Greater than three years after 5 development engineers went lacking in Ebonyi, their households have intensified requires justice, petitioning President Bola Ahmed Tinubu over what they describe as silence, delays, and troubling inconsistencies within the investigation.
Within the petition, additionally copied to Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Speaker of the Home of Representatives Tajudeen Abbas, the households—by way of their attorneys, CNO Attorneys—mentioned the extended uncertainty surrounding the case has deepened their anguish.
The 5 engineers, staff of NELAN Development Restricted, vanished in November 2021 whereas working as consultants on a hoop street undertaking in Ebonyi State funded by the African Improvement {Bank} (AfDB).
Describing the incident as unresolved and more and more suspicious, the households accused safety companies, significantly the Nigeria Police Drive and the Division of State Providers (DSS), of failing to supply clear updates or make significant progress in uncovering what occurred.
Additionally they raised considerations about alleged interference within the investigation, citing the elimination of a DSS operative, Mr. Victor Chijioke Onyesom, at a vital stage of the probe. In accordance with the petition, his sudden dismissal and the confiscation of investigative supplies forged doubt on the integrity of the method.
The lacking engineers—Nelson Onyemeh, Ernest Edeani, Ikechukwu Ejiofor, Samuel Aneke, and Stanley Nwazulum—have been described as professionals and household males whose disappearance has left their households in extended misery and {economic} hardship.
The petition traced the incident to tensions in Effium group, the place disagreements reportedly emerged over the execution of the AfDB-funded undertaking. The engineers have been mentioned to have resisted makes an attempt to change contractual phrases, a growth the households imagine could also be related to their disappearance.
Including to their considerations, the households questioned an announcement by the previous governor of Ebonyi State, who allegedly introduced that the engineers had been killed and buried earlier than investigations have been concluded. They described the declare as untimely and troubling, elevating questions on how such conclusions have been reached.
Arguing that the state of affairs displays a failure of the state to guard its residents, the attorneys cited constitutional provisions mandating authorities duty for residents’ safety and welfare.
The households at the moment are demanding decisive federal intervention, urging the Tinubu administration to reopen and conclude the investigation transparently, decide the destiny of the engineers, and maintain all these accountable accountable.