- Enugu community accuses LG boss of land grabbing, trespass
- Community leaders, retired military officer, others trace the origin of the land in dispute, ask LG boss to steer clear of the property
- LG boss denies allegations, says the land originally belongs to the state government
All seems not to be well in Opi ancient community as the people of Amankwo Ekautara Ibeku Opi Autonomous Community, Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State have expressed surprise on the alleged move by Chief Jude Asogwa, the Chairman of the Council area to forcefully take over the community’s ancestral land without any notice or consultation.
Stakeholders in the community disclosed this in Nsukka on Wednesday while addressing newsmen including WITHIN NIGERIA reporter after conducting them round the destroyed houses, farms, economic trees and other valuables by bulldozer deployed by the council Chairman on Jan 17.
According to them, the ancestral land in question has been from time immemorial the lifeline of families, sustaining them through farming, harvests from economic trees and small-scale agriculture, describing the action of the council boss as a gross violation of fundamental rights of the people.
Speaking, HRH, Igwe Lordswell Eleje, the traditional ruler of the community who spoke through his legal adviser Mr. Osita Ogbu, said that it is disheartening that a council chairman could invade their communal land and start destroying people’s buildings under construction, farmlands, economic trees, among others without prior notice or consultation.
“The land in question is lying and situated at Ukwuala Ugwurogo Ibeku which the people leased in 1976 to Bartoletti Nigeria Limited, a foreign construction company to use it as a Base Camp for their staff during the construction of the 9th mile- Makurdi Expressway.
“At the end of the project, the company vacated the site in 2007 and handed over the land back to the community who thereafter partitioned the land to the natives accordingly, of which some of the owners have since developed and erected structures on their portions.
“To our greatest surprise, on the 17th of January, we woke up to chaos as bulldozers said to have been sent by the council chairman with armed security personnel providing security to the bulldozers operators as they destroyed our building structures, farmlands, economic trees, etc in an attempt to forcefully take over the land without notifying the people,” he said.
The traditional ruler’s legal adviser said further that the community was determined to deploy all legal means to ensure that their land would not be illegally or forcefully taken away from them, stressing that the community is open to peaceful negotiation with the council boss concerning the acquisition of the said land.
Also speaking, Dr Isaiah Abonyi, the President General of Ekautara Ibeku Opi autonomous Community also expressed shock and disappointment that the community was not informed by the council before rolling out bulldozers into their land.
He appealed to the youths of the community and those whose property, cash crops and farmland were affected to remain calm noting that leaders in the community have already initiated a move to see the council chairman and resolve the issue.
Speaking on the same issue, Mr Silas Ezugwu, the eldest man in the community, aged 97, said that he has no information that local government officials are coming to take over their ancestral land.
The eldest man said that to the best of his knowledge, there was no time the community gave that land to the local government, adding that the land that the community gave was the one they gave to the customary Court which everyone knew the boundary and the records are there.
“I was surprised when some of my people came to my house and told me that the local government people had taken over our ancestral land without informing us.
“I am appealing on Governor Peter Mbah to call the council chairman to order to leave our ancestral land alone for us,” he said.
Reacting, one of the prominent members of the community, Captain Nwabueze Agbo Rtd, said he came down from his Abuja base on hearing that his land where he invested all his earnings after 35 years of service in the Nigerian army had been destroyed.
According to him “My duplex building under construction, in foundation level was destroyed, while building materials for the projects like rods and others were carted-away. Other people’s investments like poultry farms that contain over 2,000 birds as well as piggery farms were all destroyed. This is where I invested my 35 years of life savings after serving in the Nigerian army. I can’t fold my hands and watch anybody destroy what I laboured for years.”
The retired captain, however, urged youths in the area to avoid violence of any type in approaching the matter, promising that the community would deploy all legal means to seek redress.
Speaking on behalf of the youths in the community, Mr Kingsley Ezugwu said that the community was yet to recover from what the council chairman did by using bulldozers to destroy their farmlands and buildings without prior notice.
“The only land the community gave was 4.40 hectares of land for the construction of customary courts many decades ago, and we know the boundary, so we don’t know how the council chairman got the information to come and lay claim to our ancestral land.
“Attempts by some youths to use their mobile phone and record and capture the demolitions by the bulldozer sent by the castle chairman was met with brutality by security personnel who forcefully collected their phones from them and deleted all their recordings while others have their phones smashed.
“This is the first time we are hearing that local government authority is laying claim to this our land, but what gave him the impetus to invade the land without notifying the people is what is still baffling us up to this moment,” he said.
While appealing for Governor Mbah’s intervention, he urged the council chairman to learn to apply good leadership and due process in his governance from the governor’s leadership style.
“Governor Peter Mbah who is presently dualizing the Nowas-Nike-Opi Nsukka road gave those whose property was affected first, second, and third notice, whereas the Nsukka LG Bos did not even give the people 24hrs notice.
“But true development if that was what the chairman meant is participatory, inclusive, and humane. It does not rob people of their means of survival. This land grab is a gross violation of fundamental rights, and those responsible must be held accountable,” he said
Mr. Ifeanyi Agbo the Chairman of Landlords in the area expressed concern over Nsukka council claiming ownership of the land, explaining that for decades he owned property in that area no past council chairmen of Nsukka LG had come to make such a claim.
“Even the LG owns that place courtesy and due process demand people occupying that land should be given at least 24 hours’ notice before rolling out bulldozers to destroy people’s property and other valuables.
Mrs Agnes Ezugwu, a widow whose crops were also destroyed begged the state government to intervene saying that the farmland was the only farmland left for her by her late husband.
However, in his when contacted on phone, Chief Jude Chinedu Asogwa, the council boss said that the land in question belongs to the customary court in the area adding that the council reached an agreement with the court before taking over the land for development.
“Nsukka local government did not enter into the Amankwo Ekautara Ibeku Opi ancestral land. What happened was the council planned to expand Afor Opi market using the land so that the market would absorb activities that would crop up in the area after the dualization of Ugwogo-Opi Nsukka road, 9th mile-Makurdi Expressway and 9th mile-Awhum-Ukehe-Opi road.
“So, the land we are clearing belongs to the customary court Opi, and we reached an agreement with them to take over the land and develop it. The document signed by the president of Enugu State Customary Court and the local government is here with us, he said.
The council boss said further that he has explained the situation to some of the community members who reached out to him on the matter. He, however, denies the allegation that the council did not give the people notice to remove their crops and structures before sending bulldozers to clear the area.
“We gave them notice even before we started fencing the customary court buildings, and again there was no property there that was damaged, the place was just an empty land and we cleared it, the videos are there,” he said.
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