Ihie Autonomous Community Wants Gov Nwifuru’s Intervention over Arrest and Intimidation
Ihie Autonomous Community Wants Gov Nwifuru’s Intervention over Arrest and Intimidation
The people of Ihie Autonomous Community Ishiagu in Ivo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, have called on Governor Francis Ogbonna Nwifuru to intervene on their incessant arrests, intimidation, and harassment by a selected privilege individuals.
The group of people comprising women, men, and youths made the call when they staged a peaceful protest over the matter.
The protesters carried placards with inscriptions such as “We don’t know the whereabouts of our Chief. Chief Emmanuel Ajah, please resolve the land dispute in Ihie Autonomous Community. Governor Nwifuru, please call those using their offices to intimidate our people to order. We don’t want any bloodshed in Ihie Community,” among others.
They alleged that some highly placed individuals from the community had been using their positions to intimidate members of the community through arrests, often whisking them away to an unknown destination.
They maintained that several hours after the palace Chief was taken away, there was no communication, which made the community express fear for his safety.
It was unclear where Chief Odoemenam had been taken, and they called on Governor Francis Nwifuru to urgently intervene in the land dispute before it degenerates into a full-scale crisis.
One of the protesters who spoke to journalists, Johnson Ajah, said that they were surprised that the palace Chief was whisked away without any reference to his family members, adding that they feared the Chief had been abducted.
“They came to the community and whisked one of the palace Chiefs away to an unknown destination. We had to stage this peaceful protest to draw the attention of the State Governor, Francis Nwifuru, to the high level of intimidation and harassment being perpetrated by some individuals.
“Our fear is that if nothing is done urgently to resolve the dispute, it might result in a more serious crisis. Those who are instigating the crisis should be called to order. We don’t want to witness another crisis in Ivo LGA. Those who are benefiting from the crisis in the local government should have a change of mind. The deaths of people in Ivo are not worth any political office or wealth being acquired,” he said.
When contacted, the Traditional Ruler of the community, HRH Gabriel Okoro, stated that when he was contacted about the alleged kidnapping of a Palace Chief from Ndiokoroukwu, Chief Odoemenam, he immediately went to the Ivo Police Division for help.
“On getting to the station, I met with the Divisional Police Officer. I was told that the Chief was arrested by policemen from the Force CID Abuja. The DPO gave me the contact of the policemen that came from Force CID Abuja to arrest the Chief. So, it wasn’t a case of kidnapping but an arrest.”
The Traditional Ruler appealed to the people of the community to remain calm and called on Governor Nwifuru to intervene in the matter.
“The same group of people that are harassing everybody in my community now started the problem with me as the king, and now they have extended the problem to my subjects who have lived in this community peacefully for over five decades,” he said.
