Minister of Works, Dave Umahi, has dismissed allegations linking him to the death of Nurse Mary Habila, insisting there was no foul play and warning against attempts to politicise the tragic incident.
Addressing journalists in Abuja on Thursday, Umahi described the late nurse as one of his most trusted staff members, saying she had worked with him for three years and was like a daughter to him.
The minister said he was saddened by what he described as attempts to exploit Habila’s death for political reasons, stressing that her passing should not be turned into a tool for unfounded accusations.
According to him, Habila stayed in a guest house reserved for members of the medical team, located far from his personal residence, making it wrong to suggest he should automatically be held responsible for her death.
“What baffles me in this country is that everything becomes an opportunity. There is a guest house where she and the second medical person stay, and that is very far from where I stay. Does it mean that if, God forbid, somebody dies in the Ministry of Works, the minister must be accountable? Is that what they are saying? Are they saying that somebody cannot die? Have they checked the medical records of the lady? Do they know that this lady was like a daughter to me?
“Everything goes into politics. But what I say to people is, be careful; life is spiritual. When you want to use the unfortunate death of a young girl to play politics, if we have hands in the killings, let it follow us in our families. But if we don’t have hands and you are jumping into it, behold, this is David—I am a man of full grace. You don’t tackle me anyhow and go free. So be careful when you want to use the death of that young lady—one of my best workers, a nurse, and a federal staff.”
Umahi also disclosed that the deceased had an existing medical history and had been receiving treatment at the Turkish Hospital, with the expenses covered by his family.
Giving an account of her final moments, the minister said Habila had called her boyfriend shortly before she died, informing him that she was bleeding from the nose.
According to Umahi, the boyfriend advised her to report the condition and later ended the call despite her request for him to stay on the line.
Three minutes later, he reportedly called back but received no response.
Umahi further revealed that Habila had earlier told her boyfriend she intended to take a bath. When colleagues could not reach her the following morning, they forced open her locked room and found her lifeless, with the tap still running.
“The lady in question was like a daughter to me. She had stayed with me for three years. She was a staff of the federal medical university. She was a nurse, not a physiotherapist. Her family and my family are like one, and she has her medical records in Turkish Hospital, with her treatments paid for by us.
“She spoke to her boyfriend at the hour of her death, complaining that she was bleeding from the nose. The boyfriend said, ‘No, you have to report it. See, it has stopped.’ He then added, ‘Listen, I will not continue this conversation, since you are bleeding, it will increase the bleeding.
“She told her boyfriend not to cut the call, but he cut the call anyway. Three minutes later, the boyfriend called again, but she was not responding. Even in the morning, she had told her boyfriend she was going to take a bath. Because she locked her door, when they discovered her in the morning, they had to break the door. They found her, and the tap was still running.”
Habila was part of the medical team accompanying the minister to his hometown in Uburu, Ohaozara Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, where she was found dead inside the residential compound. Police investigations into the circumstances surrounding her death are ongoing.
