Forner chairman of Iron Dealers Union,Atani Road in Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State, a suburb of Onitsha, Chief Nnaemeka Onuzululike, has accused the opposition of trying to frustrate the efforts of the Union to build first class international market.
But he however vowed that no antics of the opposition would succeed in distracting his attention and that of progressives leaders and traders from completing the Nteje Building Materials International Market.
He told newsmen that over 450 shops have already been completed and some traders already moved into the market.
Onuzululike addressing newsmen in Onitsha where he refuted the allegations of the opposition members said that construction of shops is currently going on in the market to accommodate those who paid late.
Onuzululike who was accompanied by some members of his executive and that of the current Caretaker Committee executive members chaired by Chief Evaristus Ejezie said there was no iota of truth in the allegations of the opposition that he does not want to give account of the number of plots he bought for the traders.
The opposition union members led by Mr. Uzochukwu Okafor, the current Financial Secretary had among other things accused Onuzulike of selling some plots and shops to outsiders and used the money to comprise prominent people who ought to stop him from his excesses.
They also accused Onuzulike of colluding with some people to chase them out of their present market at Atani Road, using some security operatives and touts.
But Onuzululike said the problem is that some of the opposition union members were driven by selfish interest and envy, saying that one of them had approached him at the commencement of the project, suggesting how they would share the traders’ money which he turned down.
The former chairman also alleged that the opposition members were people who contested election with him both in his first and second tenure and lost.
Since then , he said, they vowed that he would not succeed and therefore were bent to frustrate the building efforts to ensure that he did not achieve anything.
He said since that time thetgry have been organising traders against him to frustrate the project.
Onuzululike said there was nothing he has not done to appease the opposition including begging for forgiveness if he had offended them in anyway but they were bent in frustrating the completion of the market.
He also said that the Ministry of Commerce gave them three condition to achieve people which were that he should hand over to Ejezie, which he did.
And after that, lawyers of both parties should meet to withdraw the matter from court, which they failed to comply with.
He said that the Anambra State Government had written to the eight markets that jointly own the market especially those of them that deal with iron rod that they should move into the new market by August but these people went out and were confusing traders that Atani Road traders were not among the market.
The former chairman said there was a letter from Ministry of Commerce, specifically addressed to them which directed them to move to their new site at Nteje but these people would tell traders that it was not true.
On the issue of giving account of his stewardship, Onuzulike said they agreed in one of their meetings that he would render his account when they finished the market project, saying that they are yet to complete the market.
He also pointed out that nowhere is market built in plot by plot basis but by shop sizes, stating that those demanding for their plots got it wrong or were being mischievous since he did not do estate business with them but building market.
The current Caretaker Committee chairman, Chief Evaristus Ejezie, denied that he was rubber stamp for Onuzulike, stressing that there was no basis to oppose him, but work together to ensure that the market is finished and every trader who paid got his shop.
He accused the leader of the opposition, Mr Okafor of working assiduously with his supporters to frustrate his executive’s effort to complete the market, alleging that on several ocassions some of them had microphone forcibly taken away from them by these opposition elements but they kept their cool.to avoid trouble.
In one of those ocassions, said the chairman,he had to close the meeting to avoid bloodshed in the market, saying that he has done everything to ensure peace and seamless movement to the new market including setting up a 22-man Peace Committee to reconcile everybody.
He also alleged that the opposition had in another ocassion snatched a bell from somebody making announcement and made their own announcement asking the traders to discountenance any announcements from the executive
They told them that the market project would not succeed until power was relinquished to them.
The overall chairman of the eight markets that are building the Nteje International Market, Chief Ignatius Ejike, said there is nothing causing the trouble but personal interest of those key opposition members.
He said for them ,what they wanted was that the market should be pulled down so that the credit would not go to Chief Onuzulike but unfortunately they couldn’t do that.
Said Ejike ” These people just want to frustrate this project.We suffered for this market project.There was transparency in the execution of the project.All these people were there at the beginning. They just want frustrate Onuzulike’s efforts because they contested election with him and failed”.
He queried their moral standing to call on the Governor to prevail on the Onuzulike when they failed to comply when Government intervened and proffered solution through the Ministry of Commerce.
He enjoined them to sheath their swords and start working with Onuzulike and Ejezie to make the Nteje Building Materials International Market a reality.
