Five years is a long time to wait for answers about five people who left their homes for a professional assignment and never returned.
On November 3, 2021, five engineers working with NELAN Consulting arrived in Ebonyi State in connection with the African Development Bank-funded Abakaliki Ring Road project. They were Engr. Nelson Onyemeh, Engr. Ernest Edeani, Ikechukwu Ejiofor, Engr. Samuel Aneke and Engr. Stanley Nwazulum.They disappeared.
Perhaps what makes this tragedy even more disturbing is not just the disappearance itself, but the questions that have survived it: What happened to these men? Who knows what happened? Why has the investigation not provided their families with the closure they deserve?
When the engineers disappeared, David Umahi was the governor of Ebonyi State. The incident occurred during the violent Effium-Ezza-Effium communal crisis, which had already claimed lives and destroyed properties.
The government maintained that the engineers were victims of the wider communal violence and that security agencies had been mobilised to investigate the incident.
However, five years later, the most fundamental question remains unanswered: Where are the engineers?
The families, however, have consistently challenged his account. Their latest reaction followed his October 22 interview with Arise Television, during which he discussed the circumstances surrounding the disappearance and alleged killing of the engineers.
They questioned the source of some of the information he presented and why a former governor, rather than the police or the Department of State Services (DSS), appeared to be providing detailed accounts of the alleged killings.
On March 1, 2026, the traditional ruler of Ndufu-Alike community in Ikwo Local Government Area, HRH Francis Igwe, was abducted while reportedly travelling to church. He was subsequently found dead.
The incident attracted strong condemnation from the Ebonyi State Government. Governor Francis Nwifuru ordered immediate security action and pledged that the government would deploy available resources to identify those responsible.
The police later announced the arrest of a suspected mastermind in connection with the kidnapping and murder.
More recently, Nwifuru announced that his administration had forwarded a bill to the State House of Assembly seeking to make kidnapping a capital offence following the monarch’s murder.
The governor’s response reflects the urgency with which kidnapping and violent crimes should be treated.However, it also presents an opportunity to ask a broader question about consistency in the pursuit of justice.
Rather, it is a reminder that government commitment to justice must not depend on the status, influence or public profile of the victims.
This is not an attempt to compare the value of one life with another. The death of a monarch is no less tragic than the disappearance of five professionals, just as the grief of one family is no less deserving of attention than that of another.
Rather, it is a reminder that government commitment to justice must not depend on the status, influence or public profile of the victims.
The NELAN engineers were workers carrying out professional duties. Their families deserve the same urgency, seriousness and institutional attention that government rightly promises other victims of violent crime.
Beyond the conflicting public accounts, the handling of the criminal proceedings connected to the disappearance raises further concerns.
The families have questioned the progress of Charge No. HKW/7C/2022 before the Ebonyi State High Court sitting in Ezzamgbo.
According to certified court records cited by the families, six suspects were initially involved in the proceedings. They alleged that two were discharged after arraignment, while three others were granted bail on self-recognisance and subsequently benefited from the state government’s amnesty.
The families also alleged that the defendants later stopped appearing in court.
It is particularly troubling that a case involving five missing persons could remain surrounded by so much uncertainty years after it was instituted.
If the government maintains that the engineers were killed, where is the evidence establishing their fate? If suspects were arrested and prosecuted, what became of the proceedings? If the case is still before the court, what steps are being taken to ensure that it progresses?
Justice cannot be reduced to announcing arrests, expressing sympathy or promising severe punishment. It must be demonstrated through credible investigations, transparent prosecution and accountability.
The families have not simply been waiting for five years. They have protested, petitioned government officials and sought the intervention of institutions, including the National Judicial Council, the Nigerian Bar Association and human rights organisations.
In March 2026, they protested at the Federal Ministry of Works. They also petitioned President Bola Tinubu, Senate President Godswill Akpabio and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, seeking federal intervention.
In July, they raised concerns about the court proceedings and called for an independent review.
Yet, their central demand remains unchanged: tell them what happened to their loved ones.
Consider the families who have spent five years without knowing whether to continue hoping for the return of their husbands, sons and brothers or to begin grieving a loss that has never been conclusively established.
For them, the absence of a body is not a minor detail. It is an open wound.
The government must understand that expressions of sympathy, however well-intentioned, cannot replace the answers these families need.
The police and DSS should provide a clear account of their investigations, subject to legitimate security and judicial considerations. The Ministry of Works should not allow the fact that the incident occurred under a previous administration to become an excuse for avoiding questions about a case that has followed its current minister into public office.
The Ebonyi State Government should also clarify the status of the criminal proceedings and cooperate with any credible independent review.
Most importantly, the authorities must establish what happened to the five engineers and, if they were killed, make every reasonable effort to locate and recover their remains.
As Ebonyi reflects on five years since the disappearance of the NELAN engineers, the anniversary should be more than another opportunity to recount a tragic event.
It should be a moment to examine the government’s response, the effectiveness of its investigative institutions and the justice system’s ability to protect citizens and hold perpetrators accountable.
The state has witnessed other tragic security incidents. Its leaders have condemned crimes, announced measures and made promises to prevent future occurrences. Those responses matter, but their real value should ultimately be measured by results.
The NELAN case must not become another unresolved chapter in Ebonyi’s history, remembered only when an anniversary approaches or when grieving families take their demands to the streets.
Five engineers disappeared while performing their professional duties. Five families have been left with questions. And five years later, the public still deserves to know what happened.
A government cannot claim to have delivered justice simply because it has spoken about a tragedy. Justice must be seen, established and felt by those who have suffered.
For Nelson Onyemeh, Ernest Edeani, Ikechukwu Ejiofor, Samuel Aneke and Stanley Nwazulum, five years have passed.
Their families are still waiting.
Ebonyi must not allow the NELAN engineers to become forgotten names in an unfinished search for justice.
On this History Thursday, we revisit stories that define our roots and affirm our identity. From past achievements to enduring legacies, these moments remind us that Ebonyi’s history is rich, resilient, and worth telling—again and again.
