News
Controversial Enugu Centenary Land: A Daniel Has Come To Judgement
The Enugu House of Assembly may not have made headlines for sometime, not because the House has not been sitting or performing it’s constitutional functions but the Media may not have seen weighty decisions to guarantee top spots in the news.
However, the recent report on the controversial Centenary City Land which has claimed some lives was a major decision that has attracted the attention of major media houses across the country.
For a controversy that led to several litigations, muscle flexing, behind the scene manoeuvres involving very prominent and powerful individuals, one could have predicted that even the Obeagu and Amaechi Communities must have had doubts if the Assembly would be able to treat their matter without fear or favour.
But the Assembly came out smoking; delivering a shocking report that can only be described as transparent.
The report of the Special Committee on
Land Matters/Dispute has continued to receive wide commendations across the country.
And the media cannot help but document this landmark report at a time the common man was losing fate in the system.
The Issues At Stake
The petition from Obeagu and Amechi Communities alleged that a private firm, Private Estates International West Africa(PEIWA) used intimidation, harassment, malicious demolition of buildings in order to forcefully takeover their ancestral land despite pending suits in court.
It all started sometime in 1982, when former Governor of Old Anambra State Dr. Jim Nwobodo, a native of Amechi Awkunanaw proposed to site a university within his home community.
He commissioned for Survey works pursuant to the proposed acquisition of an estimated 318.560 hectares of land in certain kindred families in Amechi Uwani and the Obeagu Awkunanaw Community.
Preliminary Survey was done and endorsed by the then Surveyor General, M.U.C Obi dated March 8, 1982 with Tracing No: MISC AN-53 for 318.560 hectares.
However, Jim Nwobodo left office in 1983 and was unable to complete the acquisition and the project.
But a certain Private company, Private Estates International West Africa Limited (PEIWA), entered the land sometime in 2009 in the name of a New Township Development Joint venture with the Government and began to clear the land for the proposed development.
The promoters of the new project allegedly extended the land from 318.560 to over 1097 hectares of their ancestral lands partly belonging to AmechiUwani and the other part to Obeagu Awkunanaw.
While the survey sketch for the proposed Anambra State University of Technology was registered as TRACING NO: MISC AN-53, signed by the then Surveyor General, M.U.C Obi and dated March 8, 1982, a new Survey Plan was purportedly re-scripted to bear PLAN No: EN (A) 594 in favour of the Enugu State University of Technology in 1985 and expanded to 1097 hectares.
PEIWA’s Submissions
Responding to issues raised by the communities, PEIWA said they did not participate in the acquisition of the 1,097.128 hectares of land in 1986.
That on 18/5/2009, they entered into agreement with Enugu State Government named” New Township Development Agreement” (NTDA) to develop a model city on the 1,097.128 hectares in Amechi/Obeagu Communities covered by C of O dated 1/1/2009.
That sequel to the above mentioned agreement, the State Government relinquished to PEIWA the said 1,097.128 hectares of land.
That they took full possession of the land in accordance with the provisions as stipulated in New Township Development Agreement.
Committee Findings
In its findings the Assembly Committee noted that PEIWA was unable to prove that the process of acquisition was served on Obeagu/Amechi Communities as required under the Land Use Act.
The Assembly picked holes in the documents of acquisition of the said 1097 hectares with respect to the Survey plan, official gazette and some correspondences such as:
(i) The survey plan dated 1985 and it read “survey plan for the permanent site of Enugu State University of Science and Technology, which is obviously dubious because Enugu State had not be created in 1985.The State was created in 1991 and Enugu State University of Science and Technology established thereafter.
(i) That Surveyor Igboanugo the acting Surveyor General of Anambra State in 1983 who eventually retired voluntarily in 1984 was said to have signed the survey plan in 1986 which is untrue because he could not have signed the
survey plan as Surveyor General of Anambra State two years after he had left office.
(iii) That the aforementioned official gazette was purported to have been signed in 1986 on behalf of Navy Captain Alison Madueke as the Military Governor of Anambra State when in fact Navy Captain Allison Madueke was not the Military Governor of Anambra Sate at that time.
(iv) The said correspondences supposedly signed by Chief Gabriel Ezeoha Ogbodo on behalf of Obeagu Community in his capacity as the Igwe of Obeagu were forged because he
was not the Igwe of Obeagu in 1986. He was deposed as Igwe of Obeagu long before 1986.
(v) The correspondences purportedly signed by Chief V.V. Chukwuegbo on behalf of Amechi community were also forged. Chief V.V. Chukwuegbo was not the Igwe of Amechi at that time, neither was he the regent. HRH Moses Ogbodo was Igwe of Amechi then.
