The Imo State Government has described the protest by some Owerri women
over the relocation of Ekeukwu market, as ‘highly regrettable’. A
statement issued by the Sam Onwuemeodo, Chief Press Secretary to
Governor Rochas Okorocha said the traders themselves should be happy
about this development as they are not doing themselves any good if they
do not see the wisdom in what the government is doing with regard to
the relocation of the market to a more convenient place. The full
statement below:
“It is highly regrettable that a group of women could be deceived into
carrying out a protest that could rightly described as uncalled for,
over the State government’s good intention to relocate Ekeukwu market to
a better place.
It is equally on record that successive governments in the State had
also tried to move the market out of its current location to a more
convenient place, but such previous efforts had also been frustrated by
this kind of protest.
It therefore requires a Political Will on the part of any government to
ensure the relocation of the market to a more ideal place. It is this
Political Will that Governor Rochas Okorocha is exercising at the moment
with regard to the relocation of Ekeukwu market.
The truth is that there is no other acceptable reason any Patriotic
Citizen of the State could oppose the relocation of the market except on
ground of selfish interest. In all considerations, the relocation of
the Ekeukwu market is long overdue, all things being equal.
With the rapid growth of Owerri into a model City, it is no longer
feasible to allow the Ekeukwu to remain where it is at the moment.
It is a known fact that Douglas Road cannot be recovered from its
deplorable condition with the Ekeukwu market allowed to remain in its
current location. Granted too that those who built the market at that
place meant well, but they must have done so in consideration of the
prevailing scenario at that time.
But time brings a lot of changes. At the moment, nobody would have even
thought about locating the market where it is now. The best action at
present is to move the market, which the government has done.
The traders themselves should be happy about this development. They are
not doing themselves any good if they do not see the wisdom in what the
government is doing with regard to the relocation of the market to a
more convenient place. And the traders should only pray that the new
place should attract to them a lot of new things.
The governor’s appeal on the part of all and sundry in the State on the
issues of relocation and expansion of roads remains valid. Whatever the
governor is doing now is for the good of the State and her people. And
if those before Governor Okorocha had exercised the kind of passion he
is now displaying in working for Imo people the story today would have
been different and indeed in the positive.
All in all, history and posterity give the best judgement. And at the
end of the day they will obviously return favourable verdict to Owelle
Okorocha over his actions as the governor of the State because he means
well.”