Land Seizure Allegations: Njoku Chita Family Says Sahara Reporters’ Investigation Vindicates Claims Against Umahi

The Njoku Chita family of Umuchima community in Uburu, Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, has said it has been vindicated by a recent report published by Sahara Reporters on alleged land seizures in the area, which they claim involve the Minister of Works, Engr. Dave Umahi.

In a statement, the family said the publication validates its long-standing allegations that the minister, allegedly acting in concert with his elder brother, Eze Laz Umahi, and some traditional rulers, has been involved in the forceful takeover of ancestral lands in Umuchima and neighbouring communities.

The family recalled that its own ancestral land was allegedly encroached upon, warning that the minister had, in their view, demonstrated a pattern of land acquisition carried out with impunity and insensitivity. They accused Engr. Umahi of using his former position as Governor of Ebonyi State and his current office as Minister of Works to appropriate community lands under the guise of executing public infrastructure projects, but allegedly for personal interests.

According to the family, the ongoing controversy has heightened tension within the community, particularly following reports that graves were allegedly exhumed by bulldozers during demolition exercises said to have been carried out on the minister’s directive. They said these actions have caused deep emotional distress and fear among residents.

On December 11, 2025, Sahara Reporters published accounts by residents of Umuchima, describing alleged forced demolitions of homes, ancestral compounds and farmlands. The report stated that the actions, purportedly carried out for government projects, had resulted in displacement, psychological trauma, economic hardship and, in some cases, deaths.

The report described Umuchima—the largest of the 14 communities in Uburu—as a place where grief has become commonplace. Once known, according to residents, as a lively and joyful community, Umuchima was said to have been transformed into an area marked by fear, displacement and quiet mourning.

Sahara Reporters further noted that the alleged troubles escalated shortly after David Umahi assumed office as governor in 2015 and have continued even after his appointment as Minister of Works. Community members, speaking through the United Umuchima Community General Assembly, were quoted as saying that a series of demolitions, land seizures and confrontations carried out under Umahi’s authority had left many residents traumatized, uprooted and bereaved.

Reacting to the report, the Njoku Chita family commended community members who, they said, have begun to speak out and resist what they described as injustice. The family said it initially raised the alarm not only to protect its ancestral land but also to draw attention to what it called a broader pattern of oppression in the area.

The family maintained that the alleged actions of the minister and those supporting him violate fundamental human rights and offend the principles of justice and fairness, particularly the right to own property, including ancestral land.

They also expressed disappointment in the role of some traditional rulers, whom they accused of abandoning their responsibilities as custodians of truth and justice in favour of defending the minister and issuing statements they described as misleading.

The family rejected claims that residents willingly surrendered their lands, describing such assertions as false and shameful. It insisted that it would not succumb to intimidation and vowed to resist any further attempts to seize its ancestral land.

The Njoku Chita family disclosed that it had earlier written petitions to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), the Inspector-General of Police and other relevant authorities over the alleged land seizures and threats to life—allegations the minister has reportedly dismissed as baseless and politically motivated.

The family again called on President Tinubu and relevant authorities to intervene and urged Eze Laz Umahi and other traditional rulers allegedly involved to immediately desist from what it described as arbitrary land seizures.