28/02/2026
DAVID UMAHI AND TRACY OHIRI, THE CONCERN OF NIGERIANS AND THE LAW⚖️
The unfolding and unfortunate controversy involving The Federal Minister Of Works Engr. David Nweze Umahi and his creditor, Mrs. Tracy Ohiri, strikes at the very heart of the rule of law in Nigeria.
According to Mrs. Tracy Ohiri’s allegations, what began as a debt dispute spiraled into something far more disturbing, claiming that she was pressured for an intimate relationship as a condition for payment, threatened when she refused, which led to her been subjected to arrest and imprisonment after 12 years while still pursuing her alleged debt.
Under Nigerian law, a simple debt is primarily a civil matter. Section 35 of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended) guarantees the right to personal liberty, while section 8(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015 expressly prohibits the use of arrest as a tool for enforcing civil obligations
If these allegations are proven, then Nigeria is not merely looking at a civil disagreement, but at a potential abuse of power that the law must confront decisively.
The courts have repeatedly warned especially in McLaren v. Jennings (2003), that the police and criminal process must not be weaponized to settle private financial disputes.
Let's be sincere to ourselves, any proven attempt to demand sxxual favors in exchange for performing a legal obligation could raise serious issues under Nigeria’s criminal laws relating to intimidation, threats, and abuse of authority.
Although, all these are still allegations that must be thoroughly, independently, and transparently investigated, the bone of contention at stake which is using criminal procedures to settle issue emanating from civil agreement is non-negotiable.
No public office holder, no matter how highly placed, is above his Country's Constitution, and no Nigerian, especially a wife and mother of underaged children, should face such humiliation and intending incarceration as have seen days ago, as a substitute for due civil process.
Justice in Nigeria must never wear the face of intimidation. If the rule of law is to mean anything, it must protect the weak as firmly as it restrains the powerful.
Dear Minister David Umahi, some us are highly embarrassed beyond words and actions Sir 🙏
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