Kingship tussle tears Abia neighborhood aside

The arraignment of the normal ruler of Arochukwu Kingdom, Godwin Kanu, in Abia State, for alleged conspiracy, impersonation and conduct prone to breach public peace has stirred controversy within the South-east state.

Arochukwu is a kingdom comprising 5 clans in Arochukwu Native Authorities Space of Abia.

Controversy

Mr Kanu was topped because the Ninth King of the Arochukwu Kingdom on 20 October 2023 by the normal ruler of Ibom Isii, Kanu Nwa Kanu.

A video clip displaying the normal being topped was uploaded on YouTube on 22 October.

Nonetheless, in mid-November 2022, the Royal Head of Arochukwu Kingdom, Oji Oji and Kanu Okoro, one other palace official, introduced in a press release that Eberechukwu Oji, a prince of the dominion, had been chosen as the brand new monarch for the dominion.

The standard ruler of Ibom Isii, Kanu Nwa Kanu, who carried out the coronation of Mr Kanu as Ninth King of Arochukwu Kingdom was subsequently suspended allegedly by the Abia State Authorities.

Arraignment

Mr Kanu, the newly topped monarch, was arrested and detained on 5 January after the normal ruler reportedly launched a New Yr message to his folks.

The monarch and others now at massive face three counts of costs of impersonation, conspiracy to commit a felony and conduct prone to trigger a breach of public peace, in response to a courtroom doc obtained by this newspaper.

The alleged offences are punishable underneath Sections 516(A) (a), 484 of the Legal Code, and CAP 80 Vol 3 Legal guidelines of Abia State 2005, the courtroom doc stated.

The doc dated 8 January indicated that the normal ruler was arraigned on the Justice of the Peace Courtroom in Umuahia.

The case is being prosecuted by the State Commissioner of Police, in response to the courtroom doc.

When contacted, the police spokesperson in Abia State, Maureen Chinaka, informed PREMIUM TIMES on Monday night that Mr Kanu was arrested in response to a petition in opposition to him which was dated 3 January.

Ms Chinaka, an assistant superintendent of police, stated the petition was signed by the places of work of the state solicitor-general, the state everlasting secretary and Abia State Ministry of Justice.

The police spokesperson stated the petitioners alleged that Mr Kanu “carried out himself in a fashion prone to trigger breach of peace” and likewise accused him of “felony impersonation of authority.”

“After we obtained it (the petition), on the 4 January, we invited him, he didn’t oblige us. We obtained our warrant of arrest and we made our arrest,” she stated.

She added that after the normal ruler’s arrest, he sought bail which the courtroom granted him.

The bail situations, in response to the police, had been that he should current both his nationwide or worldwide passport, a surety who’s a state or federal civil servant of not under grade 14 and a certificates of occupancy for a landed property in Abia State or the Federal Capital Territory.

“However he didn’t meet his bail situations,” she said.

Granting of bail

However the Justice of the Peace Courtroom, on Monday, granted the normal ruler, Mr Kanu, bail on self-recognition and adjourned the case for listening to, in response to a press release from the media crew of the monarch.

Mr Kanu had been in detention for 3 days on the State Legal Investigation Division of the police earlier than the courtroom granted him bail on Monday, the assertion stated.

PDP kicks

In the meantime, the Peoples Democratic Occasion (PDP) in Abia State has condemned the arrest and arraignment of the normal ruler.

In a press release by its Vice-Chairperson, Abraham Amah, the PDP accused Governor Alex Otti of Abia State of masterminding the arrest and sequence of assaults on the normal ruler.

The celebration stated it’s involved that Mr Otti “has not hidden his animus for current Eze Aroh, Eze Godwin Kanu Idei since he was topped and has achieved every little thing to deride him and trigger disrespect to the normal stool of Aro Kingdom.”

It additionally accused the governor of suspending Eze Ibom Isii for performing the coronation of the Aro King and stopping the coronation ceremony of Eze Aro which was earlier billed to be held on 24 December.

“Even when Alex Otti arrange a reconciliation committee headed by Chief Chikwe Udensi to discover a lasting answer to the tussle, he was fast to disband the committee after simply three days and introduced his determination to nominate Eze Aro by himself, an act unknown within the annals of Aro historical past,” the PDP stated.

The celebration stated regardless of the appearance of contemporary authorities, the facility to pick a king nonetheless rests on the individuals who solely current such chosen kings to the federal government for approval of the workers of workplace.

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“It’s most presumptuous, laughable, unsettling, insulting, discriminatory, anti-people and anti-tradition for Alex Otti to resolve who turns into the Eze Aro, just because he occupies the place of governor,” it stated.

The PDP claimed that the governor has continued to harass Eze Aro as a result of “his selection candidate didn’t meet many necessities of kingship, particularly the truth that he (the governor’s candidate) can’t rule over his father who remains to be alive.”

The celebration referred to as on the governor to cease meddling within the stool of Eze Aro by asking the courtroom to withdraw all the costs in opposition to the normal ruler.

Abia authorities reacts

Responding, the State Commissioner for Native Authorities and Chieftaincy Affairs, Uzor Nwachukwu, denied the allegations in opposition to Mr Otti.

Mr Nwachukwu spoke on Monday whereas briefing the reporters on the Authorities Home in response to the allegations by the PDP.

“I need to say for the umpteenth time that the Governor of Abia State, Alex Otti, doesn’t have any curiosity in who emerges because the Eze Aro,” he stated.

The commissioner, nonetheless, claimed that what occurred was that the kingmakers within the Arochukwu Kingdom chosen Mr Oji, one of many contestants as the brand new monarch for the dominion, however the conventional ruler of Ibom Isii, Kanu Nwa Kanu, went to crown Mr Kanu because the Eze Aro.

He claimed the folks of the world, consequently, wrote a petition to the state authorities.

“It was at that time that the governor informed the Eze Ibom Isii, ‘please return to the method, droop what you’re doing and observe the process as established by the custom of your folks,’” Mr Nwachukwu said.

The commissioner stated his workplace later suspended the normal ruler for failure to rescind the coronation of Mr Kanu.

He stated Governor Otti initially inaugurated a panel of enquiry to look into the case, however would later disband the panel and ask the events concerned to resolve the case inside the neighborhood.

Mr Nwachukwu claimed the events did not resolve the matter and went forward to repair totally different dates for coronation which prompted the state authorities to intervene.

“The governor informed them, ‘Each of you shouldn’t go forward. It is best to cease,’” he stated, insisting that if Mr Otti had curiosity he would have backed the coronation of 1 over the opposite celebration.

With out mentioning names, the commissioner prompt that Mr Kanu went forward to carry his coronation ceremony “in secret” regardless of a state authorities order in opposition to any coronation.

He stated, to guard lives and properties within the state, the state authorities couldn’t afford to permit people to take legal guidelines into their very own arms.