From Ifeoma Ejiofor
The Anambra State Government has issued demolition notices to more than five hundred owners and occupiers of illegal, dilapidated, and unsafe structures in industrial town of Nnewi in Nnewi North LGA.
The planned demolition is part of Gov Charles Soludo’s urban renewal programme aimed at transforming the town.
The exercise, led by the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, marks the first phase of a comprehensive regeneration initiative designed to restore order, improve infrastructure, and reposition Nnewi as a modern industrial and commercial hub.
Affected structures include shanties erected beneath high-tension power lines, buildings constructed without approved setbacks, unauthorized developments, filling stations, hotels, and other decrepit structures considered hazardous to public safety and urban development.
The targeted locations span major corridors and strategic areas of the city, including the Nnewi Triangle axis, Hundred Foot Road, Post Office area, Anaedo Road, Igwe Orizu Road, Ezemewi Road, Nkwo axis, and sections of the Nnewi–Owerri Road right-of-way and also other major Trunk A road corridors in Otolo, Umudim, and Uruagu.
The Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Barr. Chijioke Oseloka Ojukwu, while speaking during the exercise, said the action is in line with Gov Soludo’s vision of building a cleaner, safer, and more orderly urban environment.
He added that the exercise was the foundation for the comprehensive regeneration of Nnewi and the restoration of its position as a premier industrial and commercial hub.
Barr Ojukwu pointed out that the affected structures include shanties, dilapidated buildings, unapproved developments, filling stations, hotels, and properties encroaching on public right-of-way or posing environmental and safety risks.
He said the notices also serve as a formal warning to owners of structures obstructing the right-of-way of the newly dualized Nnewi–Owerri Road and other areas earmarked for redevelopment under the state’s urban transformation agenda.
While acknowledging the temporary inconvenience the exercise may cause, Ojukwu urged residents and business owners to cooperate with the government, reaffirming the Ministry’s commitment to enforcing physical planning laws with fairness and firmness in pursuit of a cleaner, safer, and more prosperous Nnewi.
