The Minister of Works, David Umahi, has said President Bola Tinubu urged him to remain focused on delivering road projects despite calls for his removal following the death of a female staff member at his private residence.
Umahi made the remarks in a video that began circulating on X on Monday while responding to public criticism that followed the death of Mary Habila, a staff member of the Federal Ministry of Works. Habila’s death in June attracted widespread attention and sparked intense discussions across social media platforms.
According to the minister, some people attempted to turn the incident into a political issue by demanding that President Tinubu dismiss him from office.
“Power and might don’t belong to social media, it belongs to God,” Umahi wrote.
He further stated, “When people took the death of one of my staff and started playing politics with it, they said the president should sack me, but the president surprised all of them and said, ‘Dave, go and build more roads.’”
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Although the minister addressed the criticism surrounding the incident, he did not comment on the ongoing investigation into Habila’s death. Instead, he reiterated his commitment to carrying out his duties.
The incident has continued to attract public attention, with many social media users demanding accountability as they await the outcome of the official investigation.
As of Monday, authorities had yet to publicly disclose the final findings of investigations into the circumstances surrounding Habila’s death.