CENTENARY WAR - OBEAGU COMMUNITY CRIES TO ENUGU ASSEMBLY

The Obeagu community of Enugu South Local Government of Enugu State appears to have seen the worst.

It has been driven from one point to the next in the brazen attempt of land grabbers and agents of government to seize their lands to sell same and make billions of Naira. 

In a petition written by the Community Assembly, led by Chief Andy Egbo, the cry has been raised to high pitches òver what the petitioners termed the worst form of oppression  even as the State government looked the other way.

In the petition entitled "GROSS, CONTEMPTUOUS/FLAGRANT DISRESPECT TO THE RESOLUTION OF THE HOUSE, ABUSIVE USE OF POLICE POWERS BY SOME OFFICERS OF FCID ANNEX, LAGOS LED BY AIG MARGARET OCHALLA, BASED ON THE MALICIOUS INSTIGATION OF GOZIE OKOYE, KINGSLEY EZE, AND CHAMBERLIN MBACHU, FOR THE PURPOSE OF ARRESTING, DETAINING AND FILING SPURIOUS CHARGES TO MALICIOUSLY PROSECUTE OBEAGU INDIGENES BECAUSE OF THEIR ANCESTRAL LAND: SAVE OUR SOULS", the Community Assembly cried:

"We the undersigned, for ourselves and on behalf of the entire people of Obeagu Awkunanaw community, Enugu South Local Government Area of Enugu State have the privilege to send our respectful compliments to you, in appreciation of your continued selfless, remarkable and distinguished service to our state in particular and to our country at large.

"Permit us sir, to use this medium essentially to seek your protection against a renewed onslaught by a group of land grabbers or predators, namely: Gozie Okoye, Kingsley Eze and Chamberlin Mbachu, who left their various villages and towns to find our ancestral land an irresistible expanse to be easily merchandised while we the owners are sent to the gallows. 

"Kindly recall our various petitions as well as that of Amechi Uwani to your good offices in respect of this vexed issue of our ancestral lands, and the subsequent referral of same to the Special Committee of the House on Land Matters/Dispute. Also recall that the Committee, after robust deliberations laid their Report before the entire House, which the House unequivocally adopted in toto the findings and recommendations enunciated therein on the 19th day of December, 2024.

"The facts of this matter have become too notorious that we do not intend to belabor you with same, but we crave your indulgence to refer to the said Committee’s Report for a broader and firmer perspective of this subject matter. 

"However, it became imperative to run back to your good offices as our beacon of hope given the recent indiscriminate arrests, illegal detention, hasty and malicious prosecution of some indigenes of our community, at the instigation of the trio of Gozie Okoye, Kingsley Eze and Chamberlin Mbachu of Private Estates International West Africa (PEIWA), who used the office of AIG Margaret Ochalla, their long time friend who has recently been posted to Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) Annex, Lagos, to unleash this latest wave of intimidation, harassment and malicious prosecution."

According to the petitioners, "We are perplexed that despite the House’s damning findings and recommendations against PEIWA and its named officials, particularly the preponderance of evidence to the effect that all that the company has been doing over these years (since 2009) is to feather its own nest, smile to their bank and live flamboyantly without commensurate or any tangible revenue generation in favour of Enugu State Government. They had thought that having deceptively and dishonestly cornered our land in connivance with some compromised officials of the then Enugu State Government, by voyaging and laying claim to a total of1097 Hectares, out of which over 600Hectares belong to us; and using same as a collateral for a Two Billion naira (N2,000,000,000.00) loan facility, which Gozie Okoye, (now the MD of PEIWA), used his position as the then Manager of Diamond Bank, Enugu to dishonestly secure, our people will deserve nothing but complete annihilation to remove any form of resistance to their illegal acts. 

Sir, it may shock you to know that since Friday, 16/05/2025 AIG Ochalla unleashed a team of police officers from FCID Annex, Lagos against our people. The police officers who came were kept in an expensive hotel, fed fat and menacingly moved about in company of officers of PEIWA on daily basis as they patrol our community. At the whims and caprices of PEIWA, our members were arrested and taken to Uwani Police Station and detained. Those arrested were kept in custody till Tuesday, 20/05/2025 when they were hurriedly charged to court essentially because of the growing agitations for their release. The charge was so baseless on the face of it that the trial Magistrate did not have any hesitation to admit them to bail.

Again, on 21/05/2025 Rt. Hon. Paul Okechukwu Ogbe who is currently the Senior Special Assistant to the Enugu State Governor on Youth Mobilization, a two-time member of the Enugu State House of Assembly and a former Deputy Mayor of Enugu South LGA was ambushed and arrested like a common criminal. He was detained at the same Uwani Police Station and was about being flown to Lagos on 22/05/2025 when he collapsed and was rushed to hospital for treatment.

"We suspect foul play in the whole episode, as it is difficult to rationalize why a matter which emanated from ownership of land lying and situate at Obeagu community, Enugu South LGA, and the issue having been submitted to a court of competent jurisdiction, will be taken to Lagos for investigation, despite the presence of various police commands, formations and units located in Enugu State.

Our people will not give-up, and we cannot allow these land marauders to seize our land and selling off same, while we, our children, and our children unborn will be reduced to mere refugees, and rendered homeless.

"We call upon you to intervene, and to use your oversight power to draw the attention of the Enugu State Government to the potentials of this onslaught by PEIWA to snowball into cataclysm if not handled timeously and effectively. We believe the only way to end this lingering issue and the looming catastrophe is to order PEIWA to hands off our entire land, in order to give peace a chance.