The Hon. Commissioner for Miles, Industries and Solid Minerals, Hon. Ernest Ibejiako, had explained that the people of Umuezuo Naze infiltrated into government layout and took over 80% of the lndustrial Layout .
Hon. Ibejiako who disclosed this recently in Owerri, while fielding questions from Newsmen regretted that his predisessores compromised and destroyed the master plan of the layout .
He further explained that the people not only sold the land, they went as far as building houses on government owned property, thereby violating the master plan of the area.
“If you step out to do things right, dicides not to compromise, people will always stand against you and begin to call you names.
” When i was appointed a commissioner, i went to their Traditional Ruler, the Elders and this particular village that is complaining, for us to seat down and dialogue, but because of what they did, they refused answering me for over 8 months”.
Hon. Ibejiako pointed out that after eight months of not responding to the call, government started tracing the road within the master plan to determine the pere mitre survey of the lndustrial Layout, and to also determine where the indigenes land starts and where the layout ended.
” I made an announcement asking those saling to stop and those buying to also stop, and later discovered that those who bought, bought illegally from unknown persons.
“Government had to set up a committee to look into, either to regularize the buildings or to demolish them.
“What we are doing now is to trace the roads as it is in the master plan.
“We have also done the enumeration of all those illegal plots, waiting the governor’s directives.
” Because government did not fence the area, so in the cause to determine the pere metre survey plan, we used excavator to trace the land.
” We also set up a committee, comprising of the indigenes and the government surveyors to go and establish beacons that will determine the area.
“The problem is that, some of them approached me and i told them i will not do what they want me to do, rather will establish and know what is happening there, to know those that acquire illegally and those that acquire statutorily.
“So because i refused to compromise with them, because i refused to play along with them, that is why they are calling me names.
“They are the people crabbing the land not me, i don’t do such thing.
“They can’t stop the ministry, government acquired the layout and paid compensation fully to them. What else do they want”.
“Government had directed that no further construction should take place there, still they disobeyed “.
Hon. Ibejiako However urged the people of Umuezuo Naze to Corporate with the state government so as to solve the problem once and for all.
