‘Tinubu told me to build more roads despite sack calls’ — Umahi

Minister of Works David Umahi says President Bola Tinubu asked him to remain focused on road construction despite calls for his removal over the death of Mary Habila.

Habila, a staff member attached to the minister, died at Umahi’s private residence in June, triggering widespread reactions and demands for an investigation.

Some opposition figures and social media users subsequently called on Tinubu to suspend or sack Umahi pending the conclusion of investigations into the incident.

Reacting in a video circulating on social media, the minister accused some individuals of politicising Habila’s death.

“When people took the death of one of my staff and started playing politics with it, they said the president should sack me,” Umahi said.

“But the president surprised all of them and said, ‘Dave, go and build more roads.’”

Umahi maintained that decisions concerning his position would not be determined by social media criticism.

“Power and might don’t belong to social media; they belong to God,” he said.

The minister did not provide an update on the investigation into Habila’s death during his remarks.

Authorities have also yet to publicly announce the final outcome of investigations into the circumstances surrounding the incident.