Enugu community protests alleged land grabbing, seeks government intervention

Women of Ubahu community display placards during a peaceful protest over alleged land grabbing in Nkanu East Local Government Area of Enugu State.

Residents of Ubahu community in Nkanu East Local Government Area of Enugu State have called on the state government to intervene over what they describe as alleged large-scale land grabbing on their ancestral land.

The residents staged a peaceful protest on Thursday, carrying placards with messages including: “We Have No Place to Farm Due to Activities of Unknown Land Grabbers” and “Our Farmlands Are Being Taken Without Consultation.” Others read: “Houses Marked for Demolition” and “Hunger Is Taking Over Ubahu.”

Speaking during the protest, the acting youth leader of the community, Mazi Chukwuebuka Nnaji, said the situation had created confusion, alleging that unidentified individuals had taken over large portions of land.

“The present development, seeing several unknown people occupying different portions of land in the community, is unacceptable,” he said.

“We are worried because no authority has explained what is happening to us. If it is a government-backed exercise, it is not being done in a transparent and community-informed manner.”

He noted that while land is legally vested in the government, local communities must be properly engaged.

“Communities with ancestral ties to the land must be carried along,” he said.

“You cannot take communal land without formally engaging traditional rulers, community leaders and stakeholders.”

A women leader in the community, Ma Ugochi Uzoma, said many residents had been displaced from their farmlands.

“Our farmlands have been taken over, and many women, including widows, can no longer farm,” she said.

She also alleged that some houses had been marked for demolition.

“We are calling for urgent intervention. People are being pushed out of their ancestral homes,” she said.

Ubahu community shares a boundary with Owo community, the hometown of the Governor of Enugu State, Peter Mbah.