Ndi Enugwu-Agidi community in Njikoka Local Government Area of Anambra State have staged a peaceful protest against the President General (PG) of Enugwu-Agidi Brotherly Union, Nigeria, Mr Ebuka Onuorah, accusing him of kidnapping, illegal land sales, harassment and intimidation of community members, as well as total disregarding for the constitution of the community.
Angel Network News (ANN) reports that
the protesters who converged at Eke market square, Enugwu-Agidi, displayed placards with various inscriptions such as; “Ebuka Onuorah must go, Ebuka Onuorah uses police to intimidate us, Governor Chukwuma Soludo save us from Ebuka Onuorah”.
However, another small group supporting the PG and standing opposite displayed placards with inscriptions such as; “Ebuka Onuorah is our saviour, The government of the day must continue, Igwe Okekeuche must Go.”
One of the anti-PG protesters, Mr. Vin Onyekwelu, said the peaceful exercise was against harassment and polarization of community members, illegal sale of lands by the PG, whom he also accused of using Agunechemba and Operation Udo Ga-achi security operatives to harass community members, calling for the intervention of Governor Chukwuma Soludo and the federal government.
“Our PG is not following the constitution of the town union. I have sent some video evidences to the government officials on how he used thugs to disrupt burial and other communal gatherings in Enugwu-Agidi. He is in charge of land grabbing. Most of our lands have been sold. Our women no longer go to farms. We want the government to remove him,” Onyekwelu stated.
Also speaking, Mr Benedict Okoye, accused the PG of leading with impunity, while another, Mrs Grace Aghauche, who is the Woman Leader in Etiti Village, alleged that the PG had threatened her with guns, and formed parallel leadership in the women group of the village.
“Our election usually hold by December, but the PG organised the election by June. This is against our constitution. Again, women election are not organised by men. We have submitted reports of this and others to Anambra State Commissioner of Women Affairs,” Aghauche added.
Stating that the community is in bondage, Chief Nathan Okoye, on his part, accused the PG of holding the entire community to ransom, intimidating people, illegally selling lands, also calling for the intervention of Governor Soludo, as according to him, it seems the PG in influencing government appointees with money.
For Mr Sunday Nwankwo, the PG is guilty of disrespecting the Igwe and his Onowu, intimidating mourning family members and forming parallel leadership in the community.
Calling for peace in Enugwu-Agidi, Mrs Chikodili Ikebudu, who spoke on behalf of a group of umu ada, also accused the PG of fomenting troubles in the community.
Lending his voice, the Chairman of Etiti Village, Home Branch, Ozor John Aguiyi, said he had been “kidnapped” by the PG’s people at 1am one morning, and that the PG uses connection with Police, DSS and Operation Udo Ga-achi security operatives and the name of Governor Soludo in intimidate community members.
The Traditional Ruler of Enugwu-Agidi, Igwe Michael Okekeuche, in a press conference addressed at his Palace by his Chief Press Secretary, Chief Ifeanyi Ndulue, said the day’s protest is rooted in pain and injustice, but called on his people to show restraint even in the face of provocation, and the state government, a well as security agencies to investigate the unrest and ensure that justice is served, and that people’s lives are protected.
He said, “We are witnessing what no community should ever endure: allegations of rampant land grabbing, abuse of power by those entrusted with leadership, disruption of sacred burial and funeral rites in Etiti Village, rites that bind us to our ancestors and the imposition of parallel leadership structures allegedly fueled by the Enugwu-Agidi Brotherly Union (EBU) Nigeria, threatening the unity of our people.
“These actions have sown confusion, provoked unrest, and pushed our peaceful community to the brink. We hereby call upon the Anambra State Government and all relevant security agencies to rise to their constitutional duty: to protect the lives and property of Enugwu-Agidi people, investigate the root causes of this unrest, and ensure that justice is served without fear or favour, and to support the Igwe-in-Council in restoring peace and unity.
“We are not asking for favours. We are demanding intervention, protection, and fairness, for the sake of our land, our future, and our unborn generations. In line with the powers vested in him by Article 40, Sections 1 and 6 of the Enugwu-Agidi Brotherly Union Constitution, and in accordance with the Anambra State Traditional Rulers Law 2007, Section 15, Subsection (I), His Royal Highness calls on all ouru people to show restraint, even in the face of provocation. Let us not allow chaos to consume what generations before us labored to build.”
The protest by the two groups later foiled the proposed Central Executive Council (CEC) meeting of Enugwu-Agidi Brotherly Union.
Troubled started when some members of the CEC, especially the village Chairmen and Chairmen of township branches were allegedly beaten and denied entrance to Enugwu-Agidi Civic Centre, venue of the meeting, on command of the President General, Onuorah.
This angered the monarch, Okekeuche to walk out of the meeting after pleading with the President General to let all those qualified for the event in; otherwise he would not declare it open as constitutionally mandated.
As the monarch and cabinet chiefs boycotted the meeting without declaring it open, some branch Chairmen of the town addressed a press conference, claiming that a team of security officers, comprising Agunaechemba and police operatives, stationed at the gate looked on as some youth allegedly working for the President General descended on them.
When contacted, the President General, Onuorah, described the protests as a ploy to stop the proposed meeting, denied allegations levelled against me him.
