THE owner of an Abuja-based Chinese supermarket that has been criticized for barring Nigerians and restricting entry to Chinese nationals has refuted claims that her store is only meant for a specific group of people.
She stated that her store is not a supermarket, but rather a retail shop dedicated to providing the basic requirements of her community.
Liu Bei revealed this in a personally signed statement submitted to newsmen today in Chinese and English, stating that she is afraid seeing so many people she does not know in front of her store.
Her outcry came after the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission issued a summons and threatened sanctions after sealing her store yesterday.
According to Punch’s reports on Sunday, the supermarket had introduced a contentious policy that restricted the entry to Chinese nationals alone, prohibiting Nigerians from shopping there.
This policy drew considerable outcry across numerous social media channels, as Nigerians expressed their dissatisfaction with the unequal treatment.
However, in her defense, Bei noted that she sells to residents, workers, and visitors who come to her store after visiting the office building, regardless of national origin.
According to her, the small retail shop is not a supermarket like other grocery stores and revealed plans to close the shop after downsizing operations in December 2023.
The statement read in full:
“My name is Liu Bei. I watched PUNCH’s news about Chinese supermarkets not allowing Nigerians to enter for shopping.
“Now there are a lot of people in front of my store who I don’t know where they come from. I feel scared and I want to explain something.
“My shop is in the Royal Choice Estate, Airport Road, Abuja. It’s a small retail shop, not a supermarket like SHOPRITE. I mainly sell things to community residents and people who work here. Sometimes some visitors will come to my store to buy something after visiting the company In the office building, regardless of nationality.
“Since December 2023, I downsized the operations of my shop and have been planning to close.
“I don’t discriminate against any Nigerians, I even have several local employees in my store and we have a good relationship. However, for safety reasons, the community has requirements for visitors, so not everyone can enter the community directly.
“I feel sorry for the altercation between the security guard and the visitor in the video. Two Nigerians did come to my store that day to buy something, and I sold to them.”