He said that the containers arriving Onitsha Port was in line with the efforts of President Muhammadu Buhari’s government to put to use the waterways across Nigeria.

Muoghalu made the remarks in a telephone interview with our reporter on Friday in Awka.

He explained that at the moment, containers which began to arrive at Onitsha Port on Sunday, Oct. 3, were coming from Onne Port, in Rivers State.

“Very soon, vessels will be carrying containers from Lagos Ports to Onitsha and by the grace of God, we are working on vessels bringing containers straight from foreign Ports to Onitsha,” he said.

It was also learnt that ships with containers last berthed at the Onitsha Port over three decades ago.

Onitsha, the commercial hub of Anambra, is renowned for trade and commerce in Nigeria and across West Africa.

Muoghalu said his agency was working assiduously to ensure that activities pick up at the Onitsha Port and other Ports, which past governments abandoned to decay.

He said that the Buhari government does not believe in praise singing, but was committed to policies and programmes that would uplift the living conditions of Nigerians.

“When we said on assumption of duty some months back that we would reactivate Onitsha Port, some people felt it was ferry tale, but today we have been vindicated,” Muoghalu said.

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Mr Andrew Kumapayi, State Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in the state, confirmed the incident to our reporter in Awka.

Kumapayi said the attention of the FRSC was drawn to the lifeless body of the middle aged man at about 7.40.a m.

According to Kumapayi, eyewitnesses told FRSC that the vehicle, on top speed, rammed into the man and sped off but the identity of the vehicle could not be immediately obtained.

He said the corpse had been deposited at Toronto Hospital Mortuary by the FRSC team.

The Sector Commander said the incident had also been reported at the Central Police Station, Onitsha, for further investigation.

He, however, warned motorists against speed limit violation.

He also advised pedestrians to be safety conscious when using the road and use the pedestrian bridge where available to avoid accident.

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Chidoka said on Thursday in Awka described the accident as painful and regrettable.

“It was indeed a black Wednesday in Onitsha, Anambra. The loss of lives, property and businesses as a result of the accident is both painful and regrettable.

“I want to express deep condolences to the families that lost their loved ones in the accident, including that of a mother and her baby and the people that lost properties and businesses.

“I identify with them at this moment of grief and pray that the almighty God will console them,” he said in a in statement by Mr Ikechukwu Okafor, his Special Adviser on Media Relations.

Chidoka, however, observed that casualties resulting from such accidents in Onitsha were always high because of the poor planning of the area.

Chidoka, a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain in the state, called for more government’s attention and citizen engagement in the area of urban planning and public safety.

“Onitsha is an ungoverned space; divided by artificial boundaries of local governments and unattended to by a visionless state.

“It lacks coherent development plan and is not loved by residents who lack a sense of community.

“The fire on Wednesday is symptomatic of deep seated urban challenges,” he said.

“As markets shutdown for prayers and sanitation, they should also shutdown for an hour or two every week for fire drills.

“The people can arrange for a fire survey from Federal Fire Service and modify their markets to enhance emergency response.

“There is need for government to engage citizens and market leadership on issues of safety,” he said.

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