Your host will never respect you, Gov Soludo urges Igbo traders in Lagos to invest in South-East

The Governor of Anambra State, Charles Soludo, on Friday, appealed to Igbo traders in Lagos to relocate their businesses to the South-East due to the disrespect from their host communities.

Soludo made this call during a town hall meeting with Ndi Anambra residents in Lagos while enumerating some of the progress made so far by his administration after a year in office.

It was further contained in a statement issued by his media aide, Christian Aburime.

This came in the aftermath of a demolition of some distressed buildings containing shops belonging to Igbo traders at Alaba Market in Ojo Local Government Area of Lagos State.

Leaders of the Alaba International Amalgamated Association lamented the demolition of the buildings at the market.

Last Friday, the Lagos government announced that it would commence the demolition of 17 distressed buildings being used for commercial purposes within the Alaba market.

Gbolahan Oki, general manager of the Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA), announced the planned demolition during an assessment visit to the market.

Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Mbonu Geoffrey, president-general of the association, said the manner in which the demolition was carried out was “inhumane”.

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Geoffrey said some buildings that were not initially marked and with no sign of defects were demolished during the exercise.

In his statement, Soludo said, “Your host will never respect you if you don’t have a livable and prosperous homeland.”

Aburime further revealed in the statement that, “The Governor made the appeal during a town hall meeting with Ndi Anambra residents in Lagos while enumerating some of the progress made so far by his administration after a year in office.

“While making his speech, Governor Soludo sounded philosophical by telling his audience that God couldn’t have made a mistake by making them Onye Anambra.

“He enjoined them to reflect deeply on it and do everything possible to contribute to the growth of the state.

“This is the same question I ask myself every day. And we have a responsibility to leave Anambra State better than we met it”; the governor said.

“He emphasized on the need to change Anambra State from a departure lounge to a destination, stressing that the homeland consciousness must be inculcated in the perceptual mind of every onye-Anambra.

“Your host will never respect you if you don’t have a livable and prosperous homeland”. Governor Soludo reiterated.”

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