June 27, (THEWILL) – The Cross River State Government has intercepted 32 trucks loaded with illegal timbers from the State’s depleting forest reserves.
The trucks were intercepted at Ejiraga in Yala Local Government Area, a community bordering Ebonyi State.
The State Governor, Sen. Bassey Otu, in a statement, said the interception reiterates his administration’s commitment to fighting illegal logging and other adverse environmental activities in the state.
Otu who was represented by his Chief of Staff, Hon. Emmanuel Ironbar, warned all illegal loggers to use the window of opportunity offered by the Government to regularise their operations in the state.
The Governor decried the devastation to the rich biodiversity of the state by the criminal logging of the forest reserves in Cross River, warning of stiff penalties against the perpetrators.
He also commended the Anti-deforestation Committee for their prompt action and enjoined forest-bearing communities to assist the Government by providing vital information to assigned agencies, using them to desist from assisting illegal loggers, wildlife poachers and smugglers.
Governor
The Governor, therefore, directed all owners of seized trucks with illegally sawn timber to report to the Office of the Permanent Secretary, Cross River State Forestry Commission, within 7 days for necessary compounding of their trucks.
The State Government warned that failure to adhere to this directive will lead to the final confiscation and auction of the impounded trucks and timbers.
THEWILL Correspondent, Aniekan Bassey has over six years experience that spans across several fields in print journalism including development communication, sexual reproductive and health rights issues, crime, climate change, social justice, business and human interest stories.
