Umahi breaks silence, says family won’t get Habila’s body

THE Minister of Works, David Umahi, has broken his silence over the death of Mary Habila, a staff member who died at his private residence in Uburu, Ebonyi State, stating that he suspected no foul play and described attempts to link him to the incident as political.

Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Thursday, July 16, Umahi disclosed that the deceased worked with him for three years as a nurse and he took her like a daughter.

The minister said the deceased had a history of health challenges, for which he personally paid her hospital bills. He claimed that her medical records at a Turkish hospital showed he recently paid ₦2.2 million for her treatment on April 5, 2026. He added that her death had left him devastated.

He said she had repeatedly suffered nosebleed and complained about the condition to her boyfriend shortly before her death.

The minister stated that the guest house where the 26-year-old died was located far from his personal quarters, arguing that it was unfair to hold him personally responsible for her passing.

“What baffles me in this country is that everything becomes an opportunity. There is a guest house where she and other medical personnel stayed, and that is very far from where I stay. Does it mean that because somebody dies in the Ministry of Works, the minister must be accountable for that?” he asked.

He described the deceased as one of his best staff who would be difficult to replace..

Umahi explained that Habila had called her boyfriend to complain of a nosebleed shortly before she was found. He noted that the boyfriend urged her to end the call to avoid worsening the bleeding, but when he tried calling back three minutes later, she did not respond.

He added that the boyfriend had previously mentioned a similar bleeding episode occurring while she was on an official assignment in Lagos.

Umahi argued that when communication could no longer proceed between Habila and her boyfriend before she breathed her last, those at the residence broke down her door and found her body, while the bathroom tap where she had allegedly prepared to take a bath was still running.

“I suspect no foul play because the other lady who stayed with her was sleeping in the same bed. Her room was still locked, and the door had to be broken before they discovered the body. The tap was still running because I think she was going to bathe,” he stated.

To clear any doubts surrounding the incident, the minister urged investigators to retrieve and analyse the telephone call logs between the deceased and her boyfriend.

Umahi also lamented what he described as attempts to exploit the young woman’s death for political gains.

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“People should be careful when they want to use the unfortunate death of a young girl to play politics. If we have a hand in the killing, it will follow our families and us. But if we don’t have a hand in it and you are jumping into it, be careful. Life is spiritual,” he said.

The minister appealed to the deceased’s family to permit a post-mortem examination, revealing that he had instructed that the body should not be released for burial until an autopsy is conducted.

He explained that previous efforts by investigators to perform the procedure had been stalled because the family objected on cultural grounds.

“We have been begging the parents to allow an autopsy to happen. They said it is against their culture. But we insisted through our lawyer that an autopsy should happen. I have directed that the corpse cannot be removed until an autopsy,” he said.

Umahi added that he had requested the Inspector-General of Police to transfer the investigation to the Force Headquarters in Abuja to facilitate further discussions with the family and ensure a thorough probe.

He also criticised the circulation of photographs of the deceased taken at the mortuary, accusing some police officers of leaking misleading information, and threatened legal action against media platforms for false reporting.

“I have directed my lawyers to get across to those involved in cyberbullying this matter. We are going to test the law on that,” Umahi concluded.

The ICIR reported that the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, had called on the Federal Government to conduct an independent inquiry into the incident and demanded that the minister step aside pending the outcome of the investigation.

However, the family of the deceased has urged the police not to conduct an autopsy on her body. In an affidavit filed before the High Court of Ebonyi State, her father, Tanko Habila, stated that the family did not suspect foul play and would not accept a post-mortem examination.