Have you ever wondered why every military barrack and NYSC camp in Nigeria has a place called “mammy market”? This is the story of how Mammy Market came to have it’s name.
Mammy market is a place usually close to or inside a barracks where soldiers interact and buy their daily needs.
Mammy market was named after a woman called Mammy Ochefu who was born on April 10, 1941 in Otukpo Benue state.
She was married to Late Col. Anthony Aboki Ochefu, military Governor of defunct East-Central state, who at the time had just been posted to Abakpa in Enugu from Abeokuta. She began selling a local non-alcoholic beverage called “enyi” to support her family.
Due to complaints from various quarters about the flies that her enyi attracted, Mammy had to stop making and selling for about two weeks. But pressure from her enthusiastic customers inspired a Lieutenant Colonel to build her a kiosk.
Due to the nature of her husbands line of work as a military personnel, they had to move around very often.
Mammy would always open a kiosk to sell enyi wherever her husband was posted to, and she’d sell snacks the soldiers would love as well.
She recalls one of her favourite customers being President Muhhamadu Buhari who at the time was a 2 star general.
After the coup that overthrew General Yakubu Gowon, Anthony Aboki Ochefu, then a Colonel, was posted to East Central State as Military Governor.
So Mrs. Mammy Ochefu and her husband returned to Enugu as the First Family. Mrs. Mammy Ochefu incorporated a company, Mammy Market, in 1971 which was into haulage and trading.
Till date whenever a military barrack is built a mammy market is always built with it. Mammy market are also created in NYSC orientation camps.
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