From Ifeoma Ejiofor
The Anambra State Government has intensified its urban renewal campaign with a decisive enforcement exercise that dismantled illegal structures at Onitsha Main Market and other strategic locations across the State.The enforcement operation followed the expiration of repeated statutory notices served on traders, roadside operators and occupants of unauthorized developments that obstructed market entrances, encroached on road setbacks and violated the state’s physical planning regulations.
Officials of the Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, supported by security personnel, carried out the exercise peacefully to ensure compliance while maintaining public order.
Leading the operation at Onitsha Main Market, the Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Mr. Chijioke Ojukwu, explained that the government had exhausted every lawful and humane approach before resorting to demolition.
He noted that affected occupants were repeatedly notified through official letters, public announcements and town criers, giving them ample opportunity to voluntarily remove their goods and structures in line with existing planning regulations.
Ojukwu stressed that the exercise was not intended to punish traders or disrupt legitimate commercial activities but to reclaim public spaces that had been illegally occupied over time.
He asserted that Gov Charles Soludo’s administration remains committed to building livable, orderly and economically competitive cities where businesses can thrive without the burden of congestion, environmental degradation and unlawful developments.
The Commissioner urged residents, developers and traders to respect approved planning standards, obtain all necessary statutory approvals and partner with government in sustaining a clean, organized and investment-friendly Anambra.
Illegal lock-up shops and roadside structures along New Market Road in Onitsha South LGA were dismantled to decongest major traffic corridors, similar enforcement actions were also carried out at Nkwelle Ezunaka in Oyi LGA as well as at Trans Nkisi Phase Two Layout in Onitsha North LGA.
President-General of the Anambra State Amalgamated Traders Association (AMATA), Chief Humphrey Anuna, commended the state government for taking what he described as a courageous and timely decision to restore sanity to the state’s largest commercial market.
He observed that the proliferation of illegal roadside structures had for years hindered free movement, reduced accessibility and negatively affected the overall trading experience for both traders and customers.
