards, chanting "Chinese must go." One placard reads: "We are fighting for our rights. Chinese must leave the market of ASPMDA." Another protester says in the clip: "Omo, we are angry o, the Chinese people must go."
The protest, staged by a group of Igbo traders, targets Chinese manufacturers and retailers who sell goods directly in the same market where local wholesalers and retailers operate. The traders accuse the Chinese businesses of taking their customers by offering lower prices.
The group's chief speaker said the protest is not a call for Chinese nationals to leave Nigeria. "You have the right to stay in Nigeria, but you don't have the right to stay where we are doing business," he said. "You are a manufacturer; we are wholesalers and retailers. How do you bring your business to our doorstep and expect us to thrive? We cannot, because your prices are totally different from ours."
The speaker said the Chinese businesses have cut into local sales. "Our people are no longer selling; you are the one selling. You go to our customers and convince them to buy from you. Who are we going to sell our own to?"
The Lagos Trade Fair Market, also known as ASPMDA, is one of West Africa's largest markets for imported goods, electronics, and spare parts. It sits along the Lagos-Badagry Expressway and hosts thousands of traders, many of them Igbo.
The speaker stressed that the traders respect China and Chinese people. "Pls and pls, we respect China. China is a good country. You accommodate our people, and we accommodate you too, but pls you must respect our business arrangement," he said. "In China, our people don't sell like you, so you have to give us that respect and leave our market. You can go very far from here and establish your business."
The traders want Chinese manufacturers to stop retailing in the market and instead sell through local wholesalers and retailers. They argue that a manufacturer selling directly to consumers at factory prices makes it impossible for Nigerian traders to compete.
The protest comes amid growing tensions in Nigerian markets over the presence of foreign retailers. Chinese businesses have expanded their footprint in Lagos markets in recent years, selling everything from electronics to textiles and hardware at prices local traders say they cannot match.
The traders warned that they will escalate their action if their demands are not met. They urged the Chinese businesses not to dismiss the protest as an empty threat and said they would return to the authorities if the issue is not resolved.
Another video shared on X shows Igbo traders at ASPANDA going to the shops of Chinese retailers and telling them that once they finish selling their remaining goods, they will not be allowed to bring in any more products.
According to Pulse.ng.
