A community of Umuohiadagu in the Nekede Owerri West Council Area of
Imo State, Nigeria, protested the seizure of their land.
According to newsmen, they protested on Thursday at the government house in Owerri, urging the state governor, Hope Uzodimma, to address the alleged land grabbing in the name of building a shopping mall for former Nigeria's President, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo.
Interacting with journalists after the protest, Chief Oluchukwu Nnabugwu, spokesperson for the land allottees, affirmed that they were on the peaceful march to register their complaints to the State Government of Governor Hope Uzodimma against what they described as the nefarious activities of land grabbers, who, according to them, were masquerading as government agents in the said Central Market residential layout.
Nnebugwu alleged that in 2012, J.P.K. Anyanwu collaborated with government officials to forge allocation documents for the Central Pocket Layout. These forged documents were then sold to unsuspecting residents of Imo State for personal gain.
Similarly, they alleged that J.P.K. Anyanwu, along with Joe Jonny Joyson Enterprise Ltd. and Donez Global Services Ltd., defrauded the rightful owners of the Central Market Pocket Layout out of millions of Naira in 2023. This happened because they falsely claimed ownership of the land.
Villages were granted ownership of 40% of the land, with the remaining portion going to the government for investor allocation. Our legal ownership documents (Certificates of Occupancy) have never been revoked. Despite this, they are planning a groundbreaking ceremony for a shopping mall on the same land that rightfully belongs to us.
We urge the governor of Imo State to publicly denounce these known land grabbers. Their actions are tarnishing his reputation and the good work he's done. We demand a stop to all further demolitions on the disputed land, including those affecting landowners and even those with official land allocations. This should remain in effect until the investigation and court case are settled.