By Nwabueze Okonkwo

ONITSHA – The official flag-off of the construction of a new N1.4 billion housing estate in Awka, Anambra state capital, by Governor Willie Obiano, has sparked off controversy over ownership of the project site.

The project which is estimated to cost $3.4 million (about N1.4 billion), is known as Eagles Hill Estate, Awka.

Obiano laying foundation for the estate

The estate consists about 140 units of different types of flats, 50 high rise apartments, as well as various types of duplexes, shopping complexes, offices, a police post, schools and a hospital.

The project which has Senator Annie Okonkwo as its financier and major investor, as he would contribute 90 percent of the development funds, while the state government would contribute 10 percent, is sitting on a 24 hectare land allegedly donated by Ezinano community in Awka South Local Government Area of the state. The work is expected to be completed within 18 months.

It is expected that on completion, the profit sharing formula would be 85 percent for the investor, 10 percent for the state government and five percent for the host community.

However, while the flag off ceremony was still on, some aggrieved youths from Awka staged a peaceful demonstration against what they termed as wrongful acquisition of their land by the state government.

During the demonstration, a construction firm, Agro Electrical & Construction Company Limited and another developer, Chief Alex Omezie Chukwurah told newsmen that the land belonged to them as the state government had allocated it to them as far back as 2003.

Brandishing what they said was the authentic Certificate of Occupancy, C of O, signed by former Governor Chinwoke Mbadinuju, Pastor Onyeka Nzekwesi whose late father, Chief Francis Okwuchukwu Nzekwesi was the founder of the company and Chukwurah told newsmen that the late Nzekwesi, acquired the land in 2003 with the company’s name.

Nzekwesi noted that the land measuring 24.907 hectares (about 523.047 plots), was duly allocated to his late father adding that the same government re-allocated the same portion of land to Senator Annie Okonkwo for estate development without reasons.

Pastor Nzekwesi who is the General Superintendent, GS of Jesus Is Alive Church said the same government later wrote them in 2008 to come for re-certification of the land which they did in October, 2008, after paying a huge amount of money, adding that they had spent over N4, 733, 706 between 2003 when government allocated the land to them and at present as ground rent to the government.

According to Nzekwesi, the amount so far paid as ground rent was different from the huge amount of money paid to Awka youths as development levies and the one paid for re-certification of the land.

He noted that from the entire area, the Nzekwesi allocated about 4.762 hectares   (100 plots) to Chief Alex Chukwurah (a.k.a. Governor Obosi), an estate developer to build an estate but just as Chukwurah finished   erecting fence and started putting up some structures, ASUDEB went into the land at night and reduced everything to rubble.

Chukwurah, in his own statement, expressed concern over what he described as serious rot in government circles, adding, “I wonder how a government will allocate a land to you and while they are still collecting annual ground rent from you, they will revoke the same land and re-allocate it to another person and start collecting ground rent from the second allottee.”

He vowed that although he is presently having a cordial relationship with governor Obiano, which enabled him become the Coordinator of Obiano Youth Movement, OYM in Idemili North Local Government Area, he would not fold his arms and allow corrupt government officials take away what rightly belonged to him in a wrongful and fraudulent manner.

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Lands, Physical Planning and Rural Development, Dr Paul Nwadukwe declined to comment on the matter when South East Voice visited his office saying, it iss only the ministry’s Commissioner  that could comment on such a sensitive issue.

Nwadukwe referred South East Voice to the Commissioner, Okey Morka who directed his aides to say that he had no time to attend to anybody. Morka also said that he was too busy to speak with anybody when contacted on the telephone.

Obiano had while launching the Estate, appealed to Awka youths not to disrupt work on the project site which he observed was capable of creating about 2,000 direct and indirect jobs for them.

He said that with the take-off of the project, his administration had attracted investments of about $4.8 billion dollars.

In his speech, Senator Okonkwo, expressed happiness that he was able to bring to the state, the type of projects he had seen in other major cities of the world, noting that the investment would not have been possible if Governor Obiano had not created a conducive environment that favoured investments.