The Genesis Of Gov?Okorocha And HRH ?EZE ?Ilomuanya Power Show

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ByJohn Mgbe

The  travails  of  HRH EZE  Cletus Ikechukwu  ILOMUANYA  which  have  culminated  in  his  final  dethronement as  the  traditional  ruler  of  Obinugwu  Autonomous  Community  in  Orlu  Local  Government  Area  of  Imo  State  started  on  the  6th  day  of  June, 2011.That  was  the  day  the  then  newly  elected  governor of  Imo  State,  Owelle  Rochas  Okorocha,  made  his controversial   maiden  radio  broadcast  to  the  populace shortly  after  he was sworn  into  office  on  the  29th  May,  2011. In  the  broadcast,  Governor  Okorocha   made   series  of  policy  statements  which  did  not   go  down  well  with  a  wide  spectrum  of  the   citizenry thus  causing  a  raising  of  eyebrows   by  the   social  clusters  that  were   adversely  affected   by  the  message. One  of  those    controversial  policies  was   the  instant  dissolution  of  the  Imo  State  Council  of  Traditional  Rulers. At  the  time  of  the  broadcast,  HRH  EZE  Cletus  Ilomuanya  was  the  State  Chairman  of  the  State  Council  of  Traditional  Rulers a.k.a  State  Council  of  NDI EZES- a 54 ?member  Council  of  traditional  rulers  drawn  from  the  27 local  government  Areas  of  Imo  State. It  is  pertinent  to  state  that  Governor  Okorocha  also   sacked  the  10000 Civil/public    workers  who  were   employed  by  the his  predecessor,  Chief  Ikedi  Ohakim on  the  grounds  that  the  appointments  were  politically  motivated. He  also  sacked  the  entire   elected     Chairmen  and  councilors  in  the  27  Local  Government  Areas (LGAs)  of  the  State  on  the  grounds  that  the  election  which   brought  to  power on  7th  August  2010  was   flawed.

Dissatisfied  with  the   dissolution  of  the   Council,  HRH  EZE  Cletus  Ilomuanya filed  a  suit  in  the  High  Court  ,Owerri  to  challenge  the   dissolution  of  the  Council  of  Traditional  Rulers. Delivering  judgment  on  the  suit  on the  24th  day  of  February, 2012, the  HON Justice  B.A. Njemanze who  doubles  as  the  Chief  Judge  of  Imo  State dismissed the  suit  on  the  grounds  that  it  was  incompetent .Dissatisfied  with  the  ruling  of  Justice  B.A Njemanze,  EZE  Ilomuanya   appealed  to  the   Court  of  Appeal,  Owerri  in  a  desperate  search  for  justice.

Delivering  judgment  on  the  suit  on Friday,the  5th  day  of July, 2013,the  Presiding  Judge, Philomena Mbua  Ekpe  held inter  alia:?Finally,  the  learned  trial  Judge(i.e. Justice  B.A Njemanze)went  off  tangent  when  he delved  into  the  realm  of  the  Interpretation  Act S.11 to  state  that he  who  has the  power  to  appoint also  reserves  the  power to  remove or  suspend. He  had  lost  track  of  the  fact  that the  respondent(Governor)  had  earlier  denied  that  the appellant was  either  hired  or  fired by  the  1st  Respondent and  thus  had  no  case,Section.2(1),2(4) and 17(a) of  the  Imo  State  of  Nigeria Traditional  Rulers AND  Autonomous Communities Law NO.6,2006( as  amended) is  quite  clear. The  Appellant  was  appointed  by  the  Governor  of  Imo  State for  a  fixed  term  of  five  years from January 28th,2010.Again,  the  said  law clearly  states that  the  Appellant in  that  capacity as  Chairman cannot  be  removed unless  by  death or  resignation,  neither  of  which occurred before the  Ist  Respondent?s  maiden broadcast of  the  6th June 2011.From  the  totality  of all  of  the  above,  it  is  my  considered  view that  the  learned  judge(Justice  Njemanze) raised  issues  suo  motu and  determined  them to  the  detriment of  the  Appellant without  evidence  thus  descending into  the  arena to  make  a  case not  made  by  the  respondents. Consequently, this  appeal  is  meritorious and  it  is  hereby  allowed. The Appellant (i.e. EZE Ilomuanya) is therefore entitled to all the reliefs in his originating summons. The  judgment  of  the learned  Chief  Judge(i.e. Justice  B.A Njemanze ) delivered  on the  24th  day  of February, 2012 is  set  aside. I make no   order as to costs?. 

