As public pressure mounts over Mary Habila’s death, the university linked to the case has moved to lock down information — and leaked meeting minutes have exposed exactly that.
The management of the David Umahi Federal University of Health Sciences (DUFUHS), Uburu, Ebonyi State, held an emergency management meeting on Wednesday, July 15, 2026 — one day after SaharaReporters published explosive reports on Habila’s death — and directed staff to make no unauthorised disclosures about the matter, according to minutes of the meeting obtained by SaharaReporters.
Vice-Chancellor Professor Jesse Uneke reportedly dominated the session with repeated warnings about institutional image protection. “The integrity and reputation of DUFUHS remain priceless institutional assets which every staff member must consciously protect,” he said, according to the minutes. He further “cautioned against the unauthorized release of official information capable of misrepresenting the University or undermining its corporate image.”
Sources familiar with the meeting told SaharaReporters the session was convened specifically to prevent staff from making statements or releasing documents that could contradict the university’s official position on Habila’s death.
The directive arrives amid a cascade of contradictions already unravelling the official narrative. The Nigeria Society of Physiotherapy (NSP) last week confirmed Habila’s name does not appear in its register of licensed physiotherapists — directly contradicting Minister Umahi’s claim that she was a physiotherapist seconded to the Federal Ministry of Works. University sources have since told SaharaReporters that Habila was in fact a Community Health Extension Worker (CHEW).
Meanwhile, the standoff over her remains continues. Police have maintained that an autopsy is non-negotiable before releasing the body. Her grieving father Wisdom Habila has publicly pleaded for her release. “I need the corpse of my daughter to take her for burial,” he said. Her burial, earlier scheduled for July 17, remains postponed indefinitely.
Umahi has denied wrongdoing and says he supports an autopsy to establish the cause of death.
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