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By Madu Obi
There was a mild drama at the popular Nigerian Waterways Authority, NIWA Motor Park near the old Niger Bridge, at the weekend, as officials of Onitsha South local government stormed the area to take possession of the motor park, following a court ruling terminating the contract.
Onitsha South local government area had in 2006, entered into a contractual agreement with J.N Okpagu and Sons Enterprises Limited for the control and management of the park, but it was gathered that the local government was not satisfied with the returns being made by the contractor.
Despite complaints by officials of the council, the company has been having its way over the years until yesterday. Worried by the continued loss of revenue from the park, the council decided to terminate it.
The Transition Committee Chairman of the council, Hon. Emeka Orji said the termination followed a court order restraining the company from further operating on the park, as well as breaching of the contractual agreement, ranging from non payment of the agreed fees which the council estimated at over N7 million for the past five years.
In the Suit No. Rev/3/MISC 05/2023, filed by the local government council, the Presiding Magistrate of the Revenue Court of Onitsha Magisterial District, N. A. Ozumba, had on August 15, this year, ordered that the defendants, Okpagu and his privies should stop operating in the said motor park.
Armed with the court order, Orji who stormed the park with court bailiffs and other senior staff of the council, told the proprietor of the park, Chief Ngozi Okpagu to stop further operations in the park as the council has revoked the contractual agreement entered with him since 2006 during the regime of the former chairman of the council, Chief Basil Ejidike.
The exercise was monitored by the Police Area Commander for Onitsha, the Divisional Police Officer at Bridgehead and his Fegge counterpart, CSP Rabiu Garba, who ensured that there was no breach of peace.
On arrival at the motor park with his team, the court bailiffs served Okpagu with the court order which he initially refused to acknowledge.
For over one hour, Okpagu ignored persuasion from the court bailiffs, but later reluctantly directed one of his staff to acknowledge the receipt of the order.
Apparently thinking that he could reach a truce with the council officials, Okpagu wrote a cheque of undisclosed amount and attempted to hand it over the Hon. Orji as part of payment of his accumulated arrears of revenue owed to the council over the years, but the council officials refused to accept it from him on the ground that it was already too late since the contract had been terminated and the council had taken the decision to take over the management of the park and revenue collection.
Secretary of Onitsha South local government, Mr. Paul Onuachala recalled that the council authorities had sealed the park sometime ago over non payment of sanitation fees to the council for many years after giving the contractor series of demand notices, but barely a week after the sealing, he pleaded for leniency and the park was reopened for him.
According to him, "this time around, we have to withdraw our leniency which he has abused because he must have mistaken our previous one for weakness.
"He failed to remit the appropriate fees as contained in the contractual agreement reached between the council and his firm since 2006 and for this reason, it is only the court that can vacate this court order which the council used in ejecting him out of the park".
Meanwhile, the court has fixed September 8, this year for hearing of Okpagu's appeal against the injunction restraining him from further operating in the park.
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