In a bid to rebuild the Ariaria International market, Aba, the Abia State government has said it would soon commence the demolition of illegal structures at the market and therefore solicited the cooperation of traders and shop owners towards the upgrade of facilities.
Chairman of the Abia State Market Development Committee, Chief Solomon Nwaigwe who made the call in an interview with newsmen in Aba, lamented the level of decay and flooding in the market which he attributed to the activities of traders who erected illegal structures on top of the drainage system and indiscriminate dumping of refuse in waterways, causing water to overflow the gutter and find its way into the traders’ shops.
Nwaigwe disclosed that the rebuilding of the market will take place in phases beginning with the Park 1 and 2 areas whose traders have been directed to relocate to the Aba Mega Mall, and assured legitimate shop owners in the market of getting back their shop(s) after the exercise while illegal owners will forfeit ownership of such illegal structures.
According to him, the committee was set up by the state government to restore the master plan of the market and upgrade it to the standard of an international market. “It might interest you to know that we have carefully carried out proper checks at the market. And we discovered that the traders have built illegal shops on top of drainages in the market.” (Vanguard)
