Posted by To permanently halt the occurrence of recurrent auto-crashes that kill innocent residents, the Ekiti State Government has vowed to relocate the Iworoko Ekiti Central Market to the State’s Irepodun/Ifelodun Local Government Area as soon as possible.
In a sensible move, the government vowed to speed up the installation of a new Alaworoko, which had been vacant since 2019, following the death of Oba Aladejana, in order to encourage investment to the town.
Chief (Mrs) Monisade Afuye, Ekiti State Deputy Governor, made the vow on Wednesday while meeting with community stakeholders, including the Regent, Princess Aladejana, who paid a courtesy call to her office in Ado Ekiti, the state capital.
Mrs Afuye, in a statement issued by her Special Assistant on Media, Victor Ogunje, regretted the recurring occurrences of traders and other residents being killed at Iworoko Market as a result of frequent traffic accidents, stating that such heinous scenarios would be reversed.
The Deputy Governor said that Governor Biodun Oyebanji is unwaveringly committed to protecting people’s lives, and that the request to relocate the central market, which is creating ongoing carnage, was long overdue.
“Let me express my condolences to you on behalf of Governor Biodun Oyebanji for the deaths of your indigenes in a vehicle accident that occurred inside the market.
I believe it had happened nearly four times in five years. This is intolerable.
“I learned that the House of Assembly had passed a resolution recommending that the market be relocated, emphasizing the significance of the relocation.
“I will convey your message to Governor Biodun Oyebanji and I know something will be done urgently to salvage the situation.”
Mrs Afuye advised the community against taking frivolous legal action to stall the selection process for a new Alaworoko, whose stool has been vacant for more than five years.
“Go do your studies well; we are ready for you. I learned that the Iworoko Chieftaincy Declaration was controversial. This will be streamlined, and the adjustment will be completed very quickly.”
In his testimony before the hearing, the town’s Regent, Princess Bolanle Ogundola, and President of the Iworoko Progressive Union, Engr. Tajudeen Fatayo, lamented how 15 people were killed when a truck rammed into the market in 2019.
Given the apparent delay in the installation of a new traditional ruler, the Regent urged the authorities to remove all hurdles and establish a substantive king so that she may rejoin with her family.
Given the apparent delay in the installation of a new traditional ruler, the Regent urged the authorities to remove all hurdles and establish a substantive king so that she may rejoin with her family.
Speaking extensively about the market relocation, Engr Fatayo stated: “Just recently, two people were killed when a vehicle somersaulted inside the market.
” Unfortunately, four fatal incidents occurred inside the industry in the last five years, in addition to minor ones.
Fatayo noted that the community had taken numerous efforts, including identifying a place where the market could be transferred, but voiced displeasure at how a family inside the town was acting as a stumbling block by claiming ownership of a parcel of land owned by the community for many years.
“We want the government to take this family to task. How can they claim ownership of all the land in Iworoko Ekiti when they are not the town’s owners?
“They are even separating the town into two due to their desire for autonomy. All of this is generating divisiveness, and the government must intervene to protect our community from a crisis.
Fatayo made a passionate request to the government to investigate cases of land encroachment on Iworoko Community High School property in order to preserve the town’s educational tradition.