Kenechukwu Ofomah
Awka
Almost five years after five Nigerian engineers disappeared while carrying out their professional duties in Ebonyi State, the unresolved nature of the matter has once again been revisited, with calls for Nigerian authorities to show commitment to justice.
On 3 November 2021, Engr. Nelson Onyemeh, Engr. Ernest Edeani, Engr. Ikechukwu Ejiofor, Engr. Samuel Aneke, and Engr. Stanley Nwazulum were said to have left Enugu for Ebonyi State to supervise the construction of the Abakaliki Ring Road under a contract funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB). They never returned.
The engineers were employees of NELAN Consulting Limited, an independent engineering consultancy appointed through an international competitive bidding process to supervise the project in accordance with AfDB standards.
It was gathered that the wives of the missing engineers have refused to allow the case to disappear into official silence. Their petitions to the President, the National Assembly, the National Human Rights Commission, security agencies, and professional bodies reflect not merely personal grief but an insistence that the Nigerian state fulfil its constitutional obligations.
According to the families, disagreements had arisen between NELAN and the Ebonyi State Government over project supervision, certification of completed work, and control of payments. They allege that the engineers refused to compromise their professional obligations by certifying work outside the procedures required under the AfDB-financed contract.
Rights group, the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre, RULAAC, has said although these allegations have been denied, and no court has established that they are connected to the disappearance, they provide a context that any serious investigation cannot afford to ignore.
Speaking with the News Chronicle correspondent on Tuesday, the RULAAC Executive Director, Okechukwu Nwanguma insisted that the rule of law demands neither blind acceptance of accusations nor premature dismissal of them, but an impartial investigation guided solely by evidence.
He, however, regretted that instead, the public has been presented with a series of troubling contradictions.
“The engineers disappeared without trace. Government officials reportedly attributed the incident to communal violence. Later, public statements suggested they had been killed based on alleged confessions, even while investigations were reportedly still ongoing. Yet no bodies have been conclusively identified.
“Perhaps the most disturbing aspect is the reported DNA evidence. According to the families, skeletal remains presented as belonging to the missing engineers were subjected to independent DNA analysis, which reportedly excluded them as belonging to the victims. One set of remains was reportedly identified as female.
“If accurate, such findings raise fundamental questions. What became of the original investigation? Why were contradictory forensic findings not fully explained? What happened to the search for the missing engineers?
“These are not political questions. They are questions of justice,” he noted.
Nwanguma said equally troubling are reports that prosecutions proceeded while the fate of the victims remained uncertain and that the proceedings have since become stalled, adding that justice delayed is often justice denied, not only for defendants but also for victims and their families.
According to him, the Constitution guarantees the right to life. International human rights law imposes on governments a positive obligation to conduct prompt, effective, impartial and transparent investigations whenever people disappear under suspicious circumstances.
The RULAAC boss maintained that the families also have a right to know the truth about what happened to their loved ones, and should not depend on the political status of those whose actions may come under scrutiny.
He said because allegations and counter-allegations have persisted for years without resolution, there is now a compelling case for an independent federal-level review of the investigation.
Such a review, he said, should involve investigators with no prior involvement in the matter, modern forensic expertise, and transparent public reporting.
“Nigeria cannot afford unresolved disappearances involving professionals carrying out public duties on major infrastructure projects. If engineers, auditors, consultants, journalists, lawyers, or civil servants cannot discharge their professional responsibilities without fear, public accountability itself becomes endangered.
“This case is therefore about far more than five missing engineers. It is about whether public institutions inspire confidence or suspicion. It is about whether forensic evidence is pursued wherever it leads. It is about whether political influence can overshadow justice. Above all, it is about whether every Nigerian life carries equal value before the law.
“The families have waited for nearly five years. That is far too long. Justice demands answers. The rule of law demands accountability. Nigeria demands the truth,” he concluded.
