*It’s baseless accusation , says minister’s aide
A law firm, Shield and Sword Consult, has petitioned President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the National Security Adviser,Mallam Nuhu Ribadu and the Inspector General of Police Kayode Egbetokun over alleged “land grabbing” and “threat to life” by the minster of works Engr Dave Umahi and urged the authorities to institute a thorough investigation with the view to applying appropriate sanctions that will serve as deterrent to other public officer holders .
In the acknowledged copies of the three petitions made available to journalists and signed by the principal Consultant of the law firm , Silas Joseph, the works minister was accused of threatening the life of prince Njoku Chita and his family having allegedly cojoled the family into relinquishing a large expanse of their ancestral land under the pretext of community development, particularly the Dave Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences .
Details of a copy of the petition dated October , 6 ,2025 read in parts : “Engr. David Nweze Umahi (the Minister of Works) who is from Umunaga village of Uburu, has long before he became the Governor of Ebonyi State, been grabbing lands from helpless and indigent villagers – mostly from Umuchima village. The trend worsened when he became the Governor, as he basically expropriated lands in the name of government, for himself in the community with a threat that all lands belong to government and government could take over any land and pay compensation to whomever refuses to allow him have his way.”
While claiming that the DUFUTH was built on forcefully confiscated lands, a large part of which belongs to the Njoku Chita family, the family said they had accepted their fate for the good of the entire community, “But he (Umahi) went on to also forcefully takeover our clients’ land located behind a place known as Ene Ofor’s compound, where he built his so called “Industrial Cluster” which is his private industry anyway.”
According to the family, “Furthermore, even after his tenure as Ebonyi State Governor, Engr. Umahi continues to assert the power of a state government in his bid to own the entire community, which he has since totally and personally surveyed and now appointed a committee for the expansion of the University land”
The family also alleged that when the committee set up by the minister began its expansion activities, they were once again cajoled into surrendering more of their family land for the sake of peace and “development” claiming they are actually all Engr. Umahi’s private developments.
“Our clients are at a lost as they thought that the university is now a federal institution and wondered why a private citizen will be setting up committees to expand the land of a federal university by expropriating private owned lands.
“The ground work cutting through our client’s land has already begun in total disregard of their right and ownership and soon , the minister will take down the building theireon and desecrate the ground of those buried in the land.
“As a federal minister ,our clients are shocked that with all the federal roads needing urgent attention in Ebonyi state , Umahi is more interested in mapping out roads on private village lands for a project that is not of the Federal government , but as he claimed being funded by him to develop the community”
The petitioners called on President Bola Tinubu and the relevant security agencies “to conduct a thorough investigation with this matter and can guarantee you that those who are victims of these same actions by the minister Umahi will come out to testify of how he took their lands for no good reason or overriding public purpose . All are for his own private estate development covering to he entire community.”
In his response , Barr Orji Uchenna the Media Adviser to the Minister of Works, Engr Dave Umahi said the allegations were baseless .
Orji said that publications of allegations of land grabbing against the minister by family members in his village are baseless, frivolous, distracting and should be investigated by the police.
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