Anambra community protests planned demolition of houses for power project

Indigenes of Ebenesi Community in Nnobi, Anambra State, staged a protest against the planned demolition of their ancestral homes to make way for a power line project. The community members gathered at the Obi Ezenabo Traditional Centre, expressing strong opposition to the Transmission Company of Nigeria's (TCN) project, which they claim will displace them from land they have occupied for over 200 years.

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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.

Community leaders, including Chairman Chief Okechukwu Oraka and his deputy Chief Patrick Nwanyiaku, alleged that the power line project was diverted to Nnobi through "foul means" and that their community was not part of the original plan. They expressed deep concern over the lack of relocation arrangements for the affected residents, emphasizing that they have no alternative land. Oraka stated that while they are not against development, the process must consider the well-being of the people, questioning the purpose of infrastructure if the inhabitants are "sent into extinction."

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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.

The protesters also raised alarm over the health consequences, claiming that more than six elders have collapsed and died since their houses were marked for demolition. They reported that officials ordered landlords to demolish their structures within 14 days, with the owners allegedly bearing the demolition costs. The community is appealing to President Bola Tinubu and Anambra State Governor Prof. Chukwuma Soludo for intervention, urging for alternative solutions such as underground power lines or a provision of a relocation site.

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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 to enjoy it are sent into extinction, what is the need?

Oraka, drawing from his experience living overseas, noted that power lines typically do not pass through residential areas and that his community has a long history on the land. He stressed that relocation is not a feasible option for them and that the government should explore other arrangements if the project is to proceed in Nnobi.

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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. 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.