By Izunna Okafor, Awka
The Governor Chukwuma Soludo-led Anambra State Government has announced plans to begin demolishing old and dilapidated buildings considered unsafe for habitation across the state.
The government also issued two weeks vacation notice to the occupants of identified structures to pack their things and leave before the kick-off of the demolition exercise.
According to information obtained from the state government’s official website, the State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Barr. Chijioke Ojukwu, announced the plan, noting that the measure was intended to address the issue of structurally unsafe buildings and improve public safety across the state.
This is coming barely one week after a woman identified as Mrs. Happiness Ugoagu and her 14-year-old daughter (identified as Chikaima Ugoagu) died after a three-storey building under construction collapsed onto their nearby home at No. 11 Emeka Ugwuanyi Street in Anata Anaba, Okpoko, Ogbaru Local Government Area of the state.
The Commissioner said the Ministry had commenced the identification of dilapidated buildings across the 21 local government areas of the state and was notifying their owners and occupants in accordance with the law. He further warned that structures that remain occupied after the expiration of the statutory notice could be evacuated before demolition.
Commissioner Ojukwu specifically identified Iweka Road and Bida Street in Onitsha, as well as Hundred Foot Road in Nnewi as among the areas with a high number of such buildings. He, however, emphasized that the exercise would extend to other parts of the state where buildings have been found to pose safety concerns.
He explained that the law empowered the Ministry to identify dilapidated structures and formally notify their owners of their condition and the necessary actions to be taken.
He reiterated that where occupants of such buildings fail to leave after the required notice, the authorities may use reasonable force to evacuate them and proceed with demolition, with the cost recoverable from the property owners.
In his words, the proposed demolition which forms part of the Soludo Administration’s broader physical planning and urban renewal efforts, was intended in the interest of public safety, crackdown on illegal structures, as well as prevent avoidable dangers associated with unsafe buildings and protect residents and members of the public from potential harm.
Ojukwu urged affected property owners and occupants to take the notices seriously and comply within the stipulated period, as the government prepares to proceed with the exercise.
