Over 1,000 residents and landlords residing at the railway quarters in Port Harcourt, River State have cried out over a 20-day eviction notice served to them by the authorities of the Nigeria Railway Corporation.
This is as the affected residents protested to the governmentnt house and called fir the intervention og Governor Nyesom Wike.
The protesters including families, men, women and youths said the Railway Property Management Company Limited asked them to vacate the area before 20 days.
The protesters carried placards with various inscriptions such as ‘Governor Wike come to our rescue’, ‘we need adequate notice, and ‘we demand cimpensation’, among others.
The troubled residents who took their protest to the government house, Port Harcourt pleaded for more time and asked that they should be compensated.
Some of them said they have been living in the area for over 30 years, pointing out that they were not in the right of way.
One of them said, “We were just surprised to see them come to mark our houses and have us 20 days to vacate.
“We are not in the right of way. We are inside, but they marked everywhere asking us to vacate without compensation.
“We don’t have anywhere to go. We have lived here for over 40 years with our families.”
Speaking, the lawyer representing the residents and landlords, Higher King, demanded that compensation should be paid to them, alleging that the authorities have been collecting annual renewals from the affected residents.
“You can just enter the place and begin to demolish. We are sounding a warning to the Nigeria Railway Corporation and the Railway Property Management Company Limited who actually have their letterheads on the quit notice to stop.
“We have written to them to warn them to stop. We have also written to the Rivers State Givernor whom we by this calling to come and help this people.
“Now give and take, these people are over a thousand. If the Railway Property Management think they are tthere illegally, why have you left them to be there for over 20, 30, 40 years?
“We call that Lastches and aquisance to their rights of being in that place. By collecting money, rent and annual renewals.
“So if you have done that, you must compensate,” Higher king stated.
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