Ugwuoba Housing Estate: Enugu Agency condemns false claims, warns sponsors

The Enugu State Housing Development Corporation has again raised the red flag over what it called “sponsored publications targeted at the Enugu State Government in lieu of the Housing Project at Obinagu village in Ugwuoba, Oji River Local Government Area of the State.

Chairman of the Corporation, Mr. Chiemelie Agu in a statement made available to the media said such baseless and false narratives were capable of inhibiting development.

He noted that “many a time, the reason for concentration of social amenities and infrastructure in a particular area, called urban, may not actually be the fault of those in government positions but the unfortunate refusal of some communities to embrace innovations.”

He said research had revealed that such a community remained not only backward but continued to live in regret.

“In many cases, such decisions are being taken by few individuals who are after their own personal gains as against the overall interest of the community. They could only achieve this, true cheap propaganda, malicious and deceptive publications.

“Recently, our attention was drawn to one of such publications in an online newspaper by one Onyema Maduabuchi etitled: ‘The People of Obinagu village in Ugwuoba, Oji River Local Government Area of Enugu State are accusing one Mr Chukwuemerie Agu,MD Enugu State Housing Development Corporation of forcefully acquiring their ancestral land.’

“The said publication was not only fallacious but lacks the consent and authority of the good people of Ugwuoba.”

The MD further stated that “the land in question is a parcel of land lying along Enugu-Onitsha Express road, measuring approximately 150 hectares which was diligently and duly acquired in 1995 by the then military Administrator, Col Mike Torre and handed over to the Enugu State Housing Development Corporation with the certificate of occupancy of a dated 6th June 1996 and registered as no.38 page 38 in vol. 1071 land registry in the office at Enugu.

“That prior to the issuance of the Certificate of Occupancy, there was a notice of revocation which was properly published in the government gazette no. ISSN(1116 -2032) vol. 5 page 12 in notice no. 18 official gazette no. 5 vol 4 of 03/6/1999.

“That the corporation commenced development of the Land in 1995 immediately after the acquisition and some buildings were at different levels before the change of government which led to the suspension of work at the Estate.

“That the Corporation is wondering why the sponsored publication is springing up 26 years after the land acquisition. If not the change of government, the estate would have been a completed project for the past 26 years.

“That all the villages, including Okpuno, Agolo, Eziachi, Anaocha and Nkpoga are beckoning on government to hurry up to develop the land while few people from Obinagu are busy trying to lay exclusive bogus claim over the entire land and at the same time tampering with the buildings which were erected by the Corporation.

“However, irrespective of all the distractions and the frivolities coming from self-acclaimed community leaders, the Corporation is willing to listen to the genuine grievances of the bonafide people of Obinagu as part of our host communities.

“That the alleged court case was between the villages on who gets what from the compensation and does not has anything to do with the Estate.

“The Corporation is determined to spread his development to rural areas including Oji River and other places. We cannot allow enemies of progress to interfere with the good plans of the government.

“That the Corporation is using this medium to sound a note of warning to the distractors who are deceiving the public that we shall not hesitate to employ legal action against those people for criminal activities, trespass, false information and libel if they fail to desist from such act. The sponsors of these falsehoods will soon be unmasked and their true identities and mischievous intentions revealed.

“The public should not only resist the devilish ideas of these selfish cankerworms but know that spreading fake news in the media has become an exposed strategy.”