Edo Seals New Buildings At Police Officers’ Mess

The Edo State Government has stopped the construction of new stalls at the Police Officers’ Mess on Ikpokpan Road, Benin City.

A statement on Tuesday by the state’s Ministry of Physical Planning, Housing, Urban and Regional Development said the buildings lacked state approval.

The Director of Physical Planning and Development Control, Enabulele Henry, who led the enforcement team to the site, said that the building contravened extant building laws.

Henry said, “The siting of buildings in any part of the state is controlled by us. We have been following up on the development for some time. When they started this work, we went to the site and stopped them on December 6. They are distorting the plan of the GRA. Also, this is government land, which was allocated to the police, where their officers can relax. They are converting into a commercial property. The increased activity is going to generate traffic, which is going to impact the Third Junction in that axis.”

“They came to our office and we asked them to provide their approval before they could do anything. They promised to revert. But during the public holiday, they went back and started work, even at night. They started another one as well. We have now come out to say they can’t continue,” he added.