A community leader from Akwa Ibom State, Mr. Udeme Eyosukwa, has accused powerful village heads and some police officers of orchestrating years of land grabbing, intimidation and violent attacks that have forced residents to flee their ancestral communities.
Eyosukwa, who hails from Green Sugara Fort village in the Ikot Abasi axis of the state, alleged that two village heads—Ememde Nisasiku of Green Sugara Fort and Inefionge Fiongisa of Ikoto Yangan Fort—have been unlawfully dispossessing residents of their lands with the support of armed youths and compromised security operatives.
Speaking to SaharaReporters, Eyosukwa claimed that the village heads routinely invade farmlands and residential plots with armed men and heavy equipment, clear the land and sell it to third parties. He alleged that victims who resist are framed with serious criminal charges such as kidnapping, armed robbery and attempted murder to force them into detention while their properties are taken over.
According to him, more than 5,000 people across several communities have been affected by the alleged activities. He said the situation has worsened to the point that many residents, including himself, can no longer access their communities due to what he described as police manhunts based on fabricated allegations.
Eyosukwa further alleged widespread extortion by security operatives during investigations. He claimed he paid millions of naira, including sums allegedly demanded for transporting suspects to Abuja, without any meaningful outcome or justice.
He cited several cases in which land was allegedly sold multiple times by the same village heads, leading to demolitions of completed buildings and threats against original buyers. In one instance, he said a man identified as Okpan had his partially completed house demolished after the land was resold, while other victims allegedly lost both their land and money.
Eyosukwa also claimed he became a direct target because of his licensed small-scale mining business involving laterite and sharp sand. He alleged that in 2024 he received intelligence of an assassination plot and was later attacked at his residence, where cash and valuables worth millions of naira were stolen, forcing him to flee.
He further alleged that police intelligence units initially arrested suspects and transferred some cases to Abuja, but that investigations were later stalled following alleged interference by influential individuals.
Frustrated by what he described as repeated failures of law enforcement, Eyosukwa said affected residents formed a pressure group, Voice of Liberation, and submitted petitions to several authorities, including the Force Intelligence Department, the Federal Criminal Investigation Department, the Akwa Ibom State Government and Governor Umo Eno, without receiving any response.
He also alleged that other residents had been targeted, including a man whose house was reportedly burnt, who was allegedly detained for a year on false charges while his lands were sold off, as well as an attempted killing of another resident in April 2025.
Eyosukwa appealed to President Bola Tinubu, Inspector-General of Police Kayode Egbetokun, the National Security Adviser and relevant security and anti-corruption agencies to urgently intervene. He called for the setting up of an independent investigative panel, warning that continued inaction could lead to a breakdown of law and order in the affected communities.
