Five years after abduction, families of NELAN engineers demand justice

Five years after the disappearance of five engineers of NELAN Consulting in Ebonyi State, their families have renewed calls for justice, accusing the Minister of Works, David Umahi, of withholding crucial information about the incident.

The families, who said they had yet to establish the whereabouts of their loved ones, insisted that Umahi, who was governor of Ebonyi State when the engineers disappeared, had questions to answer over the incident.

They also rejected the minister’s recent expression of sympathy, describing it as propaganda and accusing him of making conflicting and unsubstantiated claims about the circumstances surrounding the disappearance.

The engineers, who were consultants on the African Development Bank (AfDB)-funded Ring Road project in Ebonyi State, reportedly arrived in the state on November 3, 2021, for a meeting arranged by the then state government led by Umahi.

They subsequently disappeared, with their families saying that no meaningful information had emerged about their whereabouts since then.

The missing engineers are Engr. Nelson Onyemeh, lead consultant of NELAN Consulting, from Ihiala, Anambra State; Engr. Ernest Edeani, from Nkanu, Enugu State; Ikechukwu Ejiofor, from Umunya, Oyi Local Government Area, Anambra State; Engr. Samuel Aneke, from Nkanu, Enugu-East Local Government Area, Enugu State; and Engr. Stanley Nwazulum, from Amawbia, Awka-South Local Government Area, Anambra State.

The families’ latest reaction followed an interview Umahi granted Arise Television on October 22, 2026, during which he discussed the disappearance of the engineers and the circumstances surrounding the incident.

In a statement issued on behalf of the wives of the missing engineers, Mrs Patricia Onyemeh said the minister had continued to make statements suggesting that the engineers were killed and buried in the bush, while allegedly providing details of the circumstances surrounding their deaths.

She questioned why Umahi, rather than officials of the police or the Department of State Services (DSS), which reportedly investigated the incident, had continued to speak authoritatively about the case.

“Absolutely, the minister has a case to answer. He speaks for the Police and DSS that investigated the incident. He has also suddenly turned to the mouthpiece for a purported deceased contractor, ‘Marco’, he now linked in the picture after the said contractor died two weeks ago, according to him. Since 2021 the incident took place, the minister never mentioned his name until he passed,” she said.

The families also commended Arise Television anchor, Ojy Okpe, for her handling of the interview, saying her questions challenged the minister to explain his alleged connection to the incident.

They specifically praised her for asking: “What really happened?”, “You were just the governor, why are you involved in the picture?”, “Why are people calling your name ceaselessly?” and “What happened?”

According to the families, Umahi’s response, which they said included references to the alleged killing of the engineers and the subsequent activities of their killers, raised further questions about the source of his information.

They maintained that the minister was governor at the time of the incident and was neither the Commissioner of Police nor a DSS official responsible for investigating the case.

The families also questioned why other officials of the Ebonyi State Government, including the then Commissioner for Works, had not publicly provided similar accounts of what happened.

They further rejected Umahi’s alleged explanation linking the disappearance to a communal crisis, insisting that there was no communal conflict during the project and that none of the missing engineers was an indigene of Ebonyi State.

They also challenged the minister to explain the route the engineers were expected to take, the circumstances of their alleged abduction and killing, and the whereabouts of their bodies.

The families said they were particularly concerned about the minister’s recent reference to a contractor identified as “Marco”, whom he reportedly linked to the incident, questioning why the name had not been mentioned since the engineers disappeared in 2021.

The families also raised concerns over the handling of the criminal case involving six purported suspects, citing certified records of proceedings from the Ebonyi State High Court sitting in Ezzamgbo.

According to them, the case, with Charge No. HKW/7C/2022, was instituted over the alleged kidnapping of the five engineers, but no meaningful trial had taken place since 2022.

They claimed that two of the suspects were discharged after arraignment on the ground that there was allegedly no prima facie case against them, while three others were granted bail on self-recognisance and subsequently granted amnesty by the Ebonyi State Government.

The families further alleged that the defendants had since stopped appearing in court.

They cited a court record in which Justice John Igboji reportedly stated that the three applicants said to be enjoying the state government’s amnesty were admitted to bail on self-recognisance.

The families, however, expressed determination to pursue justice, insisting that no amount of alleged manipulation, intimidation or delay would make them abandon their demand for answers.

They called on the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and civil society organisations to intervene and help ensure that those responsible for the disappearance of the engineers were brought to justice.

“All we are crying for is justice for the souls of our beloved family members who were abducted since November 3, 2021.

“Till date, there is no meaningful report as to what transpired other than mischief and conspiracy theories from various quarters, including the court,” the families said.

They reiterated that their demand was not for sympathy but for a credible investigation, accountability and the recovery of the remains of their loved ones, if indeed they had been killed.

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