By Ubong Sampson

Town planning in developing countries has not been enjoying a smooth sail, and chiefly among the reasons, is the lack of public acceptance and cooperation which town planning regulations suffer in this part of the globe. The aforementioned reasons have been inflicting the journey to efficient physical planning and urbanisation, with one impeding factor or the other at virtually every stage of its progress. Strong resistance and non-compliance on the part of the citizens to regulations have been recorded by physical planning officers and these constitute such factors haphazardising development or its processes in the urban areas.

Through centuries past, cities have remained a constant source of economic growth and development to nations and their sub units. However, increased size and density of population in cities have generated high land costs, rent and transport cost, congestion and pollution, as well as increased social disorganisation. The condition is worse in developing countries where urban migration, over-utilisation of housing and infrastructure, persistent slums, and squatter settlements is detrimentally alarming.

Well, notably among reasons for the resistance and non-compliance are lack of public awareness of the planning laws and regulations; public misunderstanding of town planning activities; and sometimes, failure of the planners to protect the general public interest and bring them along in their activities. The capital city of Uyo, Akwa Ibom state has had its own tale of these developmental impediments and their consequences, as several regulatory efforts on the part of government have been faced with unrepentant resistance by citizens in occupations of trading, commercial motoring, among others.

Driving through the capital city of Uyo, one cannot not help but notice with displeasure, how roadside traders have desecrated the beauty of roads and even areas set aside by government for recreational purposes with indiscriminate erection of kiosks, stalls. Some have even gone as far as encroaching into vehicle-purpose roads to display their goods, like what is obtainable at the Ibom Plaza axis of the city. The commercial motorists also contribute to these hazards daily by complying with touts to create illegal parks at strategic road junctions, consequently forcing artificial traffic even in areas that should naturally have no business with traffic congestion.

All of these, however, look ready to take a different turn, as the Uyo Capital City Development now led by Anietie Eka, has drawn a new approach to this tackle by letting the interfacing and negotiation process precede other moves in its action plan. A couple of times in the past, enforcing attempts by government against this menace ended with a wrong narrative on the internet by mischief makers whose aim was to rather draw sympathy for the traders who were being dislodged by enforcement officers. And of course, its commitment to maintaining a human face has always forced government to neutralise its enforcement processes with leniency.

The question is, has this leniency not made the defaulters to take government for granted, given the alarming rate which these anti-development activities have assumed? Long term residents of Uyo would recall the circumstances that forced government under Udom Emmanuel to resort to a flyover option at Ikot Oku Ikono junction. While citizens were always alerted to unleash roasting flames on government at each occasion of attempt to dislodge traders from the roadside, the interest of government was rather on the safety of lives, as the intermittent incidents of accidents at the said junction, especially involving heavy duty vehicles were hardly without claiming a life. And each time that happened, same citizens were up, also blaming the government for not putting up curbing measures. What a dilemma!

It is no longer news how much of media efforts the UCCDA has put up since Eka's assumption of office last December, creating awareness and announcing plans by the authority to commennce enforcement. Stepping further to complement the media efforts, the UCCDA Chairman, last weekend, led his management staff as well as newsmen on a monitoring tour of affected areas within the capital city. The purpose was to interface with the traders, motorists and relevant stakeholders, and perhaps, to also collate the most challenged citizens and challenging cases, to see how government can adjust and offer them soft landing grounds.

This is much of a departure from previous events where defaulters, during enforcement, will feign ignorance, using same as an open end to play victims. The UCCDA chairman, while interacting with this writer, had admitted his full consciousness of present economic challenges, while appreciating the defaulters for choosing the path of legitimate struggles for daily bread. However, he has stressed that development is a must, and it is the duty of government to ensure that developmental laws are not defaulted under any circumstances. But then, since the welfare of citizens is also part of the obligations of government, it has resorted to not dumping the baby along with the bath water, and this is by opening up these interfacing and negotiation channels with stakeholders in the affected industry.

With this friendly human face worn by government through the UCCDA, it will be no fault of government at then end of the day when the enforcement axe falls on any one for refusing to embrace this approach of diplomacy towards giving government the necessary compliance and cooperation in its shot at proper town planning and capital city development.


Ubong Sampson (08021419939) Writes from Aka Offot in Uyo LGA.