Hawkers, pirates storm burial venues

• Africcon News
  Africcon Report: Hawkers, pirates storm burial venues
  Africcon New Media – News
  
  From: Africcon Media – Nigeria
  
  Thursday’s burial ceremonies of the literary icon, Prof. Chinua Achebe, opened the doors for hundreds of hawkers, vendors and pirates to do brisk business with his works.
  
  They dominated every available space, brushing aside the heat, the dust and the massive crowd to make money.
  
  Even the pirated copies of latest book of Achebe, There was a Country, were all over the place as vendors, young maidens and all shades of people sold the books betwen N1,500 and N2,500.
  
  His other works like the legendary Things Fall Apart, Arrow of God, The Trouble With Nigeria, Anthills of the Savanna and A Man of the People, were also on display.
  
  In spite of the large presence of security agents and regulatory authorities, no effort was made to arrest the hawkers or to confiscate the pirated books they were hawking.
  
  There were also many emergency books done on Achebe, hurriedly published newspapers and brochures on the deceased, which were freely hawked around the burial venues.
  
  Some smart people made rosettes, badges, pinups and souvenirs and sold them at attractive prices.
  
  The wait-and-take photographers too were not left behind. They prodded everyone they could to pose for photographs, which they immediately printed for a little cash.
  
  The clan of hawkers did not appear worried about the main ceremonies going in the cathedral. When the church service was over, the train moved to the home of Achebe, his final resting place.
  
  Though, they were barred from entering the compound, the hawkers used the Abatete road, which had become overcrowded to continue with their business.