What Mary Habila’s Boyfriend Told Me – Umahi Breaks Silence

The Minister of Works, David Umahi, has denied any involvement in the death of Mary Habila, who died in his residence in Uburu, Ebonyi State.

Speaking at a press conference in Abuja on Thursday, Naija News reports that Umahi said Habila was like a daughter to him.

While denying any form of complicity in her death, the Minister described attempts to link him to the incident as “politics taken too far.”

According to him, the late Habila had worked closely with him for years and had a history of medical challenges for which he personally funded treatment.

He also revealed that his late aide complained of bleeding from her nose during a phone conversation with her boyfriend shortly before she was found dead, as he insisted there was no evidence of foul play in the incident.

The Minister also disclosed that the deceased was a nurse employed by the Federal University of Health Sciences, Ebonyi State, contrary to reports describing her as a physiotherapist.

In his account, Umahi disclosed that the deceased had been living and working with him for about three years and enjoyed a close relationship with his family.

He also appealed to the deceased’s family to permit an autopsy to establish the exact cause of death, revealing that he had directed that the body should not be released for burial until the procedure was conducted.

He said, “My lawyers have spoken on my behalf. But one piece of information I want to correct is that the lady in question was like a daughter to me. She had stayed with me for three years. She was a staff member of the Federal Medical University. She was a nurse and not a physiotherapist. And her family and my family are like one family,” he said.

Medical Record

The minister disclosed that the late Habila had been receiving treatment at a Turkish hospital before her death, and he had been the one footing the medical bills.

“She has her medical records in Turkish Hospital, being paid by us. The last one was on the 5th of April and it cost me N2.2 million. The records are there. I paid N2.2 million,” Umahi said.

Final Moments With Boyfriend

Umahi also claimed that in the final moments before her death, the nurse complained of bleeding from the nose during a telephone conversation with her boyfriend shortly before communication stopped.

He said, “She spoke to her boyfriend at the hour of her death and complained that she was bleeding from the nose. The boyfriend said, ‘No, you have to report it.’ She said it had stopped. The boyfriend then said, ‘Listen, I will not continue this conversation since you are bleeding. It will increase the bleeding.’

“She told the boyfriend, ‘Don’t cut the call.’ The boyfriend cut the call. Three minutes later, the boyfriend called again. She was not responding.”

According to the minister, the deceased had earlier informed her boyfriend that she intended to take a bath before communication ceased.

“Even in the morning, she told her boyfriend she was going to bathe because she had locked her door. When they discovered something was wrong, they broke down the door and discovered her dead. The tap was still running,” Umahi said.

I’m Innocent

The Minister stressed that the guest house where the deceased died was located far from his personal residence, arguing that it was unfair to hold him personally responsible simply because the incident occurred within facilities linked to the ministry.

According to him, some narratives are attempting to exploit the incident for political reasons.

“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?

“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 said the deceased had been one of his most dedicated staff members and that her death had left him devastated.

“It is very painful to me that the girl passed on. It is very difficult to replace her. She was one of my best workers,” he said.

He said attempts by investigators to conduct an autopsy on the deceased have so far been unsuccessful because her family objected on cultural grounds.

He said, “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.”

The Minister further disclosed that he had requested the Inspector-General of Police to transfer the investigation from Ebonyi to Abuja to ensure a thorough probe and facilitate discussions with the family.

“We have reported to the Inspector-General of Police to transfer the case to Abuja. Let them beg the family to do an autopsy. I am also begging the family to meet with the Inspector-General so that he can convince them,” he said.

Umahi further claimed that the deceased had previously experienced similar episodes of nosebleeding while accompanying him on official assignments.

He urged investigators to retrieve the telephone records between the deceased and her boyfriend to get more details regarding the last moments of her life.

According to him, “The boyfriend also told us that when we were in Lagos, she called him and said she was bleeding from the nose. He advised her to report to me so I could send her back to the hospital, but she didn’t want to stress me. He then told her to find a hospital around and seek treatment.

“I have asked the police to go to the call logs. They should go to the call log of the boy and the call log of the girl, and they will hear the last conversation the girl had with the boyfriend at the hour of her death.”

Umahi declared total support for a thorough investigation into the matter, maintaining that he had seen no evidence suggesting criminal activity.

“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.

Police Leaked Mortuary Pictures

According to Umahi, some photos circulating on social media were taken at the mortuary and leaked by Police officers.

He said, “When they took her to the mortuary, that was where the police took the picture. They did not dress her up in the mortuary before taking the picture and sending out damaging information.”

Umahi vowed to pursue legal action against media organisations he accused of spreading false information and cyberbullying the deceased.