I was promised $70k to retract claims against Umahi – Businesswoman

 

I was promised $70k to retract claims against Umahi – Businesswoman

Businesswoman Tracyniter Nicholas Ohiri has alleged that her earlier retraction of claims against the Minister of Works, David Umahi, was scripted and made under pressure, insisting she was promised $70,000 that was never paid.

In a fresh video circulating online, Ohiri said a lawyer, Marshal Abubakar, coerced her into recording the retraction and assured her that Umahi had agreed to compensate her before the video was made public.

“Marshal, you gave me a script… you forced me to do this video. You said the person told you he was willing to pay me and compensate me for even arresting me and body-shaming me in public,” she said.

 

She alleged that the agreement was that payment would be made before the video was released, but claimed that did not happen.

“You told me that I will receive my payment before you release the video. How did you release the video without me collecting my money?” she asked.

Ohiri further alleged that she was isolated and intimidated during the process.

“You made sure I did not speak to anybody… you kept on threatening me,” she said, calling on the Nigerian Bar Association to investigate Abubakar’s conduct, which she described as unethical.

Ohiri had earlier accused Umahi of owing her about N250 million for promotional and printing services she claimed to have rendered during his 2015 governorship campaign in Ebonyi State. She also alleged sexual harassment and intimidation after she demanded payment, claims the minister has consistently denied.

She was later arrested in Lagos over allegations of cyberbullying linked to her social media posts and transferred to Abuja, where she was detained at the FCT police command. She was subsequently arraigned before a magistrate court in Wuse on a defamation charge and granted bail.

The matter gained public attention after activist and former presidential candidate Omoyele Sowore confronted the minister at the police headquarters, criticising what he described as the criminalisation of a civil dispute.

Umahi, in his response, denied both the allegation of indebtedness and the claims of sexual harassment, describing them as baseless.

“As party chairman, I owed nobody… I presided over both men and women, and nobody ever said I harassed them,” he said, adding, “What you read on social media, I’m not worried about it… it’s just to make social media alive.”

Amid the controversy, Ohiri had released a video retracting her allegations and apologising to the minister and his family, saying the decision followed consultations with her family, friends and legal team. In that video, she stated that there was no formally signed agreement between her and the minister and suggested that any materials she supplied may have been used by aides without his knowledge.

However, her latest claims challenge that retraction, as she now insists it was made under duress and tied to a promise of financial settlement that was not fulfilled.

Responding on his Facebook page, Abubakar denied coercing Ohiri or withholding any payment, describing her allegations as false.

He said he had supported her during her arrest by mobilising assistance, engaging activists and helping to secure her bail. According to him, attempts were made to mediate between Ohiri and the minister, who maintained that he was not indebted to her.

“He insisted that he wasn’t owing her and wouldn’t pay unless she can establish the existence of a contract,” Abubakar said.

He added that he found no evidence to support her claims during the mediation process.

“There was no single real evidence of any contractual agreement… no evidence that the minister ever engaged her,” he said.

Abubakar said Ohiri eventually agreed to retract her allegations as part of efforts to resolve the dispute, adding that the $70,000 mentioned was provided by a third party, Joseph Ekumankama, not as compensation or an admission of liability, but to facilitate peace.

He denied benefiting financially from the arrangement and alleged that Ohiri later demanded a significantly higher sum.

“She promised to drag my name online unless I meet them to pay her N300 million,” he said, adding that he is considering legal action over the claims made against him.