Traders in Mundri West County in Western Equatoria State have appealed to the county authorities to consider reducing the width of the section of the Juba-Muindri highway which passes through the town because the current plan will raze all the shops by the roadside.
The chairperson of the Mundri West County chamber of commerce, Ismail Basha, on Friday said that most of the shops in the town have fallen within the path of the road which is being rehabilitated and appealed to the county authorities not to destroy the shops because it is their source of livelihood.
“Honourable commissioner, there are a lot of challenges but we shall talk about a few of them like the Juba- Mundri highway which is going to take down most of the shops and lodges,” Basha said. “We need to hear from you, our commissioner because this highway has taken all the shops and there is no land.”
“We do not know where you are taking the land. As we all know, the highway is from the national government and this land is not for the national (government) but for the community of Mundri West County and we appeal to the commissioner to leave the traders’ shops,” he added.
Meanwhile, the secretary-general of the SPLM in Western Equatoria State, John Henry, cautioned against politicizing the road project and advised the commissioner to dialogue with the company working on the highway to readjust the size of the road in the town.
“We need the commissioner to be firm with the company and there should be no political interference. If politics comes in, then you will lose Mundri. All these shops and houses were brought by history and if development is to be done, then it should be done in peace and harmony but not by leaving traders to crying,” SPLM’s Henry warned. “There is no money to build other shops. This highway will knock down more than seventy buildings and the question is where is the government going to get all the money (to compensate)?”
He said that the road is too big and its width should be readjusted to 30 meters to avoid the destruction of the shops.
Responding to the traders, Mundri West County Commissioner Zilipher Dawa, told the business community to be patient as the authorities work with the road construction company to address their concerns. She said the road has a lot of advantages and there is no development without destruction.
“The intention is to develop the town and if the road is diverted, we shall not get another chance to develop the place. We sat down and decided that all the shops will be left out, but if yours goes beyond the wanted space then it will be for the government to decide since a lot of development is coming like electricity, water, railway and many more,” Commissioner Dawa said.
“Do not be afraid that your house will be taken down today or tomorrow. The bush clearance is not in the town, it is outside and only the trees like mangoes and others will be taken down if they are in the road. The houses will be left but there will first be talks before any damage is done. We will not reject the government because we need development,” she added.
The construction of the Juba-Mundri-Yambio highway was initiated by President Salva Kiir and is expected to be completed in six years.