Members of the prestigious Onitsha Sports Club are presently fighting the battle of their lifetime to protect the premium relaxation and recreational facility from those they described as intruders.
The 100-year-old club, founded in 1924, has served the recreational needs of the elites of the Onitsha business community of Anambra State. The facility has been expanded over the years to include a restaurant, events hall and other indoor sports facilities where members unwind and also engage in other social activities.
But the serenity of the place was shattered on August 10, 2024, when a bulldozer moved in there and pulled down structures. By the time the dust settled, the club’s auditorium, the staff quarters and the perimeter fence that stretched down to the Holy Trinity Cathedral, Onitsha, were all reduced to rubbles.
A witness said that before the bulldozer came calling, at daytime, some hoodlums invaded the facility around 1.00am and pulled down part of the fence with hammers and other weapons.
A lawyer, Harold Ekwerekwu, took responsibility for the demolition. He claimed that the land where the sports club was built belongs to the Ekwerekwu family, saying that they had come to take possession of their property after the expiration of the lease they entered into with his family.
