A popular Nigerian sketch creator, Chibuike Ugwu, who raised the alarm over the reported demolition at Centenary Estate in Enugu State, has revealed more details about the incident.
On January 19, Ugwu, also known as Untouchable, had raised the alarm in a video that his mansion was about to be demolished by the state’s urban development agency, the Enugu Capital Territory Development Authority.
In the five-minute clip that went viral on social media, the creator of the piece appealed to Nigerians to help him convince Governor Peter Mbah of Enugu State not to demolish his property.
The state government has since responded to the allegation, explaining that the buildings recently demolished by the agency in the estate were only those that were used as hideouts for the kidnappers.
More details revealed
In another video clip on Sunday apparently filmed at the farm, Ugwu said that unlike when he made the first video clip, he now got all the details of what was happening at the farm.
Flanked by his two unidentified associates, the sketch director thanked Governor Mbah for his “quick intervention” and said he was surprised that the governor was not aware of the “massive destruction” at the farm.
He said he could not narrate all the details of what he has been made to understand about the property because the details are very “long and abundant.”
The sketch maker said that, in order not to provoke the governor, he has decided to apologize for making the first video, although he did not deny having said that there were demolitions on the farm.
“Please do not be angry. It was my emotions. When I saw bulldozers, you see, I felt like this was my only home. So it was emotions that led me to make the first video,” he pleaded with the governor in pidgin English.
For his part, one of his associates said that he and Ugwu “discovered a lot of things” last Saturday, noting that, for example, they did not know that the property was owned by a private company.
“We thought the farm was owned by the Enugu State government. But by getting here now we were able to get real information about this place,” he said.
They said they were confident that the matter would be resolved, given the governor’s intervention.
Background
The estate, popularly known as Centenary City, is located on a tract of land belonging to Obeagu Awkunanaw and some families in Amechi Uwani, a neighboring community in Enugu South Local Government Area of the state.
However, it is said to have been acquired by a property developer, Private Estates International West Africa, during the administration of the state’s former governor, Sullivan Chime.
The administration of the immediate past governor of the state, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi, in 2020, initially revoked the certificate of occupancy earlier issued to the developer.
Subsequently, the previous government announced that it would commence demolition of the estate buildings on May 4, 2023, after obtaining a consent judgment from the Enugu State High Court on February 9 of that year to demolish the estate properties. estate.
PREMIUM TIMES learned that during the February 9 ruling, the government obtained a consent judgment with Private Estates International West Africa to demolish the estate properties.
Some buildings on the farm were eventually demolished at that time, amid opposition from the Obeagu Awkunanaw community and some families from the Amechi Uwani community, who are the original owners of the land where the farm is located.
Subsequently, there were reports that the developer recovered the Occupancy Certificate of the estate previously revoked by the state government.
The issues regarding demolition of properties in the estate have been litigated in various courts for a long time as the original owners of the property had been challenging the government over these issues.