Hope rises on recovery of Mpam Modern Bakery site allegedly sold by LG Chairman

 

Maureen Aguta

 

Indications are rife that the Imo State Government landed property in Mpam Autonomous Community (Mpam Modern Bakery site) in the custody of the authorities of Ahiazu Mbaise Local Government Area (LGA), allegedly sold to Eze Akaraka 11 of Ihiteaforukwu by officials of Ahiazu LGA, would soon be recovered by the state government.

This came as some concerned indigenes of Mpam Autonomous Community have reportedly commenced a legal process to get the LG Chairman to retrieve the government property from the private individual and preserve it for the overriding public interest of the Ahiazu people for which it was willingly surrendered by the community to the government.

Recall that as a follow up to the recent Town Hall Meeting convened by His Excellency, Senator Hope Uzodinma, Executive Governor of Imo State, at the palace of Eze Imo on Saturday, May 10, 2025, the governor constituted a “Communities Development and Mobilization Committee” in all the 27 Local Government Areas of Imo State.

The terms of reference of the committee are: To work out a strategy for and facilitate efficient and comprehensive enrollment of all citizens from the LGA in the Imo State Health Insurance Scheme;

To work out modalities and facilitate the establishment of a vibrant vigilante outfit in every Autonomous Community in the LGA;

To identify and recover all Government assets and property in the wrong hands in the LGA;

To identify any encroachment on any government land, facility or property and bring such cases to the urgent attention of the government;

To identify and bring to the urgent attention of the government any security challenge that is peculiar to the LGA;

Any other issues the Committee considers necessary to realize the mandate of the Committee.

Inaugurating the committee at the local government headquarters recently, LG Chairman, Chief Larry Chikwe, charged committee members to be pragmatic and work with fear of God to achieve set goals.

He further enjoined the Sub-committee on Recovery of Government Properties and other sub committees to abide strictly by the directives of the Imo State Governor and take the assignments serious.

The sub-committee on Recovery of Government Properties has Special Adviser (SA) to the Governor, Comr. Austin Chilakpa as Chairman and Arc. Tony Mbanaja as Secretary while the Community Development and Project Mobilization subcommittee has the SA to the Governor on the New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD), Dim Doris Anyanwu as Chairman, the LGA Chairman All Progressive Congress (APC) Party, Chief Ethel Ugwu (Co-Chairman) and Chief Comr. Francis Nzenwata as Secretary.

While Ahiazu people await to see to whether justice would be done with regard to government properties have recently been converted to private use, particularly the Mpam Modern Bakery site, sources close to the State Government told Advocacy Times that the State Governor is very sad over the news he is getting that public properties are being converted to private use across the state either through the connivance of government officials or in some cases, people forcefully entering government lands and convert it to their private use.

The official who did not want his name mentioned because he was not authorized to speak on the matter disclosed that the Governor will soon commence action to recover such properties and put the corruption and impunity to an end.

Advocacy Times notes that Ahiazu-Mbaise has been in the news in recent times over this act of impunity by the authorities of the local government which has reportedly been systematically converting government properties into private use at the detriment of the public interest projects for which the lands were acquired or willingly given to the government by the communities.

Eventhough the revenue generated from such illegal transactions has believably ended in the private pockets of the local government officials involved in the transaction, the leaders of the communities spoken to by Advocacy Times, said that they are only interested in the land being used by government for the purpose it was acquired or for any other public interest project government may wish to execute for the people.

The most recent in alleged numerous diversion of public lands to private in Imo State Advocacy Times learnt, is the Mpam Modern Bakery site at the Mpam Autonomous Community, Ekwerazu, Ahiazu-Mbaise LGA, which was willingly given to the local government authority by the community through their Traditional Ruler at that time, Late Eze F.U Anyanwu, during the administration of Dr Silas Onuoha at Ahiazu LGA; for the construction of an ultra-modern bakery by the local government.

Residents disclosed that construction of the bakery reached over 40 per cent completion during the administration of Dr Onuoha but was abandoned by subsequent administrations at the local government.

Instead of reviving the project now that LGA allocations have increased, or bring another government project to the site, the land has reportedly been sold (leased for 25 years) to a private businessman to build a hotel which the locals said has no economic benefit to the rural community unlike the bakery which aside from the direct and indirect jobs it would create, would also help in solving the food needs of the people.

Advocacy Times reports that effort to compel the Local Government Chairman, Chief Larry Chikwe to reverse the transaction has been rebuffed, even as the bakery has reportedly been demolished, while the private businessman, Eze Akaraka 11 of Ihitteaforukwu has reportedly commenced the construction of his hotel facility at the site.

Residents and concerned leaders of Mpam who were outraged by the act of impunity confirmed to Advocacy Times that they have commenced a legal process, to get the courts interpret the powers the local government has to convert to private use a public land in its custody which is a property of the State Government under the Land Use Act.