The Enugu state magistrate court has issued an order compelling the remainder of electrical parts dealers at the old Kenyatta market to vacate the premises and relocate to Ugwuaji Building Materials International market.
The court order followed an application by exparte brought upon by the Enugu Capital Territory Development Authority, ECTDA, praying the court to mandate 57 affected traders to vacate their goods from the old Kenyatta market to their new international market at Ugwuaji.
Delivering the order, Chief Magistrate P.C Egbo said that the respondents are hereby mandated to vacate and move all their goods from the alleged illegal structures at the old Kenyatta market to Ugwuaji where they have been allocated shops.
Egbo said that the order was to stop the illegal occupiers at Kenyatta from constituting nuisance at Kenyatta, except they have the approval of the Enugu Capital Territory Development Authority, ECTDA, or have good defence to remain in the structures.
“The applicant is authorized to relocate the respondents from Kenyatta market Enugu to Ugwuaji International market Enugu and remove all the illegal structures and goods of the respondents constituting nuisance at the old Kenyatta market in Enugu in accordance with section 13 (4) of the ECTDA law,” Court ordered.
The ECTDA had earlier this year given the remaining electrical material traders in Kenyatta market up to March 15 to relocate to the Ugwuaji International Building Materials market or have their goods confiscated and shops demolished.
The agency had also in March last year obtained a court order to enforce the market’s relocation to the Ugwuaji permanent site from the congested city center, but was encumbered by the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.
However, the ECTDA in January this year gave the remaining traders up to February 27 to join their colleagues at the new market, yet some remained obstinate.
Inspecting the new market to verify the alleged hiccup at the new site, Chairman of ECTDA, Dr. Josef Onoh gave an order to finish clearing of electrical materials line which the traders said was their reason for non compliance to the directive.
Onoh thereafter gave the remaining traders up to March 15 to relocate to the permanent market or face the wrath of the law. The traders however remained till this latest court order.
Source:- Vanguard
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