NPHCDA Staff, Residents Protest Alleged Land-Grabbing, Threats, Destruction In Abuja Land Dispute With Nigerian Air Force
Staff members of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), members of its cooperative society, and residents of Hulumi village, on Friday, protested in Abuja against the “violent encroachment” and “brazen land-grabbing” by the Nigeria Air Force Holding Company (NAF Holdings) and its affiliates.
The protesters who gathered at the Ministry of Defense in Abuja displayed placards with different inscriptions.
In their petition addressed to the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS) and obtained by SaharaReporters, the protesters accused NAF Holdings, NAFIL Housing and Construction Company Ltd, and their agents of consistently threatening the lives of NPHCDA staff and subscribers to the agency’s multipurpose cooperative housing estate.
The agency, a federal parastatal under the Federal Ministry of Health, said it is the rightful owner of a 13.5-hectare land in Hulumi, Idu, Abuja, allocated to it by the FCT administration. According to the petition, NPHCDA staff and subscribers have paid all fees and development levies and have been in “peaceful possession” of the land for years until NAF Holdings forcefully moved in.
The petition alleged that NAF Holdings and its proxies have not only defied multiple FCT directives and court orders but have also engaged in violent intimidation, arrest of workers, and destruction of properties worth millions of naira.
“On August 2, 2025, NAF Holdings entered Phase 2 of the land and arrested workers on NPHCDA’s site,” the petition read. “Our representatives who went to NAF Holdings’ office were told that the arrest was ordered by one Alhaji Bomo, who claimed the land belonged to him.”
The petition further accused NAF Holdings’ operatives of sending armed men to threaten construction workers on at least three occasions.
It also identified individuals allegedly involved in the intimidation and racketeering as including Alhaji Bomo, one Abdullahi, and a certain Samuel Zamani, who reportedly posed as both a youth leader and an immigration officer to harass residents.
“Despite an interim injunction granted by the High Court of the FCT in Suit No. FCT/HC/CV/1505/2024, restraining NAF Holdings from encroaching, building, or taking any further action on the land, they have continued with their activities in gross contempt of the judiciary,” the petition stated.
The residents and NPHCDA cooperative members are demanding that the DSS immediately intervene to protect their lives and property, investigate the alleged racketeers, and bring all complicit individuals to justice.
They are also asking that the suspects be made to sign an undertaking to desist from further threats and intimidation, while NPHCDA’s building materials and equipment — valued at over ₦100 million — be secured.
The protest comes after failed attempts by the Minister of Defence and the Minister of the FCT to resolve the land dispute.
According to the petition, while the FCT Development Control approved NPHCDA’s request to fence and develop the land, portions of the new estate fence were later destroyed by suspected NAF Holdings operatives.
“The loss of materials during Phase 1 development has already cost us over ₦70 million,” the protesters lamented. “We fear that without urgent intervention, this matter may lead to grievous harm, loss of life, or a total breakdown of law and order.”
Copies of the petition were also sent to the Presidency, the Inspector General of Police, the Attorney General of the Federation, the Senate President, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the service chiefs.
