Alleged Debt: Pay My Money Or I Press Your Neck, Businesswoman Tells Works Minister

A businesswoman, Tracy Nicolas Ohiri, has accused Nigeria’s Minister of Works, David Umahi, of owing her about ₦250 million and allegedly using the police to harass and detain her after she rejected his advances.

Ohiri was on Thursday arraigned before a Magistrate Court in Wuse 6, Abuja, in a matter arising from a long-running dispute between her and the minister. The case, she insisted, stemmed from a civil debt allegedly owed to her for promotional and printing services she provided during Umahi’s 2015 governorship campaign in Ebonyi State.

According to Ohiri, repeated demands for payment led her to take to social media, where she publicly accused the minister of failing to settle the debt. She claimed that shortly after, she was arrested in Lagos on allegations of cyberbullying linked to those posts.

She further alleged that she was transferred from Lagos to Abuja and detained at the Federal Capital Territory Police Command, an action she believed was influenced by the minister.

The case drew public attention on Wednesday when activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, confronted Umahi at the police headquarters in Abuja over the matter. Sowore accused the police of enabling what he described as a private session that allowed the minister to intimidate Ohiri.

He criticised the criminalisation of the dispute, insisting that the matter was “purely civil” and should not have involved arrests or detention.

During proceedings at the Magistrate Court on Thursday, Ohiri reportedly addressed the situation in strong terms, declaring: “I can never be broken. You must pay me my money. I will press your neck.”

Recounting the incident, Ohiri told journalists that she waited for over a year after delivering the services before demanding payment.

“So I gave him time. After one year and eight months, I started asking him for my payment,” she said. “While I’m asking for my payment, David is asking me out. While I’m asking for my payment, David is asking me to date him.”

Ohiri alleged that the situation escalated after she firmly rejected the advances. “One day, I got so frustrated. I said, ‘Sir, can you concentrate and pay me my money? Stop telling me about dating.’ I told him I cannot date you. He became angry and hung up on me,” she claimed.

She further alleged that the minister later sent her a threatening text message. “He sent me an SMS that I insulted him. He said, ‘I will teach you a lesson for insulting me. I will deal with you.’ I can show that text message to the whole of Nigeria,” she said.

According to Ohiri, she was subsequently blocked and could no longer reach Umahi directly. “He never picked my calls again. Sometimes if I asked for my payment, he would tell me that God is busy. I said, ‘Sir, have mercy on me and give me my money. Let me pay my children’s school fees.’ He will say God is busy,” she alleged.

She claimed the dispute took a darker turn when she threatened to protest in Ebonyi State to recover her money. “I told him I was coming to his state and that I would block the Government House until he paid me. He told me that if I got to a place, I would not come out alive,” she said.

Ohiri further alleged that the minister referenced the fate of others who had fallen out with him. “He told me what happened to those NILA engineers would also happen to me. That was the last time I spoke with him,” she said.
She recounted that the situation became more distressing when her father fell ill and required treatment abroad. “I needed to fly him to the U.S. for proper treatment. I kept reaching out to David through other means because he had blocked my number,” she said, adding that she was shocked by his response. “He told me, ‘Let your father die if he needs to die.’”

According to her, her father later died, and out of anger and frustration, she took the matter to social media for the first time since 2015. “The day my dad died and he was put in the mortuary, the next day I came on social media. I started asking Nigerians to help me, calling on Mr President to plead with David Umahi to pay me my money,” she said.

Ohiri alleged that shortly after the posts, policemen were sent to her residence in Lagos. “I had just dropped my children at school. I hadn’t even rested when they arrested me and brought me straight to Abuja,” she said.

She was arrested on allegations of cyberbullying linked to her social media posts and transferred to Abuja, where she was detained at the FCT Police Command.
The matter drew public attention on Tuesday when activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, confronted Umahi at the police headquarters in Abuja. Sowore accused the authorities of facilitating a private meeting that allegedly allowed the minister to intimidate Ohiri.
Sowore criticised the handling of the case, describing it as the criminalisation of a civil dispute. He insisted that issues of unpaid debts should be resolved through civil litigation rather than arrests and detention.

During proceedings at the Magistrate Court, Ohiri reportedly addressed the matter emotionally, declaring: “I can never be broken. You must pay me my money. I will press your neck.”

She also alleged that during a police interaction, Umahi denied ever knowing her. “David Umahi looked me in the eyes and said he has never met me before. I almost died,” she said. “I brought pictures of me and him. I brought evidence showing me and him in his office when he was deputy governor.”

Expressing frustration with the system, Ohiri lamented what she described as the power imbalance between politicians and ordinary citizens. “I weep for Nigeria. I weep because the common man has no hope in this country. The country belongs to politicians and their children,” she said.