Residents of Ebenesi Community in Nnobi, in Idemili South Local Government Area of Anambra State, on Tuesday, protested against the planned demolition of their ancestral homes to create space for the power line project.
The project is being carried out by the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN), a federal government-owned company that operates, maintains, and expands the high-voltage national grid, wheeling bulk electricity from power generators to distribution companies.
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The protesters appealed to President Bola Tinubu and Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra to intervene in the disagreement between the community and TCN over the project, Punch newspaper reported.
At the Obi Ezenabo Traditional Centre in Ebenesi, the community members claimed that more than six elders had collapsed and died following the marking of their houses for demolition by officials of the Anambra State Physical Planning Board.
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They alleged that the officials ordered affected landlords to demolish their houses within 14 days or face government demolition, with the owners allegedly required to bear the cost.
Speaking during the protest, the Chairman of Ebenesi Community, Okechukwu Oraka, said the community opposed the planned demolition because no arrangement had been made to relocate the affected residents.
Mr Oraka, with his deputy Patrick Nwanyiaku, standing beside him, also alleged that the power line project was diverted to the Nnobi Community after it was originally planned to pass through other areas.
“Nnobi came into this TCN power line project through foul means. Nnobi was not captured in the original plan of that project; it was diverted to Nnobi by some people who feel that we have nobody to speak for us both in the federal and state governments.
“Ebenesi is highly populated and we don’t have land, and now the state government is forcing us to vacate our ancestral homes with no plan of relocating us. That is impossible. We will relocate to anywhere in this Nnobi if they provide a place for us.
“We are not actually against development projects and infrastructure, but what we are saying is that in providing such infrastructure, the people that will enjoy them must live to enjoy them. If any infrastructure is provided and the people who enjoy it are sent into extinction, what is the need?” he said.
The chairman said the community had occupied the area for more than 200 years, adding that the government should consider alternative arrangements if the project must pass through Nnobi Community.
“I have travelled and lived overseas; power lines do not pass through residential areas, and there was never a time, since over 200 years our forefathers who bequeathed this land were told not to build their houses because a power line project would pass through here,” he said.
“So it is not possible for us to relocate. The best they can do if the project must go on is to pass the lines underground.”
The protesters, comprising youths, elderly men and women, chanted songs and displayed placards rejecting the planned demolition and the routing of the project through Nnobi.
Some representatives of the village who took part in the protest were Stanley Izuegbu of Ifite Village, Bartholomew Ojukwu of Umuafor Village and the Secretary of Umuona Village.
They called for the relocation of the project or an alternative arrangement that would prevent the demolition of residential buildings.
An 81-year-old retired civil servant, Comfort Ngwudo, who spoke on behalf of the aged people, said the government should consider the impact of the project on the community.
“There is nothing happening in life that is not as a result of good or bad policy. There is no man who owns ancestral land that didn’t get it from his forefathers or fathers except those that bought from people.
“How can anybody who is reasonable come to a village and tell people to relocate from their ancestral land they have lived in for over 200 years?,” Mrs Ngwudo said.
The octogenarian appealed to the government not to create “oppressive policies” against the people.
“If the government wants to build anything for the people, they should ensure that it is what the people need, not what will lead to their early grave,” she said.
The protesters later moved to other parts of the community, including the palace of the traditional ruler, Nick Obi, and the residence of the President-General of Nnobi, Aloy Olubialu.
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The traditional ruler, through his Palace Secretary, Obianumba Ajayiaku, and Mr Olubialu, commended the protesters for their peaceful conduct and assured them that their grievances would be communicated to the appropriate authorities
But a top official of the Anambra State Physical Planning Board, Cletus Ohame, told Punch on Wednesday that the demolition notices were duly served on the affected landlords.
Mr Ohame said the area had been earmarked for the power line project for many years.
“The affected landlords were duly served with notices. The area was earmarked for the power line project many years ago, and they should know that it is about infrastructural development,” he said.
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