(vi) That the former Governor of Anambra State, Dr. Jim Nwobodo in Vanguard Newspaper publication of 4th March, 2020, stated that any acquisition or certificate of occupancy over the land made and or predicated on the Anambra State of Nigeria official gazette No.12 Volume II of 27th March, 1986 and the purported 1985 Enugu State University of Science and Technology (plan EN(A)594)when Enugu State was not in
existence is invalid.
That Obeagu/Amechi Communities proved beyond reasonable doubt that they were not carried along in the acquisition process.
That this matter cannot be peaceably resolved by litigation rather through mediation addressing those issues highlighted by the host Communities for a lasting peace both to the investors (including all other developers and persons affiliated to or who derive titles from the host communities)and the host Communities as well.
The Committee accused PEIWA of deliberately withholding information as it concerned fulfilling their financial obligations as stipulated in the New Township Development Agreement, hence, their blatant refusal to submit to the Committee the evidence of payment to the State Government.
That Amechi and Obeagu Communities have not been compensated for the purported acquisition of their ancestral land.
That about 80% of the land is currently encumbered as the communities have sold to several developers who have in turn sold to third parties who are bonafide purchasers without any notice.
That this dispute and numerous litigations are negatively impacting on various meaningful ventures intended for the area, the image of the state is also affected as if it harbours an unfriendly business environment, and in all these, none of those involved, including the communities are better-off either.
Recommendations
The Committee urged the State Government, to, as a matter of urgency set up a high powered mediation panel for possible and amicable resolution of the matter.
That all parties should embrace dialogue and compromise as the only veritable means to peaceably resolve the issue for a lasting peace.
That a mechanism should be put in place to expedite action on the immediate payment of commensurate compensation to the Obeagu and Amechi Communities in respect of the portion of land already developed by PEIWA.
That Enugu State Government should urgently consider entering into partnership with the host communities instead, since the agreement entered with PEIWA touching or involving the entire hectares of land(1,097 hectares), belonging to the host communities without evidence of government acquisition, has created unimaginable complexities and the present hydra headed situation.
That Enugu State Government should call for Audit of all the Lands developed by PEIWA in order to ascertain the exact portion of land under PEIWA’s occupation and its indebtedness to the State Government.
Yes, A Daniel Has Come to Judgement and the masses must be celebrating that they have such a legislature that can be relied upon in cases such as this.
Observers have also stressed the need for the Assembly to followup on the recommendations to see to it’s logical implementation as some very powerful individuals may want to obstruct the course of justice.
This is a test case, and the integrity and resolve of the Enugu House of Assembly is on trial.
The Abia State University, Uturu, has placed an Economics lecturer, Prof. Nnamdi Nwaeze, on immediate suspension over comments he made about the earnings of university professors.
Nwaeze, a lecturer in the Department of Economics, Faculty of Economics and Management Sciences, reportedly made the remarks in posts published on his Facebook account.
In the posts, he alleged that some professors at the university take home less than N400,000 monthly.
He also compared the earnings of the academics with those of commercial tricycle operators, popularly known as Keke riders, claiming that some riders could earn more cumulatively than university professors.
The university authorities described the lecturer’s social media comments as damaging to the interests of the institution.
The suspension was announced in a statement issued by the university’s Public Relations Officer and Deputy Registrar, Chijioke Nwogu.
Management also disclosed that it had constituted a panel to investigate the allegations and examine the circumstances surrounding the lecturer’s statements.
The outcome of the investigation is expected to determine the university’s next course of action.
By Okey Maduforo Awka
The crisis over who is the candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress( NDC) for Anaocha 1 state Constituency in Anambra state has deepened following confirmation that neither incumbent Lawmaker Hon Nkechi Ogbuefi nor Chief Azubuike Okoye is the candidate of the party .
The party in the state yesterday confirmed that Mr Kevin Alike is the candidate of the party for Anaocha Constituency 1 and his name has already been uploaded at the portal of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).
Further more, the candidate for Anaocha Constituency 2 is yet undecided as the battle has remained unsettled.
Recall that Hon Nkechi Ogbuefi had accused Chief Azubuike Okoye of parading himself as the candidate of the party contending that as an incumbent Lawmaker, the party had granted all serving lawmakers in the party waver during the conduct of the party primary elections upon which she emerged as candidate.
But Hon Azubuike Okoye had dismissed the allegation adding that it is the duty of INEC to make public who the candidate is and that he would not join issues with the reports on Social Media.
Ogbuefi had told reporters that when she reported the matter to the state Chairman of the party Chief Ikem Uzoezie he told her to ignore the claim that Mr Peter Obi personally submitted her name as candidate.
But in a turn of events, the Chairman Ikem Uzoezie told reporters that the candidate for Anaocha 1 state Constituency is Mr Kevin Alike whose name has been uploaded into the portal of INEC.
