According to reports from Vanguard, the Abia State Government has issued a stern ultimatum to street traders and mechanics operating along major thoroughfares in the state.
The government has given these individuals until July 1st to vacate the streets or face heavy sanctions.
The ultimatum was announced in a statement released on Thursday by Izuchukwu Onwughara, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Works, on behalf of the Commissioner, Otumchere Oti.
The statement condemned the various "unwholesome activities" that have been taking place on the state's newly constructed and renovated roads, including the selling of goods, the operation of mechanic workshops, the dumping of refuse into drainage systems, and the channeling of borehole and sewage water onto the asphalt.
The government specifically named several major roads in Aba and Umuahia that have been affected, including Owerri Road in Umuahia, Kenth Road, Jubilee Road, Ngwa Road, Port Harcourt Road, Obioha Road, and the Enugu Port Harcourt Expressway by Ariaria Market Junction.
Street traders operating along these corridors have been given a seven-day grace period to vacate the areas or face the "rhythm of the long arms of law."