The Enugu State Government has refuted claims circulating in a viral online video that it demolished a building with occupants still inside on the Penoks-Abakpa axis of Enugu metropolis.
In a statement issued on Sunday, Mr. Reuben Onyishi, the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Peter Mbah on New Media, clarified that the video was a fake. He urged the public to disregard the misleading content, which he said was part of an effort by “enemies of development and mischief-makers” to discredit the Mbah administration.
Onyishi explained that the video being shared was from a demolition in another part of the country, not Enugu. “The video in place was a demolition that took place somewhere in the north, which the daredevils culled from antiquity and purporting it to have taken place in Enugu State,” he said.
The controversy arose as part of ongoing preparations for the dualization of the 43.7 km Penoks-Abakpa Nike-Opi-Nsukka Road, which was launched in October 2024. As part of the project, the government had issued a notice of vacation to property owners whose buildings were located less than five meters from the road. “While fringes were being cleared for the commencement of the construction work on the road, affected property owners had vacated their property,” Onyishi added.
He clarified that what actually happened at the site was that some individuals, “scavengers,” were attempting to steal from the buildings slated for demolition. “Some of them dashed into the buildings on demolition, seeking what to grab,” he stated.
Onyishi emphasized that the state government, under Governor Mbah’s leadership, would never engage in such inhumane actions. “The Enugu State Government would not go to such inhuman length of demolishing a property while the owners were inside it,” he assured.