Okey Maduforo and Echezona Okafor 
The Anambra State Government yesterday demolished part of the Mountain of Holy Ghost Intervention and Deliverance Ministry belonging to Prophet Chukwuemeka Ohanemere aka Odumeje in Onitsha. The church also known as God’s Intervention Ministry on Creek/Bida Road in Fegge, Onitsha South Local Government Area is said to have been built on top of waterways and a major flood plane earlier marked for demolition.
The development followed the beginning of the demolition of the structures built on a drainage route in line with Governor Charles Soludo’s Onitsha Urban Renewal Plan. Meanwhile, in a viral video, Odumeje was seen being assaulted by some security officers as he and other members of the church tried to stop the demolition. Some Fegge residents claimed the church hall is sometimes is flooded during the dry season as the building appears to be resting on a sewage plane. About 30 more buildings are set to be demolished by the state government following the confirmation that they were built on flood and water planes.
Soludo had convened a meeting of landlords in Okpoko and parts of Onitsha on the government’s plans to demolish the structures. Odumeje did not answer his calls and there was no officer of the church that could speak on his behalf when our correspondent tried to reach the prophet for comment. Meanwhile, Soludo said the state government decided to act because Odumeje failed to comply with government’s directive to remove the illegal structure he built on the waterway.
He said in a statement by his Chief Press Secretary Christian Aburime: “Following the expiration of the more than two weeks’ notice beginning from April served on developers and building owners who built several illegal structures along the waterway in Fegge and environs within Onitsha, Anambra state government has begun demolition of such structures. “The exercise which is being carried out by a joint government task force, commenced the exercise from Bida Road by Modebe Avenue, Fegge Onitsha. “The affected buildings include Mountain of Holy Ghost Intervention Deliverance Ministries, shops and other perimeter fences. “The structures were marked since April, 2022 and all developers and building owners were served notice to remove such illegal structures.”
