Rivers State government is using urban renewal to address security issues in parts of Port Harcourt, the state capital.
The state Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, disclosed this at the weekend after inspecting Ayamakara area in Ogbunabali, where the state government recently demolished shanties.
Wike said that any shanty that posed a security threat would be brought down.
According to him, the landlords at Ayamakara in Ogbunabali were duly compensated before the state government demolished the shanties.
He further disclosed that criminals used the shanties in the area as their hiding place to commit crime.
He said: “We decided that there will be no hiding place for criminals. All the waterways in this area will be cleared. Thereafter, we will decide the nature of development that will take place.
“Already, investors are coming for mixed development in the Nkpogu reclaimed area.”
The governor said that the state government would continue to develop the security of the state through proactive initiatives.
Wike also inspected the construction of the cinema and restaurants at the Port Harcourt Pleasure Park and Doctors Quarters at the Braithwaite Memorial Specialist Hospital.