Abia State government has directed the Amaba community in Ikwuano local government, Lodu Ibeku in Umuahia North and Olokoro in Umuahia South, involved in boundary dispute to submit their claims of ownership to the state government within one week.
The state deputy governor, Engr Ikechukwu Emetu, gave the directive in his Office at Government House Umuahia during a meeting with the three contending communities warring over ownership of land.
He noted that the state faced both internal and external boundary challenges as she shared boundaries with seven states of Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Cross River, Ebonyi, Enugu, Imo, and Rivers and restated the present administration’s resolve to ensure that all the internal and external boundaries problems are resolved this year.
The deputy governor, who is also the chairman of the state boundary committee, said that the meeting was convened, following a complaint by the Amaba community over the encroachment of their land by Lodu community.
He said that he has no interest in the community that owns the land but on truth to ascertain the real owners.
Engr. Emetu maintained that under the new Abia, they uphold truth and honesty and say things the way they are and assured that the boundary committee would rely on Archives and documentation in government Archives to resolve the issue.
The dgov further disclosed that every contending boundaries have their maps and documents in Enugu Archives that would be relied upon in resolving the lingering boundary disputes.
“We want peace. Many people can speak good by saying the truth or painting a lie very well that you take to be the truth but documents in the Archives don’t lie that is one good thing to rely on”, the deputy governor said
He decried the lots of stories been peddled in some quarters of government trying to take peoples land but said that unlike past government that showed non challancy towards encroachment on government lands, the Otti’s administration was committed in recovering every inche of government lands encroached and built upon by individuals.
The Chairman of the state boundary committee specifically mentioned Government College Umuahia where map in the Abia state Archives showed the perimeter fence as the boundary but that today many people has taken over Government’s College lands and built houses on them and that this government are determined to take back what belongs to the people.
“We are coming gradually to take over government properties that people had already built on and when we are talking about taking over, we don’t have bulldozers to bring any house down but we are very happy to take those buildings on the land and that is what we are doing now.
He made it clear that the present government of Dr Alex Otti’s would not tolerate any form of criminality or thuggery in a bid to rebuild the face of Abia development and in ensuring that Abia lands appropriated or confiscated by certain individuals no matter their political party affiliations are made to return what belong to the people.
Earlier in their separate speeches, the traditional Ruler of Amaba community,HRM Eze Emmanuel Otuwa, traditional Ruler of Ndume Ibeku, HRM Eze Donatus Aguiyi and Mr. Ikpegbu Godfrey thanked the deputy governor, granting them the privilege to state their grievances and pledged their unalloyed support to the state’s government efforts to achieve a peaceful and prosperous state.