Uzuezie further stated that the case of Anaocha Constituency 2 is yet to be decided yet adding that the two aspirants for the ticket is Hon Azubuike Okoye and Eric Maduagwu and they when all arrangements are concluded, the candidate for Anaocha 2 Constituency would be made public.
By Okey Maduforo, Awka
About 15 persons have reportedly died, while more than 200 buildings are said to be at risk of collapse as a result of extensive sand mining activities in Uga Community, Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State.
The sand mining business has continued to worsen gully erosion in the community, which is already known to be one of the erosion-devastated areas of the state.
More worrisome is the alleged destruction of three newly constructed roads in the area by heavy-duty trucks that frequently visit the mining sites to evacuate sand, a development residents said was threatening road infrastructure in the community.
Recall that the Anambra State Government, through the Commissioner for Environment, Dr Clem Aguiyi, had banned sand excavation in some parts of the state, particularly in Aguata, Orumba North and Orumba South Local Government Areas.
The government also established a task force to monitor sand mining activities in the affected communities, warning that it would not tolerate activities capable of worsening environmental degradation. The government had also lamented that the landmass of Anambra State was shrinking daily due to the menace of gully erosion.
However, residents of Uga Community alleged that some youths had been engaged by sand miners to create insecurity in parts of the community, thereby causing division within the Town Union Youth Association.
When reporters visited Umudimishi Village in Uga, residents protested and appealed to Governor Charles Soludo to visit the area on a fact-finding mission and take urgent steps to halt the activities of the sand miners.
Speaking, the Chairman of Umudimishi Village, Uga, Nze Jude Ibeabuchukwu Ugochukwu, said the community had battled gully erosion for decades.
He said, “We have been victims of gully erosion. Since I was born, I grew up to see gully erosion in my town.
“We have about five gully erosion sites in my area, including one that came from our neighbouring town, Umueze, another one in our town and others in different locations.
“We have been witnessing gully erosion for over 37 years now, but successive governments and the villagers have been working on the gullies.”
Ugochukwu lamented that the effect of sand mining had also discouraged some youths from engaging in legitimate businesses and trades.
“Every morning, they visit the mining sites because of the pittance they get from there, and they don’t want to be useful to themselves.
“The mining has gotten to residential areas where people are living, such as Umudimishi, Awarasi and Agbakuwa villages.
“So far, about 200 buildings are now at risk of gully erosion, and before the end of this year, or within the next five months, at least 70 houses could be destroyed by gully erosion caused by sand mining activities in our town,” he said.
He maintained that the land belonged to the town and alleged that the community did not authorise anyone to carry out sand mining in the area.
According to him, the initial miners, known as Morning Star, used to excavate sand manually before the introduction of excavators.
“Today, the excavators pay N400 per load and some money to the youths of our community,” he alleged.
The community leader further lamented that the sand mining activities had damaged roads constructed by the Soludo administration, alleging that the heavy trucks conveying sand had weakened the newly constructed roads.
“Roads such as the Obizi Road, Umueze Road, Ugwu-Onyeocha Road to Nkwo-Uga and Awarasi are being destroyed.
“We call on the government to visit these areas with a fact-finding team to assess the level of environmental degradation as well as the destruction of the newly constructed roads,” he said.
Similarly, the Chairman of the Youths in Umudimishi Village, Mr Ifeanyichukwu Agbara, claimed that more than 15 people had died in connection with activities at the mining sites, while some were allegedly killed by gunmen.
He said the youth leadership had been trying to discourage young people from depending on sand mining as a source of livelihood.
“We have been fighting to ensure that our youths get into something meaningful and do not depend on sand mining.
“They don’t want to learn any trade. All they do is go to the beach site to mine sand.
“Some of our youths have formed a parallel youth organisation against the official youth organisation.
“They call themselves Ekwere-Kwesike. They pay them N1,000 for each tipper load, which they share every day,” he alleged.
Agbara said the mining activities had claimed the lives of several youths in the community, particularly when mining pits collapsed.
“This beach-site business has killed a lot of youths in the town because sometimes the sites collapse while the youths are working there.
“We have had about seven youths die on the site. Sometime ago, it killed four other people at the same time.
“Also, there was an incident where some gunmen stormed the site and opened fire on the people working there and killed about three of them.
“The total number of deaths is about 15. That is why we are calling on the government to come and help us. We are ready to take the government to the affected areas,” he lamented.
The residents urged the state government to urgently investigate the allegations, assess the extent of environmental degradation and take steps to protect lives, homes and road infrastructure in the affected parts of Uga Community.
18-Year-Old Drowns in Kano Pond
The Kano State Fire Service has confirmed the death of 18-year-old Abdullahi Aminu, who drowned after falling into a pond at Kofar Gabas in Danbatta Local Government Area of the state.
The Director of the Kano State Fire Service, Sani Anas, disclosed this in a statement signed by the service’s Public Relations Officer, Saminu Abdullahi, on Wednesday in Kano.
