Homadil CEO accuses EFCC of bias, media trial in Abuja land war

Rebecca Godwin-Isaac, CEO of Homadil Realty Limited, has pushed back against what she described as a coordinated “smear campaign” targeting her reputation and business amid an ongoing land ownership dispute in Abuja.

Godwin-Isaac and her husband, Isaac Ishaku Yusuf, are currently locked in a legal battle with 79-year-old Colleen Mero Yesufu over the ownership of three plots of land located in Guzape and Katampe Main within the Federal Capital Territory.

The matter is before the FCT High Court.

Yesufu had petitioned several government agencies, accusing the couple of wrongdoing in acquiring the land.

Her complaints prompted investigations by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), and the Nigerian Police.

However, according to Godwin-Isaac, all findings have so far categorised the issue as a civil matter and not a criminal one.

“What began as a civil ownership dispute has escalated into a media trial apparently designed to destroy reputations, disrupt business, and stifle legal defence,” she said in a statement released on Thursday.

“We have fully cooperated with authorities, submitted all requested documentation, and respected the court process at every turn.”

Godwin-Isaac explained that the land in question was initially allocated to one Amina Usman Musa by the FCT Administration.

According to her, Musa transferred the plots to architect Richard John Idakwagi of Rychado Homes, who later sold them to Homadil Realty.

She said all transfers were backed by Power of Attorney, official AGIS records, and receipts of fees paid.

“Neither the ICPC nor the Nigerian Police found any evidence of wrongdoing or fraud,” she noted.

“Their recommendation was clear: this matter should remain within the jurisdiction of civil litigation,” she added.

She accused unnamed actors of exploiting bureaucracy, media influence, and selective enforcement to push a narrative that undermines the rule of law.

“We believe the courts will deliver justice, and we remain committed to letting facts, not fear or favour,determine the outcome,” she added.

“This case isn’t just about us. It’s about affirming that rights can still prevail over influence and that the courts, not public opinion, must remain the final arbiter.”

Godwin-Isaac urged fellow entrepreneurs and reform-minded Nigerians to resist “weaponised lawfare” and to continue trusting the legal system.

“Let this serve as a precedent. We must restore faith in due process. When facts are eclipsed by fabrications, we don’t just lose land—we lose trust in democracy itself.”

Rebecca Godwin-Isaac alleged that Yesufu and her family orchestrated a sustained and damaging smear campaign aimed at destroying her reputation.

According to her, the campaign began in late 2023 and escalated sharply in early 2025, with the Yesufu family publishing a series of public letters, social media statements, and formal petitions to the Presidency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Ministry of Justice, and the Senate.

In these communications, she and her husband were repeatedly labelled as “fraudsters,” “land grabbers,” and “real estate manipulators.”

Godwin-Isaac pointed to several instances she described as defamatory and deliberately misleading.

One of the most viral attacks, she said, came in the form of an open letter titled “Expose the Guzape Fraud: A Cry to President Tinubu to Save a 79-Year-Old Widow’s Heritage”.

The letter, widely circulated on blogs and WhatsApp groups, falsely accused her of forging land documents and stealing a family’s inheritance.

She further noted that a formal submission to the Office of the Vice President had called for the prosecution of her company, Homadil Realty, and included photographs of project sites with captions framing them as “evidence of grand-scale fraud.”

In another damaging publication, circulated among stakeholders in the Federal Capital Territory, Rebecca was accused of claiming immunity from arrest due to alleged connections with senior police officers and high-ranking political figures.

She also cited a petition to the EFCC, which accused Homadil Realty of operating as a criminal syndicate dealing in forged land titles—a claim she says was baseless, but widely distributed to security agencies and across real estate networks.

Godwin-Isaac contended that the cumulative effect of these materials was not only to incite public anger against her and her company, but also to pre-emptively sway legal and regulatory institutions.

She maintained that neither she nor Homadil Realty had been granted a fair opportunity to respond to these accusations and insisted that the campaign was intended to vilify her in the court of public opinion before the legal process could take its course.

Godwin-Isaac accused the EFCC of exhibiting bias and procedural unfairness in its handling of the land dispute involving her real estate firm, Homadil Realty Limited.

According to her, the EFCC’s approach to the case has been marked by what she described as a hasty and aggressive campaign, undermining due process from the outset.

She stated that rather than completing its investigation before taking enforcement actions, as required by law, the EFCC launched a series of punitive measures that severely disrupted Homadil’s operations.

These included the sudden arrest of staff and agents across Abuja, the freezing of both corporate and personal bank accounts without prior notice, and the confiscation of international passports belonging to the company’s directors and senior managers.

Godwin-Isaac also criticised what she called the EFCC’s deliberate media strategy. She alleged that unverified petitions and preliminary documents were selectively leaked to journalists even before the matter was filed in court, creating a one-sided narrative that fuelled public misinformation.

This, she argued, effectively violated her constitutional right to the presumption of innocence and appeared to align more with the interests of the petitioners than with the impartial pursuit of justice.

She further suggested that legacy influence may have shaped institutional responses. The petitioners in the dispute, the Yesufu family, are led by Hajia Colleen Mero Yesufu and include several of her children. Their late patriarch was a prominent Permanent Secretary in Abuja’s bureaucracy, and the family has long-standing ties to the city’s administrative and land allocation systems.

These ties, Godwin-Isaac noted, raise legitimate concerns about potential institutional partiality.

In contrast, she praised the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) for its measured and professional handling of the case.

She stated that rather than publicising the matter, the ICPC conducted a discreet, document-based investigation.

Their findings, submitted to the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, revealed no conclusive evidence of fraud.

“They found that address inconsistencies delayed service, that registry errors did not amount to criminal conduct, and that the documents presented by the applicants had not been forensically disproven. The ICPC advised that the matter be treated strictly as a civil dispute and cautioned against overlapping legal actions that could undermine judicial integrity.

“Similarly, the Nigerian Police Force, after conducting their own inquiry, moved to arraign the couple based on procedural obligations, not public pressure,” she said.

Their restraint and reliance on the courts, Godwin-Isaac argued, stands in stark contrast to the EFCC’s high-profile approach.

For Godwin-Isaac and Homadil Realty, the demand remains simple: allow facts, not fear, influence, or fabricated narratives, to guide the legal process.