Anambra: Ifite Nteje Community Protests Illegal Land Sales

The Ifite Nteje community in Oyi Local Government Area, Anambra State, has pleaded with Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo to implement the findings of the White Paper of the Panel of Inquiry, set up by the Anambra State government to find out the alleged land grabbing activities that had caused deaths and the demolition of properties in the community.

In a protest on Thursday, the community called on the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to make public the results of the findings the state government solicited for it to carry out on the sale of their land by some persons who claimed to be in the Land Management Committee in the community.

Indigenes of Ifite Nteje protested against illegal land sales, carrying placards with inscriptions such as “No more land grabbing of Ifite Nteje land, and urged Governor Soludo to enforce the findings of an official inquiry. They also called on the EFCC to release their investigation report on the fraudulent land sales. The protesters warned anyone who bought land from the unauthorised committee that the sales were invalid and they should seek a refund.

Commenting on behalf of the community during a protest at some locations of the lands, including Ugwu Nengo and Airport Road Ifite Nteje, Chairman of Ojiani Nteje (Custodians of Ifite Nteji Lands) Chief Paul Egwuatu affirmed that the community's land is not up for grabs and stressed that young people lack authority to sell land without the elders' approval.

He also hinted that the Ifite Nteji community has not nominated or elected anyone or group of people to act as the Land Management Committee, nor has it given anybody ‘Power of Attorney,’ like some people are professing to have been given, to manage the Ifite Nteje lands.