Angered by what they described as forceful takeover of ancestral land, women from Umuiche, Elelem in Ngor-Okpala Local Government Area of Imo State, have vowed to stage naked protest on the street if their land allegedly being grabbed by some top politicians in the state is not returned.

The women, who staged a peaceful protest in their numbers, said they are now starving as a result of the encroachment of their land by the alleged politicians, who they said have boasted to enjoy powers at the corridors of government.

Speaking to journalists, the woman leader of the protesting women, Mrs. Elizabeth Okere, lamented that the lands at Ndichie Uzo Ubi, Agaranwa, Ngara and Ahaba have served as means of livelihood to majority of the natives, who she said are predominantly farmers.

“What you’re seeing today is small compared to what is going to happen next if they don’t return our land to us. We prefer going naked on the street to dying of hunger in our own land over what has been ours for ages.

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“We want our land back. It’s our ancestral land we used for our farming. They don’t have any business encroaching on it. The land is our only source of livelihood as we’re predominantly farmers. We want to appeal to the appropriate authorities to help us recover our land back,” he lamented.

In his speech, the youth leader of the village, Eugene Onyema, accused the said politicians and their cohorts of harassing them with thugs each time they are confronted.

He narrated that the villagers are being treated as slaves in their own land as the alleged land grabbers chase them with armed thugs whenever they try to confront them.

“They brag and tell us that we cannot do anything. We don’t know who else to turn to but beg organisations like Amnesty International and the government to help us get our land back,” he appealed.

Similarly, Mr. Chris Nwogu, the village secretary, pointed out that the owners of the land have been subjected to perpetual starvation since they can no longer get access to their farmland anymore.

“We have little portion left and if care is not taken they might grab what is left from us and leave us with nothing. Already we’re suffering the effects of the forceful grabbing of land.

We experienced bad harvest last year and this year may not be different. Our children and other family members are almost dying of starvation, hence the need for urgent help from the appropriate authorities to save us from these politicians,” he said.

Nwogu, however, added that the village leadership has already concluded plans to petition the appropriate authorities on the matter.