According to the statement, the incident occurred on Tuesday afternoon.
Abdullahi said the service received a distress call from the Danbatta Fire Station at about 3:28 p.m. from Aminu Lawan, the victim’s father, who reported that his son had drowned in the pond.
“Upon receiving the report, we immediately deployed our rescue team to the scene,” he said.
He said the victim was eventually brought out of the pond dead.
The spokesperson said the cause of the incident was still under investigation, adding that the deceased was later handed over to the Secretary to the District Head of Danbatta, Alhaji Baba Ado Sarkin Bai.
Abdullahi sympathised with the family of the deceased and urged residents to exercise caution around ponds and waterways, particularly during the rainy season.
(NAN)
Passengers were left stranded in Abuja and Lagos on Tuesday as aviation unions shut down operations of Air Peace over allegations that the airline was frustrating workers’ unionisation and withholding ticket sales charges owed to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).
The disruption affected flights in Lagos, Abuja and Enugu, with about 70 flights reportedly grounded.
The situation escalated when an Air Peace driver allegedly drove a large bus onto the airside during the unions’ picketing exercise.
The NCAA confirmed the incident and said the driver could face prosecution for allegedly obstructing movement within the airside. The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) subsequently towed the vehicle away.
NCAA Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, said the authority had ordered that the driver be identified and arrested.
He said, “During the enforcement of the picketing, a driver drove the large bus to the runway, parked and left the place. We have ordered that the driver in question be identified and arrested for onward prosecution. How can somebody block the runway? That is seriously uncalled for. We will investigate, and the necessary portions of the Act will be invoked.”
However, Air Peace spokesperson, Efe Whiskey-Osifo, denied that the bus blocked the runway.
The incident occurred as the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN) and National Association of Aircraft Pilots and Engineers (NAAPE), backed by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC), commenced picketing of Air Peace.
The unions accused the airline of frustrating workers’ efforts to unionise and failing to remit the five per cent Ticket Sales Charge (TSC) allegedly owed to the NCAA.
A NUATE official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, claimed that airlines under the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) owed about N25bn in TSC, with Air Peace accounting for approximately N15bn.
“There’s a meeting between the airline operators association. You are aware of the cause of the strike: TSC issues amounting to about N25bn. The total accrued to AON is N25bn.
“Air Peace is having the highest amount of N15bn, and secondly, they are denying airline workers of organising and to form unions, which is a fundamental right. Those are the two things that we are fighting for,” the official said.
The unions had earlier issued three warnings to airlines over the alleged non-remittance of the charge before threatening to commence picketing.
The five per cent TSC is collected from passengers on airline tickets and is required to be remitted to the NCAA for distribution among relevant aviation agencies to support their operations.
Air Peace, however, rejected the allegations, insisting that it had remitted the TSC to the NCAA and questioning why its operations were singled out for disruption.
Whiskey-Osifo said the unions targeted Air Peace’s major operational hubs in Lagos, Abuja and Enugu, effectively grounding its network.
“The unions picketed our operations across board. Lagos, Enugu, Abuja, stopping those places, which are our hubs, those places where we do night stops. So they basically grounded all our operations,” he said.
He added that while the unions had threatened to picket all Nigerian airlines, other carriers, including Ibom Air, Enugu Air and Aero, operated flights.
“They stated that they were going to picket all Nigerian airlines. However, the likes of Ibom Air, Enugu Air, even Aero, operated flights today. And you solely picked on only Air Peace, disrupting flights, the first flight out of Lagos, Abuja, and Enugu,” he said.
The Air Peace spokesperson also said the airline’s workers did not want to join the unions.
“The reason why they are singling out Air Peace is that Air Peace staff, number one, don’t want to join the unions. We don’t want to join at all,” he said.
According to him, Air Peace workers had staged a peaceful protest against unionisation but alleged that union members later infiltrated the demonstration and caused a confrontation.
“We came out to protest peacefully, but unfortunately, they hampered our operations,” he said.
The unions, however, maintained that workers’ right to organise was non-negotiable.
Achimugu said the AON had appealed to the unions to suspend the picketing to allow discussions with the affected airlines, particularly Air Peace, whose chairman is also a senior executive of the association.
“The AON pleaded with the unions to suspend it while they schedule a meeting, especially with Air Peace management,” he said, adding that the unions had been informed that a meeting could take place on Wednesday.
The NCAA spokesperson said the industrial action affected several airlines operating from specific terminals in Lagos and Abuja.
“I know that a number of airlines operating from specific terminals in Lagos and Abuja were disrupted. Take, for instance, in Abuja, a terminal that was shut down; it affected airlines like Air Peace, Aero and a host of others,” he said.
By Tuesday evening, Air Peace said it had begun restoring its operations.
“We are operating flights already. Flights will operate today irrespective of the situation,” the airline said.
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