Once upon a time
Leadership Tussle by NURTW Leaders Turns A Booming Market in Illah to a shadow of its old self
By Linus Okolo
All is not well with Illah community in Oshimili North Local Government of Delta State. This time around, it is not just because of economic meltdown, but because of insecurity around the community sequel to the National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW) leadership tussle.
Illah is known for peace, love, and communal way of life, to the admiration of all and sundry. The community is blessed with three channels of River Niger, with quite a number of markets which include Afia Ilo, Otu Umutei, and Otu Ukpologwu. The community houses a sizeable population of non-natives whose major occupations are farming and fishing. The markets serve as the food basket, as people come from different communities to transact business.
Findings revealed that traders comes from Port Harcourt, Calabar, Uyo, Eket, Lagos, Aba and so on, to transact business, a development that led to economic boom and useful engagement of the youths who for most part of the day gainfully participate in loading lorries, communal levy collection, national union ad hoc staff and so on. During this period, according to findings, traders from different towns, villages and cities troop in for business transactions as it was considered their honeypot.
Things however fell apart in 1992 when Mr. Sunday Chiazor took over the leadership of the NURTW upland and Otu Unit. Those in the know disclosed that his reign is similar to that of the biblical Rehoboam who listened to his fellows rather than the cries of the people. A source disclosed that he started by increasing the levies to a very exorbitant rate that cannot be compared to other towns. These levies were transferred to the settlers and in turn to the buyers of the goods as well as the final consumers. The magazine source noted that the sellers and buyers started grumbling and at a point they decided to meet the leadership on the way forward. But all efforts the magazine source said, met a brickwall.
This grandstanding, according to findings, compelled drivers and traders from outside the state who were uncomfortable with the development to withdraw moreso that their counterparts from Onitsha market make more profit. Thus the large number of traders from Aba, Enugu, Asaba decided to boycott the Illah routes, to avoid the unfriendly fare imposed by Mr. Chiazor.
These insider say led to low economic activities in the community. Though, a new market was later created in a nearby village called Otu-Ukpologwu in 2000 in order to revive commerce activities on that routes, traders who spoke to the magazine said life has been tough for them.
Even then those with inside knowledge said when the market emerged, Chiazor, in connivance with the State Police Command, arrested three key persons behind the birth of the market, and they were allegedly charged for breach of peace, robbery, and attempted murder. This was after the two rival groups engaged each other in serious show of superiority tussle, where many persons ended in the hospitals.
Though Chiazor, according to findings later allowed the Otu Ukpologwu market to stay but not long two other markets were formed at Isele-Uku and Lagos parks.
Meanwhile source close to Chiazor said that in 2001, elders from Umutei pleaded with him to reduce the fare the union was charging commuters but he refused to heed the advice of the elders of the villages, to have the fare reduced to be at par with other villages.
At a point heavy shooting was witnessed in the community a development that made innocent residents to desert their homes for months. It was alleged that after the death of one Mr. Akalue Jibunor, who was the vice chairman NURTW, Chiazor allegedly chose his younger brother, Ikechukwu Chiazor instead of Mr. David Nnadi who was the people choice to replace the deceased. Even then, when in 2006 Chiazor was supposed to step aside after spending eight years for Nnadi to occupy the position, Nnadi was arrested and kept in Ogwashi-Uku prison for allegedly attempting to topple Chiazor
A community source who does not want his name in print revealed that the union leader has become a nightmare to residents in the community. The source confided in the magazine and revealed that the State Police Command has equally become helpless
Speculations are rife that the union leader has prevented Delta Line buses from running the Illah route. However, there was a recent invasion of the community by State Anti- Robbery Squad (SARS) following Chiazor recent forceful removal by David Nnadi who felt enough was enough.
Though when the magazine visited most youths were drinking and jubilating Chiazor