Unraveling the Truth Behind the Spibat Road Demolition: Facts Over Sentiment

By Ambrose Nwaogwugwu, June 06, 2025.

Over the past few days, I’ve been inundated with concerns, emotional appeals, and even subtle accusations from a specific part of Imo State; hitte-Uboma. This happens to be particularly sensitive for me because Ihitte-Uboma is now my new home, owing to the fact that I’m just getting married to one of their beautiful daughters. Naturally, this connection has placed certain restraints on me and deepened my sense of responsibility to handle the matter with integrity, honesty, and fairness.

Given the intensity of the outcry: particularly over the demolition of a property said to belong to one Mr. Obed Ajonuma, a young investor from Ihitte-Uboma: I felt it necessary to set emotions aside and dig deep into the facts. As someone who would never wish to wrong my new family or community, I embarked on a thorough investigation to get to the bottom of the matter.

Here’s what I found:

1. The Structure Was Illegally Built

Despite the noise and accusations flying around, the simple truth is that the demolished structure was illegal. It was erected on a designated green verge, a space set aside for public use and environmental purposes, not for private development. This wasn’t just OCDA’s word: it followed a formal petition by the Chairman of the Institute of Town Planners Association, with verified documents showing the structure not only encroached on the green verge but also blocked the legal right of way for nearby approved residents.

This is not about sentiments. It’s about urban integrity and the rule of law.

2. Sold Illegally by Unauthorized Individuals

It gets worse. My investigation revealed that the structure was sold to Mr. Ajonuma by individuals claiming to be “indigenes”—people with no legal right to allocate public land. These so-called sellers have no authority under the law to transact over government-zoned areas. Sadly, this is a widespread scam in parts of the state, where well-meaning buyers fall into traps set by land touts and unauthorized actors. Whatever money exchanged hands, it doesn’t change the legal status of the land: unauthorized, unapproved, and illegal.

3. The ₦5 Million Bribe Claim Lacks Substance

One of the most damaging accusations is that the OCDA General Manager, Mr. Frank Nzewodo, collected a ₦5 million bribe to carry out the demolition. But this is where the story begins to unravel. The GM has publicly and confidently denied ever meeting the owner of the building, let alone receiving any inducement from him.

He has gone further to challenge anyone with proof to sue him in a court of law. Let that sink in: he’s dared his accusers to bring the matter before a judge and present evidence. That’s not the posture of a guilty man. In fact, he’s even contemplating legal action against those tarnishing his name without proof. According to him, and I quote, he swore before witnesses and using innocent children that he had no contact with the said property owner letting alone collecting bribe to do his constitutional duties.

If anyone has solid proof of bribery, they should step forward. Otherwise, we are only promoting rumor, not justice.

4. Why Was Only That Property Demolished?

Some have asked, “Why was only Ajonuma’s property touched while others nearby were left standing?” That’s a fair question. The answer is simple: his structure was the one found to be directly on the green verge and blocking a public right of way. Others in the area, according to planning documents, have legitimate approvals or at least don’t violate the city’s master layout to the same extent.

The idea that this was a targeted attack doesn’t hold water when you look at the facts. You don’t build permanent structures at green verge, even if you were given the leave to build.

Final Thoughts

As someone now tied to Ihitte-Uboma by family and love, I say this with the deepest respect: we cannot defend illegality simply because it affects one of our own. Mr. Ajonuma may have bought the land in good faith, but the transaction was fraudulent, the structure unauthorized, and the location unlawful.

This shouldn’t be about protecting sentiment: it should be about promoting truth, good governance, and lawful development. What we should be doing as a people is demanding that the state clamp down on illegal land sales, regulate planning more tightly, and create awareness so that no more innocent citizens fall victim to these traps.

I understand the pain, but let us not let emotions blind us from reality. The law is the law, and it must be upheld, even when it is uncomfortable.