After  the   victory  in  the  Court  of  Appeal,  one  would  have  expected  Governor  Okorocha to    bow  to  the  rule  of  law  to  reinstate  EZE  Ilomuanya  to  take  back  his  office  as  Chairman ,Imo  State  Council  of  Traditional  Rulers. But this did not happen.

On  another  occasion, HRH Eze  Samuel  Ohiri,  who is  Governor  Okorocha?s   appointee  as  Chairman of  Imo  Traditional  Rulers  Council, filed  a  suit   in  an  Owerri  High  Court in  Suit NO .HOW/525/2013.This  suit  was  presided  over  by   H on  Justice  Ngozi  Ukoha and EZE  Samuel  Ohiri was  seeking  to  be  declared    Chairman of  Imo  Council  of  NDI-EZE .In  a  judgment  delivered  on May 26th, 2014,  the  court  dismissed  the  suit and  declared  it as ?frivolous, ans an abuse  of  court  process,  judicial  impertinence and  lacking  in  merit?.

Again on March 20,2013,His  Lordship,Hon. Justice Paschal Nnadi in  suit  NO.HOW/103/2012 dismissed  the  resolution  of Imo  State  House  of  Assembly that  HRH EZE Cletus Ilomuanya was  convicted  in  a  criminal  case  bordering  on  Obtaining  by Tricks(OBT) a.k.a  419 in  a  suit  that  took  place  in  a  court  in Calabar High  Court in  the  1980s.  The  import  of  the  Resolution  by  the  Imo  State  of  House  of  Assembly  is  that  HRH  EZE  Ilomuanya  is  an  ex-convict  , a criminal  who   lacks  the  integrity  to  be  a  traditional   ruler. The  traducers  of  EZE  Ilomuanya  were  not  able  to  present  any   cogent  evidence  in  court  that  any  court  in  Calabar   ever  convicted  HRH.EZE Ilomuanya  of  any  case  of  419(OBT). HRH EZE  Ilomuanya  later  withdrew  a   suit  of  libel  in  the  sum  of  N1 Billion as  a  result of   overtures  made  to  him  by some  of  his  traducers.

Perhaps,  it  is  pertinent  to   state  that  shortly  after  he was  inaugurated  Governor on MAY 29th, 2011, Governor  Okorocha   set  up  a  ?Task  Force  Committee  on  the  Recovery  of  Government  Property?. This  Committee  invaded  the  residence of HRH Eze  Ilomuanya  and  carted  away  some valuable  items  of  property  in  his  residential premises. Dissatisfied  with  this  invasion  of  his  privacy,  HRH EZE  Ilomuanya  went  to the  Federal  High  Court, Owerri, to seek  judicial   mediation  and   pronouncement  on  the  unlawful m invasion  of  his  private  residence. Delivering Judgment  in  the  suit  NO.FHC/OW/238/2011 on November  29TH,2012,HON  Justice F.Olubanjo ordered  Governor  Okorocha and  his  group  who  invaded EZE  Ilomuanya?s  Palace  Extension in  Owerri  on  August  5th,2011,  to  pay N10 million for  unlawfully  invading  the  Palace  Extension  of  EZE  Ilomuanya   in  Owerri. As  you  read  this  report,  the  Imo  State  Government  has  not  paid  the N10 million to  HRH  Eze Ilomuanya and  no  court  has  quashed  that  order  of  court.

