Indigenes of the sleepy Umuigbo Amurri autonomous community in Nkanu West Local Government Area, Enugu State, have resorted to a peaceful protest over an alleged unauthorised takeover of their ancestral land by the local government chairman, Mr. John Ogbodo, in the guise of a smart farms project.

The Guardian gathered that they had already mapped out a larger expanse of land to enable the state government to utilise for the smart farm project, explaining that the place being forcefully taken over has been reserved for a residential layout.

Trouble started when the council chairman mobilised bulldozers and cleared the area, and allegedly employed security men to chase away the people from their farmlands. Four natives of the community were reportedly arrested and detained by the police. They were released after spending eight days in custody.

On Tuesday, the people – women, youths and the elderly- clutched green leaves and placards with various inscriptions, such as “Umuigbo Amurri, we say no to illegal seizure of our land”; “We say no to the arrogance of the Nkanu West LGA chairman”; “We have a place mapped out for smart farm”; “We support the government of Peter Mbah”; “Nkanu West LGA chairman cannot take our land without our knowledge”; “Stop destroying our crops”, to protest the action of the chairman.

They wailed, sang sorrowful songs, and marched from their village square to various places in protest over the development.

The President General of the community’s town union, Chief Sebastian Onu Okoh, disclosed that the community fully supports the smart farm idea of Governor Peter Mbah, especially as it concerns ending the invasion of farmlands by suspected herdsmen.

“For this purpose, we met on April 22 this year and mapped out over 1,000 hectares of land in our farm settlement. This is a place where Fulani herdsmen with their cattle always destroy our crops. The governor requested 200 hectares of land for this farming, but we gave five times more. We did this in conjunction with the other autonomous communities in the Amurri clan.

“We were surprised to see bulldozers rolling on the farmlands close to where we live, destroying crops on the farms. Upon inquiry, we were told that the LGA chairman, Hon. John Ogbodo, has taken the place for the government’s smart farm project. We were confused because nobody had approached us for that.

“When our people tried to stop the bulldozers and told them that we had a place bigger than this for that purpose, the LGA chairman sent policemen from Agbani to arrest them on the allegation that they set the bulldozers ablaze. Meanwhile, nobody attacked the bulldozers,” he said.

Okoh accused the LGA chairman of using policemen to intimidate and silence the people into submission, lamenting that four members of the community were made to spend 8 days inside a police cell for trying to stop him from destroying their crops.

Another community leader, Chief Chinedu Ugwa, questioned the motive of the LGA chairman in forcibly taking a piece of land in the community without the people’s consent, lamenting the destruction of crops on the farmland.

The leader of the women in the community, Mrs. Chinyere Ugwu, and the youth chairman, Jude Okoh, expressed doubts over the LGA chairman’s intentions, saying a government that genuinely cared for its people should have a listening ear rather than destroying their livelihoods.

The community, therefore, appealed to Governor Peter Mbah to intervene and direct the LGA chairman to leave this land for them, as “it is where we have mapped out as a residential layout for our young ones.”

They warned that continued encroachment could lead to unrest and called on Governor Mbah to intervene and direct the chairman to the designated area for smart farming, as mapped out by the community.

Reacting to the allegations, the LGA chairman, Hon. Ogbodo, stated that the land was properly donated by the community through the leaders of Amurri town, adding that the government aims to establish the smart farm project for the community’s benefit.

He stated that the land had been lying fallow for over 100 years, unused, but serving as cover for notorious criminals and herders.

He said the government meant well for the people and urged the protesters to accept the project as other communities had accepted theirs.

“We did not wake up to start clearing the forest, which had been abandoned for years. We held a series of meetings with the community leaders, and they directed us to the location where we are setting up the smart farms.

The government means well for the people. The land is their land, and nobody is interested in converting it to any use other than agricultural purposes. We have video evidence of the meetings we held with them”, he stated.