Rivers demolition exercise: Shanty occupants count losses, bemoan lot

On Friday July 2, 2021 officers of the Rivers State Task Force on street trading and illegal motor parks descended on traders on the Eleme Junction-Trailer Park axis of the East-West road leading to the Onne sea ports. ONYEMA GODWIN, in this report, chronicles the frustrations of those affected by the demolition exercise.

The bulldozers moved in and at the end it was ruins all over as thousands of makeshift buildings housing thousands of micro, small and medium scale businesses were reduced to rubble. Tears and regrets pervaded the atmosphere with many crying over their losses and the uncertain future that awaited them following the loss of their investments and homes. On Friday, July 2, 2021, officers of the Rivers State Task Force on street trading and illegal motor parks descended on traders on the Eleme Junction-Trailer Park axis of the East-West road leading to the Onne sea ports.

The demolition was in compliance with a recent directive by the Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, for the clearing of all shanties on that axis of the state. The governor had explained that his decision was informed by the fact that the shanties were habouring hoodlums and criminals who were responsible for the recent wave of criminality across the state.

Wike, while announcing the lifting of the about two-month curfew in the state, further explained that demolition was in the exercise of government’s responsibility of “ensuring the safety of lives and property while advancing the well-being of all residents.

“This is the reason we are clearing the state of shanties that have become veritable sanctuaries for criminals and criminal activities across the state. Clearly, our actions in this direction are not directed at any particular person, identity or group.”

Truly, victims of the exercise cut across various parts of Nigeria because the shanties had been a community of Nigerians from every geopolitical zone struggling to eke out a living. They had found those areas more affordable to live in and conduct their businesses.

They cut across petty traders, technicians, food vendors, small restaurants, and auto mechanics, among many others who served the trailer park (for the Eleme-Onne axis of the road with each person lamenting their fate.)

Ismaila Musa, one of the victims, told our correspondent that he is in deep pain considering his losses to the demolition. According to him, he did not only lose his provision store which had been growing stronger, but the small two rooms and a parlour apartment where he resided with his young family of five.

“As we speak now, my family and my few belongings which we could salvage are still lying outside; I don’t have a clue of where to relocate us now,” Musa stated.

He said that the initial understanding they had was that it was only the buildings close to the road that would be demolished only for the demolition squad to come and knock down the entire place. “Now look at how they have destroyed all these shops and houses of numerous people here. Do you know the number of persons who feed and take care of their families here? Now tell me, where will they go and how are they going to fend for themselves and families?” he ask.

Musa’s question resonates across all the other sections of the roads where the exercise was also carried out like Ahoada axis of the East-West road and they are not just a few. But for the Eleme-Onne victims, the demolition was to sack criminals who allegedly hid in such places to carry out their nefarious activities.

However, there are several thousands of others who have been sacked by the numerous flyovers being constructed by the Wike administration. For all the about nine such projects completed and still under construction, hundreds of businesses of varying capacities have been sacrificed either by their buildings being demolished or being fenced off with iron pans in the name of discouraging street trading.

Of major concern and interest is the Ikoku spare parts market which has been completely closed down because of the construction of a flyover from the Olu-Obasanjo-Azikiwe street that terminates at one of the back gates of the Rivers State University and for which many residents have assessed as not necessary.

But it is widely believed that the governor was only using the construction of the flyover to sack the Ikoku traders after several other attempts and threats to close down the market. Now the market has been demolished and the hitherto booming auto spare parts and mechanic workshops are no more and so all the ancillary businesses and services supported by the market.

Property owners and landlords were not spared as well, as many of them lost their property which had been sources of financial support to them. This is same for the flyovers at Artillery, Rumuola, GRA Junction, Waterlines and Garission, among others that have either been completed or still under construction. Each and every of these flyovers had come with huge collateral damage on MSMEs.

Unfortunately, many have observed that government’s action is only worsening the unemployment rate in a state that ranks among the highest on the unemployment indices in the country.

Speaking to Nigerian Tribune on the incident, an entrepreneur in Port Harcourt, Mr. Oamen Okhilua said that if the government actually could confirm that the shanties were harbinger of criminals, then the demolition would be considered a right step in the right direction. But he also said that the shanties would not have been harbouring criminals and criminal activities entirely and so the government would also have thought of how to accommodate them and not put everyone under the same category.

“I think the government was a bit hasty in its decision to demolish the shanties without any attempt to provide alternatives, because in the end the move will only increase the number of the unemployed, poverty and consequently increase in criminality,” he stated.

According to Okhilua, “as much as the government is trying to curb criminality, its approach must be holistic so as to have lasting impact. As far as I am concerned, the move was ill-advised and ill-timed because it will only increase the population of the jobless who will now most likely turn to crime for survival.”

He added: “Part of government strategy should have been identifying genuine business operators and provide them safe alternatives like developing a structured market through the local government and adequate security infrastructure to reduce criminal activities along the impacted axis.”

Another lady entrepreneur who gave her name simply as Jane observed that the Wike administration is the worst government against MSMEs in the history of the state saying its policies have consistently rendered more people unemployed since it came into office in 2015.

She lamented that in no other administration of the state has there been the number of closed markets and other related actions that forced hundreds, if not thousands of self-employed MSME operators out of operations than the Wike administration.

“As soon as he came in 2015, he began by killing many agricultural pilot projects that former administrations had put in place that were employing and supporting thousands of Rivers people and other residents alike,” she stated.

She went on: “Let’s not forget the Songhai farm somewhere in Ogoni, the Buguma fish farm, the cassava plantation at Etche and even the banana plantation also in Ogoni. All these agricultural initiatives were employing hundreds of staff and supporting thousands of MSMEs, in training and marketing support. Unfortunately all have been scrapped by the present administration and there has been no attempt to create alternatives.

“Good, the governor has been providing infrastructure, especially roads, but he should not do so at the expense of the well-being and livelihood of the people. Infrastructure is for the people and not the other way round. Whatever infrastructure you are providing that does not improve the lives of the generality of the people should be reconsidered. So if the government is considering an action that will displace thousands of people in an area without thinking of providing an alternative, that action is totally defective and that is how I consider the latest demolition exercise, because there is no way you can conclude that 100% of the people displaced are criminals or supporting criminal activities.”

However, for Sophia Danie-Sonime of the Initiative For Sustainable Peace & Development, Port Harcourt, says the action of government is good “going by the recent cases of insecurity” reported from that axis of the road.

“Seeing crime stories from that area is worrisome and swift tactical action was necessary to at least curb it for now to prevent escalation,” she stated. She advised that small scale business owners affected should be resettled to better locations.

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