Artisans to Okorocha: We are not ready to move- May take to the streets!

The over 6000 embattled and embittered artisans and traders located at
the Nekede, Orji villages and Ekeonunwa market have vowed not to move
out of their present locations until government provides them with
alternative sites properly parcelated and supplied with essential
facilities with enabling environment for their operations.

Sources close to the two mechanic villages stated that after series of
emergency general meetings at Nekede and Orji, the members vowed to
take the bull by the horn and legally fight for their justifiable
rights as citizens of the state who have contributed to the
socio-economic well-being of the state as tax payers and providers of
labour.

The artisans had accused the leadership of the Mechanic and Allied
Workers Association with Pastor Lawrence Iheanacho of sell-out
claiming that the Executive had collected the sum of N5 Million to
compromise with government on the relocation exercise without adequate
arrangement while they claim that their present predicaments were
spearheaded by another splinter group known as NANTA.

The mechanics at their recent meetings and rallies had called on the
state government to procure new sites to be properly demarcated with
motorable access roads, power, water and security to enable them think
of moving at this austere time.

attempting to relocate the over 6000 technicians in both villages,
they should think of the huge economic involvement of moving vehicles,
machines and equipments in the communities where a number of primary
schools, churches, event halls as well as parks were hitherto
established, stating that the Orji mechanic village was contained in
the original designed map of Owerri Master Plan.

On the government's claim that the Orji artisans were not pro-Owelle
government, he recalled how the artisans in 2011 elections rejected
Chief Ikedi Ohakim with his all pledged goodies to fund and rally
round Owelle adding that even in 2015, majority of us still stood by
the Governor and our pay is what we are now experiencing.

Other sources from Douglas road and Nekede indicate that the traders
and artisans and other allied technicians have been mobilizing
themselves to approach the other two arms of government for
arbitration, in addition to a proposed one million man march to alert
the public of their plight and those of others in their class in the
state.