In line with his promise to compensate Property Owners at the Holy Ghost axis of the proposed Enugu state modern Bus Terminal, Enugu state Government on Monday, May 27, commenced 2nd Batch payment of compensation to affected property owners who were not captured in the 1st batch. The state government also announced that Compressed Natural Gas buses will be hired to reduce high cost of transportation being paid by citizens.
Commissioner for Transport, Dr Obi Ozor made that known to newsmen shortly after presenting some cheques to the beneficiaries at the ministry of transport ,Enugu.
The Commissioner said the process is transparent and beneficiaries were required to fill the indemnity form and the Nigeria Railway Corporation( NRC) will sign because they are the Landlord.. He said that Enugu state government will also sign, and they will get their cheques ” Tbe process is very transparent
Pix- Property Owner receiving cheque from the Commissioner for Transport,Dr. Obi Ozor
His words: ,”the compensation is for property owners, those who are the original tenants of the Nigerian Railway Cooperation. They should go and submit their documents to them after which the Nigerian Railway will forward those documents to the state for immediate payment of their compensation.
“This is the second batch of the compensation. The first batch has already been paid and they are happy.
“For those who are here to collect their payments today, they will fill the indemnity form, and sign it. The state government and the Nigeria Railway Corporation, which is the landlord, will also sign.
“More so, another form ensuring the right of first refusal to these affected persons after the completion of the project will equally be signed here. This is in line with the governor’s earlier commitment in writing to ensure that present occupants are given the first opportunity to own places there once ready,” the Commissioner stated.
Ozor further stated that in order to mitigate the high cost of transportation in the state, the Enugu State government had procured 50 Compress Natural Gas(CNG) buses and additional 100 buses would equally be delivered.
“CNG saves 64% of fuel cost and the buses have trackers and must have each security personnel to guarantee safety of the passengers. We are going to have at least 80 bus shelters where these buses will enter to discharge passengers. The idea is that we shouldn’t be dropping passengers on the roads.
“So, what we are doing at Holy Ghost, Agbani, Abakpa, Garki, and Nsukka in the first phase is not all about bus terminals. In these terminals, we will have cinemas and other facilities where people can easily go to have fun”, he said.
Speaking to newsmen, one of the Property Owners, Isah Okeke, 87 years old, .Managing Director) Chief Executive Officer, Farm Associate Nigeria Limited, said he is in Agricultural production business..He appealed to the state Government to allocate 6,000 hectares of land to them,so that they will carry on witn their live stock feed Production and other products.
Okeke expressed the desire to partner the state government to bring his wealth of experiences to the economic growth of Enugu state. “I felt that Enugu state Government has a lot to do with me.We are in production because we want to develop agriculture There are lots of packaging . I want to partner Enugu state Government. I have the ideas and contacts,” he said..”
In his remarks, the District Public Relation Officer, Eastern District Headquarters, of the NRC, Dr. Onyedikachi Onovo, commended the state government for the smooth process of the payment of compensation, maintaining that the interest of the Corporation was to ensure that due process was followed in the payment of compensation to its tenants in the area.