THE  FINAL  DETHRONEMENT: In spite  of  the  fact that  there  are  at least  two  pending  suits   on  this  issue,  Governor  Okorocha   went  ahead  to   finally  dethrone  HRH EZE  Ilomuanya and  inaugurated  one  Stanley  Anazionwu Nwagwu as  the brand  new  Royal  Father  for  Obinugwu  Autonomous  Community in  Orlu  Local  Government  Area  of  Imo State. This  controversial  installation  of   EZE Stanley  NWAGWU took  place  on Tuesday, August  19,2014.Tongues  are  wagging  that   the newly  installed  EZE  of Obinugwu  Autonomous  Community, EZE Stanley  Nwagwu,  is  not  even  an  indigene  of   Obinugwu  Autonomous  Community. They  say  he is  a  stranger  in  the  Community  and  that  it  is  an  abomination  for  such  a  person  to  be   inaugurated  the  EZE  of Obinugwu.  Grape vine  reports  say  that  he  is  a  native  of Ndiuche Okoro Aniche in Arondizuogu Community in Ideato  North Local  Government  Area of  Imo  State- a  Local  Government  Area in  the  Federal  Constituency  OF  Governor  Okorocha. Governor Okorocha   hails from Ideato Federal Constituency, precisely from   OGBOKO Community in Ideato South  Local  Government Area. Ideato Federal Constituency is composed of Ideato North and Ideato South LGAs.

It  is  also  pertinent  to  add  that  prior  to  his  dethronement  HRH EZE Cletus Ikechukwu Ilomuanya,CON  was  also  the  Chairman  of  both Imo  State and   South East Councils of Traditional  Rulers. Meanwhile , EZE Ilomuanya has  urged  his   people  to  remain  calm  and  maintain  decorum  in spite  of  the   ongoing  provocation.

After  the   victory  in  the  Court  of  Appeal,  one  would  have  expected  Governor  Okorocha  to    bow  to  the  rule  of  law  to  reinstate  EZE  Ilomuanya  to  take  back  his  office  as  Chairman ,Imo  State  Council  of  Traditional  Rulers. But this did not happen. Shortly after  this  decision by  the  Court,  HRH  Cletus  Ilomuanya  thought  there  was  a  need  to  take  some  action  in  order  to   reap  the  fruit  of  his series  of  court  victories   on  his   Chairmanship  stool. It  is  provocative  that  in  spite  of  the  declaratory judgment  of  the   Court  of  Appeal  ordering  the  reinstatement of  EZE  Ilomuanya  to  his  office,  Governor  Okorocha    remained  recalcitrant as  he  still  shut  him  out  of  office  and  treated  both  EZE  Ilomuanya  and  the  Court  with   contempt  and  disdain. It  was  at  this  point  that  EZE  Ilomuanya   took steps  to   domesticate  the  order  of  court. About  a  month  ago,  ge   moved  under  cover  of members  of  the  Nigerian  Police  and  the  members  of the  Security  Services  and  took  over  the  secretariat  of   Imo  Council  of  Traditional  Rulers. The  task  was  accomplished  in  a  jiffy. He  was  escorted  to the   Secretariat  by  eminent  personalities  including  the  Leader  of  the  Movement  for  the Actualization  of  Biafra(MASSOB),Chief  Ralph Uwazuruike.

Provoked by the apparent use  of  self help to  capture  the  Secretariat, the Secretary  to  the  State  Government, Professor Tony  Anwuka,  issued  a  press  release  to  the  effect  that Governor  Okorocha      had  dethroned EZE  Ilomuanya  as the  traditional  ruler  of  Obinugwu  Autonomous  Community. The  press  release  was   repeated  incessantly  on  the  channels  of  Imo  State  Government  Radio  and  Television  channels to  the  consternation  of   a cross  section  of  the    citizenry. It  is  also  pertinent to  recall that  EZE  Cletus  Ilomuanya  celebrated  his  2014  New  Yam  Festival a  few  weeks ago  and  the  occasion  was  graced  by eminent  personalities  including  the  President who  was  represented  by  the  Minister  of  Labour, Chief WOGU.Many  traditional  rulers  from  across  the  nation  were  also  represented in  the   Ilomuanya  IRIJI  ceremony.Eze  Ilomuanya?s  2014  Iriji  ceremony  will  be  reported  soon.

JOHN MGBE

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