* We have been paying taxes to different extortion windows, why collecting monies from us if they consider us as illegal occupants?
Adamawa state urban planning and development authority has demolished shops and houses located at Gotel junction, Hayin Gada, Girei local government area on Wednesday amidst protest by owners.
Affected persons who called the action of the government as highest form of heartlessness lamented that they were only given short notice evacuate before equipments were deployed for the demolition.
Crying in agony, Ambrose Yaro, the affected who said he has lost everything to the demolition lamented that his life ambition of securing a house has gone into the winds.
Yaro said he has nowhere to go now and did not know what to do, adding that he invested everything he has in the house still under construction.
Rebecca Philip a shop owner and her colleagues who said they were taxpayers hence could not fathom any reason having their property painfully demolished at short notice without giving them any form of palliative or alternative for relocation.
“We have been paying taxes to different extortion windows, why collecting monies from us if they consider us as illegal occupants?,” Philip queried.
Another victim of the demolition, Baba Kura said the action of the state government amounted to wickedness because it carried out the demolition few hours after quit notice.
“Many of us did not get the opportunity to even salvage our properties and most of us lost everything we had to this devoid of empathy hard hearted act. I wonder why a government we voted will be so wicked to us,” he said amidst sobs.
Information obtained by Fact Check indicated that the state urban planning and development authority relied on section 58,133 of Adamawa urban and regional planning laws ADS law 3 of 2010 to effect the demolition.
An anonymous aide to governor Ahmadu Umaru explained that the demolition was carried out to enable the government construct the road from the Gotel junction to NYSC camp.
He said the structures demolished were constructed illegally, adding that the people have been yearning to get the busy road rehabilitated for years.
According to him, “there is no way the road contract can be carried out if the shops are not demolished because they are obstacles to the road projects.