By Okey Maduforo Awka .
Over 5,000 shanties and make shift buildings have so far been demolished in Awka Capital City in a bid towards steming the defacing of the are .
This is coming as government has resolved to revoke undeveloped lands in all the estates that failed to abide with the developmental models provided in the last five years.
The revocation which would commence this Wednesday days is in line with the mandate given to the Awka Capital Territory Development Authority ACTDA by government.
According to the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of ACTDA Ozo Ossy Onuko who spoke to reporters in Awka, the Authority is poised to ensure strict compliance to the models stipulated by the Ministry of Lands and the Anambra State Investment Protection and Promotion Agency (ANSIPPA).
“This would end up to Wednesday and we are going after estates within the City that where given public land with a caviate for development and which must be reached ”
“If you are not able to meet up with the specifications of the Ministry of Lands and ANSIPPA , we are coming with the mandate given to us as a government to revoke all those lands if you fail to show evidence of threshold of development and this was given to them within five years ”
“People now wait for those lands to appreciate and that is why they failed to do the needful and we are giving them the type of model that we want a Capital City should look like”
Speaking on the three days Keep Awka Clean Campaign , Onuko explained that;
“It is a continus action that we have been undertaking for the past three years now and the whole aim is to ensure that we rid Awka of shanties”
“We have demolished about 5,000 shanties since coming on board and today Awka is cleaner and safer ”
“The impact is in two folds one is that it is a fight against criminality because criminals use those places as their hide out ”
“When you look at the environment where those shanties are they look so disorderly and like an ancient place covering up the beautiful environment”
Onuko further recalled that in a bid towards ensuring that the affected shanty owners are not disengaged from their businesses the state government constructed Solution Arenas which are open shops where they can do business without placing charges or tentage.
“We have an alternative for those at the shanties like in Abakaliki street which we call Club road , we built the Solution arena there and we built those open shops and gave it out to the traders free of charge for them to do business there ”
“We also provided amenities such as bore hole and convinces for them without charging them money or any levy ”
“Our walk ways cannot be converted to shanties and I must commend the compliance by the people which is over 70 percent ”
“But we pushing forward at least 90 percent for the capital city and we also designated some places like set backs for people to continue their trading and it is about three meters from the walk ways ”
“When you go to Regina Celi junction, you will see that space designated for trading and we refused investors to take over that open space for fuel station and secured for the Keke tricycle to stay there and that is why we were able to achieve something there ”
“This is a kind of empety and compassion for the people in view of the situation in the country”
“We have a standard procedure of engagement and we have trained our ” he said.
