By Editor
The recent death of Mary Habila at the residence of the Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has reignited public calls for a fresh investigation into the unresolved disappearance of five engineers who went missing in Ebonyi State in 2021.
The renewed appeal was made by social commentator Charles Ogbu in a detailed post shared on his Facebook page, where he revisited the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the engineers, popularly referred to as the "NELAN Five," and urged authorities to reopen the case.
According to Ogbu, the renewed attention is not intended to link the two incidents directly but to remind Nigerians that several unanswered questions surrounding the disappearance of the engineers remain unresolved nearly five years later.
The five missing engineers Engr. Nelson Onyemeh, Engr. Ernest Edeani, Engr. Ikechukwu Ejiofor, Engr. Samuel Aneke, and Engr. Stanley Nwazulum were employees of NELAN Consulting Limited, an Enugu-based engineering consultancy engaged by the African Development Bank (AfDB) to supervise the construction of the Abakaliki Ring Road project during Umahi's tenure as Governor of Ebonyi State.
Ogbu alleged that tensions developed between the consulting firm and the Ebonyi State Government after the engineers reportedly refused to approve project certificates they believed violated AfDB supervision guidelines. According to the account, the disagreement centred on issues relating to project control, certification and payment approvals.
On November 3, 2021, the five engineers reportedly travelled from Enugu to Ebonyi State in an official company vehicle for project supervision but never returned. Their whereabouts have remained unknown ever since.
The Ebonyi State Government at the time attributed the disappearance to suspected kidnappers operating within the Effium and Ezza-Effium communal crisis area and announced that security agencies had commenced search operations.
However, Ogbu noted that then-Governor Umahi later publicly stated that the engineers had been killed and buried in the bush by suspected Ezza militia members, despite investigations by security agencies still being ongoing.
According to him, the families of the missing engineers rejected that explanation, insisting that their loved ones were specifically targeted because of professional disagreements connected to the road project rather than becoming victims of communal violence.
He further stated that although security agencies later presented skeletal remains believed to belong to the missing engineers, independent DNA tests commissioned by their families reportedly failed to establish any match. Ogbu said the results allegedly showed that one of the remains belonged to a female, further deepening the families' concerns over the official narrative.
The Facebook post also referenced allegations made by the families that phone tracking linked a suspected kidnapper to individuals allegedly connected with the road project. Those individuals have denied any wrongdoing, and no court has established the allegations as fact.
Ogbu further highlighted concerns raised by the families over the conduct of the investigation, including the reported removal of a key investigator, the continuation of court proceedings without recovering the victims' bodies, and the alleged impersonation of representatives of NELAN at project meetings after the engineers disappeared.
Since 2021, the families have consistently maintained that the engineers disappeared while carrying out legitimate official duties and have continued to demand an independent federal investigation into the case.
Their campaign has included petitions to President Bola Tinubu, the National Assembly, the National Human Rights Commission, and several security agencies. In March 2026, they also staged a protest at the Federal Ministry of Works in Abuja, demanding justice and accountability.
According to Ogbu, legal representatives for the families have recently obtained Certified True Copies of court proceedings in the matter and petitioned the National Judicial Council (NJC), the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), and other relevant bodies, alleging irregularities in the handling of the case.
The criminal proceedings involving six defendants charged over the disappearance remain before the Ebonyi State High Court. Court records indicate that the matter has experienced repeated adjournments and delays, while the families continue to insist that justice cannot be served until the fate of the missing engineers is conclusively established.
Neither the Minister of Works, David Umahi, nor other individuals mentioned in Ogbu's account have publicly responded to the renewed claims contained in the Facebook post. The allegations also remain unproven in court.
With fresh public attention following the recent incident at the minister's residence, the renewed appeal has once again brought the unresolved disappearance of the NELAN Five back into national focus, as their families continue to call for an independent investigation capable of uncovering what truly happened to the engineers.