Hundreds of residents of Etiti Ngwo Community in Udi Local Government Area of Enugu State, on Monday, stormed the Enugu Government House, protesting alleged forceful take-over of their communal land.

The protesters, made up of both men and women, presented a petition to Governor Peter Mbah.

They alleged disobedience to court judgments in a long-standing land dispute with the people of Umuakum Atakwu, Akwuke.
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They are accusing Chiwetalu Nwatu, Director, Enugu State Geographic Information System, ENGIS, and a representative of the Bureau of Public Enterprises, Barr. Tony Agu of ignoring a subsisting Supreme Court judgement on the matter, and then going ahead to re-allocate their land.

In a protest letter dated March 23, 2026, and signed by the Chairman of the Etiti Central Executive Council, Daniel Eze, the community alleged that officials of the Enugu State Geographic Information System and other actors were undermining subsisting court rulings.

“With broken hearts, we write this letter of complaint over acts of criminal conspiracy, abuse of office, flagrant disobedience of judgments of the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court, trespass, murder, and destruction of properties,” Eze stated.

He explained that the disputed land—Agu Ovolo, Isiama and Ebemi—had been the subject of litigation since 1989, noting that although the community lost at the High Court in 1996, the Court of Appeal of Nigeria overturned the decision in 2015 and declared the land to belong to Ngwo.

According to him, an appeal to the Supreme Court of Nigeria was struck out in 2019 and a subsequent attempt to relist the case was dismissed in 2011 in their favour.

“Despite these judgments, the people of Umuakum Atakwu, in collaboration with officials, have continued to interfere with the land, reallocating it in violation of court decisions,” he alleged.

Eze also alleged that violence linked to the dispute led to the killing of a community member on July 12, 2025.

“On July 12, 2025, a member of our community, Sochima Onoh, was gruesomely murdered,” he said.

He further claimed that on March 20, 2026, officials, accompanied by armed youths, demolished buildings belonging to community members.

The community called on the governor to intervene by setting up an investigative panel, halting further demolitions, and ensuring compliance with court judgments.

“We are peace-loving and law-abiding citizens and will not take the law into our hands. We urge Your Excellency to act promptly to prevent a breakdown of law and order,” Eze said.

Speaking to journalists during the protest, a community member, Lolo Uzamaka Eze, appealed to the state government to urgently intervene.

“We are appealing to the Enugu State Government, the governor, the deputy governor, and all relevant authorities. The women of Etiti Ngwo are crying because too much blood has been shed on this land,” she said.

She claimed that the community had lost more than 10 people in the dispute despite having a Supreme Court judgment.

“We are not against development, but everything must follow due process. If proper steps were taken, there would be no conflict,” she added.

According to her, several efforts had been made to seek intervention.

“We have protested, visited offices, and even pleaded directly, but nothing has changed. We are now calling on the governor to intervene and ensure justice is done,” she said.

Meanwhile, when contacted, the ENGIS boss referred the media to the Senior Special Assistant on Media, Mr Dan Nwomeh.

In a statement he issued in response to the enquiry, Nwomeh stated that the Federal Government legally owns the disputed land.

“The land in dispute is incontrovertibly Crown Land, now vested in the Federal Government and administered through the Bureau of Public Enterprises,” he stated.

He argued that neither Ngwo nor Akwuke communities possess valid ownership rights over the land.

“It follows, therefore, that neither community has any cognizable legal or equitable interest. Any claim of ownership is legally unsustainable,” he said.

Nwomeh further clarified that any court judgment between the communities does not override federal ownership.

“A judgment binds only the parties involved and cannot confer title over land vested in a non-party, particularly the Federal Government,” he added.

He noted that ENGIS was working with the BPE to regulate land use and ensure compliance with planning laws.

“In sum, the land remains Federal Government property, and all contrary claims not traceable to a valid grant are null and void,” he concluded.