Mary Habila May Have Been Preparing for Bath Before Death — Umahi

By Empress Effie 

ABAKALIKI — Minister of Works, Senator David Umahi, has disclosed that 26-year-old nurse, Mary Habila, may have been preparing to take a bath before she was found dead in a guest house within his residence in Uburu, Ebonyi State.

Speaking publicly for the first time since the incident, Umahi said circumstances at the scene suggested the young nurse intended to bathe before her death, noting that the water tap in her room was still running when colleagues forced the door open.

According to the minister, Habila, a nurse at the David Umahi Federal University of Medical Sciences (DUFMS), Uburu, had spoken with her boyfriend on the night before her death and complained of bleeding from her nose.

He said the boyfriend advised her to report the condition to her supervisor. Habila later informed him that the bleeding had stopped, after which he ended the call despite her request to continue talking.

"About three minutes later, he called back, but she was no longer answering her phone," Umahi said.

The minister explained that Habila's colleagues became alarmed the following morning after repeated calls went unanswered. They reportedly forced open the door to her room and found her lifeless.

"When they broke the door, they found her dead. The tap was still running. I think she wanted to have her bath," Umahi stated.

He also dismissed reports describing the deceased as a physiotherapist, clarifying that she was a registered nurse employed by the university and had lived at the guest house for about three years.

"The lady in question was like a daughter to me. She was a staff of the Federal Medical University. She was a nurse, not a physiotherapist," he added.

Umahi further explained that the guest house, where Habila lived with another female staff member, is separate from his personal residence.

Reiterating his confidence in due process, the minister called for a comprehensive autopsy to determine the exact cause of Habila's death and put to rest the controversies surrounding the incident.

Mary Habila died on June 27, 2026, at the guest house located within Umahi's residence in Umunaga, Uburu, Ebonyi State. Investigations into the circumstances surrounding her death are ongoing.