Former Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State and now Minister of Works is in the news and again for the wrong reasons. And as they say in local lingo, it appears Umahi and scandals, nah 5 and 6.
And like his previous cases, it also appears this will soon go away with no full closure. With the way things are now, this will also increase the list of unresolved and mysterious deaths linked to powerful office holders.
Umahi is threatening fire and brimstone, warning to unleash his lawyers against any attempt to link him with the death of a 26-year-old lady that occurred in his country home in Uburu, Ebonyi State.
Two young women from Kaduna State, Mary Habila and her friend Baski, visited Umahi’s home and in the morning of June 26, 2026, Habila was found dead in her room in the minister’s compound.
Strangely, this death in a highly placed public servant’s home was not public knowledge for over two weeks until Sahara Reporters broke the story.
Now, Umahi is dismissing allegations of foul play in the death of Habila, saying he has nothing to hide.
He described the deceased as being “like a daughter” to him, urging the public and political actors to refrain from politicising the matter.
He clarified that the deceased was a nurse employed by the Federal Medical University, not a physiotherapist, as reported in some quarters.
He said she had been with his family for three years and maintained a close relationship with her and her family.
“One information I want to correct is that the lady in question was like a daughter to me. She had stayed with me for three years.
“She was a staff of the Federal Medical University. She was a nurse and not a physiotherapist. And the family and my family are like one family.”
Umahi also added he spent N2.2 million on her treatment when she reportedly took ill recently.
The minister also said Habila’s boyfriend said she complained of persistent nose bleeding before she died.
Wondering why he was linked with the death, he said “What baffles me in this country is that everything becomes an opportunity. Now, there is a guest house where she and the second medical person stayed. And that is very far from where I stay.
“So, it means that for example, if somebody dies in the Ministry of Works, the minister must be accountable to that. Is that what they are saying?
“Is it that they are saying that somebody can not die? Have they checked the medical records of the lady? Do they know that this lady was like a daughter to me?”
Mr. Umahi’s press briefing did little or nothing to help his case. In the first place, nobody has accused him of the crime but, he will be deceiving himself if he thinks he is not accountable for the death of a visitor within his private home no matter how palatial or expansive the house might be.
Why did Umahi wait for three weeks to make his public pronouncements?
Again, why is it that after three weeks, we are still talking about whether to carry out an autopsy or not? What this means is that there is no established cause of death, except the insinuations coming from the minister?
Umahi must first blame himself for whatever remarks or allusions coming his way because he failed to act when he ought to.
The minister should be intelligent enough to know that he can not completely extricate himself from this scandal because he has himself to blame and nobody else. No matter the amount of legal threats he makes, he has a case to answer, and for the sake of transparency and accountability, a comprehensive independent inquiry is required.
We can not take the statement of the minister alone and the reported refusal of Habila’s father’s refusal of an autopsy citing traditional practice as an excuse.
As for the police, this is another case of another clumsy handling of an investigation. After three weeks, the police have nothing concrete to offer other than that investigation is ongoing. What were the police doing all this while, and why did it have to take the media to expose the death for the police to go public if indeed the death was reported in June?
This incident is coming at a time when the dust raised by the same Umahi who was embroiled in a public spat early this year with a businesswoman, Tracy Ohiri, had barely settled down.
Tracy accused him of owing her over N200 million for promotional items she supplied during his campaign for a second-term reelection as governor of Ebonyi. She also alleged that he withheld payment because she rejected his sexual advances. Ohiri was to later retract her statement and issued a public apology after her arrest by the police.
It’s noteworthy to add that the administration of Umahi as governor in Ebonyi still has, to this day, the unresolved case of five engineers whose mysterious death sparked up controversies in 2021.
The five Enugu-based engineers had issues with Umahi when he was the governor of Ebonyi.
The five engineers worked at NELAN CONSULTING LIMITED, an Enugu-based consulting engineering firm specialising in project supervision, consultancy, and oversight for infrastructure projects.
The five unfortunate widows left behind are still fighting to unravel the mysterious disappearance of their husbands as well as failure to recover their remains after the Umahi government announced their deaths.
One will be most surprised if Umahi himself will fault anyone for suspecting foul play given his antecedents in public office.
Will it just be a mere coincidence that five engineers who had disagreements with the government over construction disputes can just disappear into thin air for five years with no trace to their graves and no full closure to that case till date?
As things stand now there are no guilt or complicity allegations against the minister but he has not conducted himself well as public office holder and accountability demands that he steps down for a thorough investigation that must include independent multiple stakeholders both in and out of government.
Only then can Umahi successfully extricate himself from this. Remaining in office as minister while the investigation is ongoing would cast doubt on the sincerity, accountability, and transparency of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu-led government.
Nigeria is not Umahi’s private estate, and he must realise that we are unfazed with his threats. He must account for the death of his guest, and that is not asking for too much from a supposed public office holder.
