Land grabbing: Villagers urge Abia Govt to enforce court order, avert violence

The members of Umunenweze village, Okaiuga Nkwoegwu autonomous community, Umuahia North LGA of Abia State, have appealed to the Abia State government to urgently save them from land grabbers.

The community members who made the appeal during a protest at the disputed Okpuijikara land on Wednesday, said the community may slide into hunger and violence if no urgent intervention comes from the Abia State government.

The spokesperson of Umunenweze village, Onyekachi Igbojionu, who presented the position of the community, expressed concern that ancestral land preserved for farming and future housing needs of the community, has been donated to some private estate developers by a few members of the community, without the knowledge and approval of indigenes.

According to Igbojionu, land grabbing activities have continued on the land despite a court order issued by Justice A.U. Kalu of Abia State High Court, Umuahia, in suit No. HU/163/2022.

The community also expressed worry that community secondary school land in the village has been pencilled down for donation to individuals, without the knowledge of the residents.

“We appeal to our governor, Alex Otti, to intervene in this matter so that our people will not die of hunger and we also beg the governor to intervene so that the tension generated by this land grabbing don’t result to violence and bloodshed.

“We will deploy every legal, judicial, peaceful and customary measures available to enforce the court order and safeguard our ancestral heritage for generations to come,” Igbojionu said.

Also speaking, Mrs Janeth Nwagboso regretted that women of the community are now afraid to enter the Okpuijikara land for farming activities.

She lamented that the situation has increased hunger and unemployment in Umunenweze, a situation, she said, could trigger communal violence if not urgently addressed by the Abia State government.

It would be recalled that the Abia State government had on June 3, 2026, confirmed receiving petitions concerning the disputed lands, with a promise to resolve the matter amicably.