Don’t Destroy My Community For Enugu’s Centenary City Project, Traditional Ruler Warns Govt

The traditional ruler of Obeagu, Awkunanaw Community in Enugu South Local Government Area of Enugu State, Igwe Mike Nnukwu, Tuesday, called for a halt in the ongoing demolition of buildings of the natives situated on the land designated for the proposed Enugu Centenary City.

It was gathered that the estate is a private sector initiative on a large expanse of land meant for a state public institution. The traditional ruler was reacting to a protest against the demolition of the houses by the state authorities over alleged violation of the masterplan of Enugu municipality.

The protest was done on Monday with over 3, 000 men and women calling on the state government not to displace the natives from their ancestral home. They urged the government to factor them into the proposed new city.

In the words of the traditional ruler, “Our case is all about the lingering issue of Private Estate International, otherwise known as Centenary. They have come to acquire an illegal land in my community. They have dispossessed my people’s land. Most of these lands had been already given to the youths of tomorrow where they will build their individual houses in future. We woke up one morning to see that some individuals who call themselves Private Developers International have claimed that this vast area of land had been allocated to them by the state government. They said the land was given to them by former Governor Sullivan Chime.

“It didn’t go down well with us because we didn’t know about it. What we know was that this land was acquired during the time of former Governor Jim Nwobodo for the establishment of Anambra State University, which was never built. We have always done our best to support the government. That is our story.”

He called on the Enugu State government to come to their aid, and warned of the consequences of forceful takeover of the community’s ancestral land.

In his words, “Our youths are no longer happy. Our women are not happy. Some of the houses they marked to be removed are houses our people have done their best to ensure they can live in as human beings. This private estate is a private individual business. We have nothing to do with them. No compensation was paid to our people. There is no memorandum of understanding between our people and them. How come that these people have decided to be intimidating us with our money – the money they sold from our land? There are a lot of stories.”

The President General of the community is Oben Okafor. He said one of the demolished houses belonged to his son. Quoting him, “Enugu Capital Territory Authority through Centenary City demolished the proposed hospital meant to serve our people. Since 2009, they have been worrying our community, trying to take over our community for no reason. They claim they are building a new township. Are the people of Obeagu not qualified to live in the new township? If you want to develop our area, why must you demolish our property? If you ask us for a space in our area, we allow you to come in, not asking us to vacate our area for your personal interest. The place they call Centenary City is being sold by them. Nobody gave it to them. Our community did not give them any consent or anybody did.

“We have a series of court cases against them, with many of them having court injunctions restraining them from accessing our land. The land for all the projects you see here was not sold to anybody by the community, but members of our community who are willing and have the money to build houses are given allocations to do that. An MoU has been prepared between whoever is an indigene and the community to build on the land allotted to them.”

He said his son was a victim as his space meant for a hospital was pulled down. “All the documents pertaining to his space are already at the town planning. The worst part of it is that they demolished these buildings on a Saturday, not on a working day. The people that came here were on masks. They came in about seven vehicles. The only recognition we could make are the DRS Police, and the Enugu Capital Territory Authority. If it is a genuine job, why must it be done on a Saturday? Does Capital Territory work on Saturdays? The developers brought them to intimidate us. Are we not qualified to be part of the new township? Don’t we have people with the capability to build any kind of house? We have told the government that if they want any space, they can approach us.”

Meanwhile, the Chairman, Enugu Capital Territory Development Authority, Mr Uche Anya, denied any wrongdoing. He said, “We are determined to stamp out the culture of distorting Enugu municipality masterplan and shall not allow any development that contravenes the law or serves as a hideout for criminals.”