Abia State government has threatened to take legal action against the
traditional ruler of Umuobasi autononmous community, Osisioma Ngwa local
government area, Eze Prof. S.I. Owuala, for allegedly claiming that an
expanse of land measuring 20 hectares at Aro Ngwa community, has been
acquired for the RUGA project.
Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Uche Ihediwa, said an
action would be taken against the monarch if he fails to apologize
within 7 days, stressing that the government was displeased with the
report as no certificate of occupancy has been issued on the land.
Decrying the controversy trailing the land at Aro Ngwa, Ihediwa
explained the process of acquiring the land predated the President
Muhammadu Buhari administration, insisting that the land lying along the
Enugu – Port Harcourt expressway was mapped out at the request of the
federal government in 2014 to construct a trailer park to de-congest
traffic in Aba and described the rumours as unfounded and wicked.
Ihediwa, who was Commissioner for Lands and Survey in 2014, also noted
that the land at Aro Ngwa measuring 20 hectares did not meet FG’s
requirement of 50 hectares of land for a trailer park. He, however,
disclosed that the state government has decided to build a car Assembly
plant on the land.
“The man who is behind this false information is the traditional ruler
of Umuobasi Autonomous Community in Osisioma Ngwa LGA. We’ve not even
given letter of allocation not to talk of certificate of occupancy for
the trailer park. It will be insensitive for us to go against what the
entire South East in the issue of RUGA. We’re giving him 7 days to
apologize to Abia State government or we’ll meet him in court.
“We want to clear the air on this unfortunate, unfounded and malicious
insinuations going round the state. The land use Act is very clear on
the processes and procedures that can be followed before lands can be
acquired.
“In September 2914, the Federal Ministry of Works, Transport and Housing
requested for land to establish trailer park in the course of the
reconstruction of the Enugu/Port Harcourt Highway.
“This was in 2014 and as at then the project was going on in almost all
commercial cities in Nigeria meant to avoid unnecessary traffic in the
city. The request then was for specific areas; one in Umunneochi,
another in Umuahia while we have the last one at Aro-Ngwa in Osisioma
Ngwa LGA. This was how what started under President Jonathan suddenly
took another colouration which was never within the plan of Abia State
government to establish anything like RUGA here.
“The government then penciled down some areas for that project. Every
Federal Government project comes with request for land. This request was
made under President Jonathan, but in the passage of time people will
intend to give misguided interpretation to a very noble objective.
“When we came on board, the request was still on the pipeline so we went
about trying to interact with the communities in the areas penciled down
for this trailer park. They requested for 50 hectares, but all we saw in
the area was 20 hectares and so we aborted that assignment leading to
the penciling of the land for a Car Assembly Plant attracted by the
governor from China.
“As we were working on the Car Assembly Plant, someone who knew about
the trailer park in this very dispensation of RUGA went about spreading
the rumours that the trailer park is now a plot to establish RUGA.