The Minister of Works, David Umahi, has dismissed allegations of sexual harassment and financial misconduct levelled against him, insisting that he cannot be bullied on social media.

The controversy, which has been trending online, centres on claims that the minister owes a businesswoman, Tracynither Ohiri, N200 million for promotional materials allegedly supplied during his 2014 governorship campaign.

Umahi addressed the allegations on Saturday while fielding questions from journalists after inspecting ongoing work on the Onitsha–Awka–Enugu Expressway. He maintained that no amount of distraction would deter him from serving God, Bola Tinubu, and Nigerians.

He described the accusations as distractions orchestrated by individuals jealous of his performance and his insistence on quality standards in project execution, adding that the matter is already before a court of law.

The minister challenged those behind the allegations to substantiate their claims in court.

“I cannot be bullied on social media. If you are paid to insult me on social media, it won’t shut my mouth. I am not distracted at all. Everyone who knows me knows that I am David and not afraid of anything,” he said.

“Some people have asked me… okay, let’s settle. What are we settling? You don’t place something on nothing. If you want to woo me, you have to do that properly.

“I am a very handsome man with a very good brain. You don’t go by the side looking for me.

“Meanwhile, the matter is in court. Whether you insult or praise me, I don’t want to know. All I know is that if you allege, you must prove it in court.

“We are not distracted from our work. We know we are engaged in a series of wars because contracts are no longer business as usual. We’re not unaware of that.

“So, wherever the fight is coming from, we are ready. But we won’t bend the standard. We will fulfil the calling of God Almighty, the people and Mr President.”

Umahi expressed satisfaction with the pace and quality of work on the Onitsha–Awka–Enugu Expressway, noting that significant progress had been made.

“I am very impressed with the level of work on the road so far. The first 20km is completed. We just have 13km left. All of the road is concrete and will last for the next 100 years.

“Nobody guarantees asphalt in this country for up to 15 years. That is why we are insisting on concrete. We have seen the quality of the roads we are building across the country.

“We agreed with the contractors that these roads would be completed by April, before the rains come, because we don’t want the rain to affect the roads,” he added.

The minister also urged residents of the South-East to support the re-election of President Tinubu, saying it would enable the continuation of what he described as good governance and infrastructure development in the region.