Anambra Monarchs: The New Pawns In Soludo’s Chess Of Mindless Misadventures

Anambra Monarchs: The New Pawns In Soludo’s Chess Of Mindless Misadventures

By Pope Obinna Amaefuna

Less than two years into Governor Chukwuma Soludo’s Administration, virtually all sectors of the Anambra society appear to be suffocating under a hostile autocratic leadership similar to what is obtainable in a draconian dictatorship. From political opponents to traders down to the church and the clergy, nobody is sparred from the maniacal onslaught that started out as an unprovoked attack on former presidential candidate Mr. Peter Obi and has now metamorphosed into a full blown despotic offensive on all fronts against every Anambarian of diverse intellection or ideological persuasion.

The traditional institution in Anambra state and the traditional rulers are the latest victims to “smell the Soludo coffee” as they unfortunately found themselves under the odious radar of the contemptuous governor.

While it was ab-initio  a gradual but continuous process, The desecration of the traditional institutions in Anambra state took a steeper turn down the inglorious path of infamy with the dawn of the new year as the commissioner of local government and chieftaincy affair in Anambra state at the behest of the Anambra State Governor, Charles Soludo unceremoniously commenced the subjection of the otherwise revered traditional rulers of Anambra state to unjustifiable public embarrassment and humiliation.

Like a medieval emperor, the governor in an open letter leaked to the media with embarrassment and humiliation as its goal threatened the traditional rulers council of Anambra state with instant suspension, deposition and withdrawal of government recognition should any one of them fail to subject themselves to his partisan whims and political caprices disguised as politically correct administrative ethos

Under the guise of some bureaucratic machinations, the governor made true his threat and ordered the suspension of Igwe Damian Onwuamaeze Ezeani (Igwe Ugonabo) traditional ruler of Neni community citing a breach of the traditional ruler code of conduct at the point of conferring a chieftaincy title on his main political rival and a serving senator representing the good people of Anambra South, Senator Ifeanyi Ubah.

To ensure that the humiliation of our traditional rulers was complete, the 90+ year old king and his counterparts were forced to write apology letters and read same on video while the governor’s minions were ordered to share same on virtually all media platforms.

THE RESPONSE FROM ANAMBRA STATE TRADITIONAL RULERS COUNCIL (ASTRC):

Disrespected, profiled, pushed to the wall and left with no choice, The Anambra State Traditional Rulers Council (ASTRC) under the distinguished and majestic chairmanship of the Obi of Onitsha, HRH Igwe Nnaemeka A. Achebe, (CFR), (mni), penned a seven page response to address the governments demeaning accusations and baseless onslaught.

The detailed response by the highly respected first class monarch has dealt a debilitating blow below the belt of the Anambra state government as it has exposed the Anambra state governor and his commissioner as executive misfits, dubious mountebanks, poor thinkers, impish miscreants, power abusers, petty charlatans who have no business in leadership and barefaced bullies bereft of both character and integrity.

The highly articulated response by the monarch highlighted the following points.

1.         The Anambra state traditional rulers code of conduct was not a state law enacted by the state house of assembly but a product of in-house deliberation by the traditional rulers in Anambra state to serve as a code for moderating themselves therefore it is not the sole prerogative of the state governor or his commissioner to monitor, enforce, adjudicate and punish erring traditional rulers but a collaborative synergy between of the leadership of Anambra State Traditional Rulers Council (ASTRC)and the state government.

2.         The Igwe of Neni did not break any state laws or executive order at the point of his suspension and therefore does not deserve to be punished by the state government without the recommendation of ASTRC.

3.         The traditional rulers code of conduct empowers the leadership of Anambra State Traditional Rulers Council (ASTRC) with the reserved rights to monitor compliance and recommend sanction to the state government when necessary but in this case, the leadership of ASTRC was not consulted before the suspension and public humiliation of the traditional ruler of Neni.

ASTRC considers it strange that the government has arbitrarily allocated itself the responsibilities of the leadership of ASTRC.

4.         The DSS and the state commissioner for police were copied in the press release. The cogent question at by ASTRC who made the code of conduct and whose member was the subject of the press release was why they were completely ignored and blindsided.

5.         The commissioner for local government Mr Tonycollins Nwabunwanne admitted on a phone call to HRH Igwe Alfred Achebe on the 7thd day of January 2024 that he was under heavy pressure to issue the press release regarding the traditional ruler of Ojoto who conferred chieftaincy title on Ifeanyi Ubah on 30th December 2023. The commissioner made no mention of Igwe Neni who conferred chieftaincy title on Ifeanyi Ubah on 29th December 2023.  The cogent question at this point is

WHO MOUNTING THIS HEAVY PRESSURE AND WHY?

Less than 24hours later, the government suspended only the Igwe of Neni through a press release leaked to the media without any input, recommendation or consultation from and with ASTRC.

WHY WAS IGWE NENI SINGLED OUT?

6.         Having publically suspended the Igwe of Neni on the 8th of January 2024 and then realizing that the suspended Igwe of Neni has not broken any law or executive order to warrant his illegal suspension, Governor Soludo and his commissioner of local government in a poor attempt at damage control dubiously wrote and delivered a press release to the office of the ASTRC chairman on the 9th January, 2024 titled “Directives on Conferment of Chieftaincy Titles by Traditional Rulers” and BACK DATED the press release to 5th  of October,  2023.

The cogent question at this point is

How on earth did Anambarians allow such men devoid of character become leaders in Anambra state?

How far and how low is Gov. Soludo willing to go in the pursuit and execution of his petty personal vendettas?

How can a state governor of the forefront Igbo state and his commissioner for the highly revered traditional institutions of Igbo land be this dubious, petty, criminal minded and poor in both articulation, character and intelligence?

Note that the chairman of ASTRC, HRH. Igwe Alfred Achebe pointed out that he had on the 4th of October 2023 appealed to Gov. Soludo to schedule a meeting with ASTRC members for a review of the 11 year old traditional rulers code of conduct but the governor failed to respond to that appeal and also failed to get back to ASTRC only to manufacture a fraudulent back dated press release on the 9th of January 2024 to justify the misadventures of 8th January 2024.

The implication is that the state government suspended Igwe Neni for an act that was not an offense and then manufactured the law criminalizing the act 24 hours later in a bid to justify her misadventure.

7.         ASTRC noted with dismay that surprisingly, the government has ignored many other complaints of default from ASTRC leadership to the state government but seem to have given priority attention on the cases of Ojoto, Neni and Nawfia in what can best be described as selective adjudication and deliberate favoritism towards otherwise cases of equal or graver dispositions.

The cogent question at this point is, If there are no political undertone, why were the cases involving Ifeanyi Ubah singled out for immediate attention while other cases pending before the government are ignored or kept pending?

If so, why is the Governor playing politics and humiliating traditional rulers for political reasons when the traditional institutions are traditionally nonpartisan and non political?

8.         ASTRC noted that Igwe Nawfia is not yet a bonafide member of ASTRC due to pending court cases surrounding his legitimacy as traditional ruler of Nawfia community therefore it was wrong to stereotype members of ASTRC for the misgivings of Igwe Nawfia who is not considered a member of the council of Anambra traditional rulers.

9.         The state government alleged that “a minority of traditional rulers have demonstrated a penchant for trading chieftaincy titles for money thereby bringing the traditional institution to ridicule and disrepute”

ASTRC while dismissing the allegation as baseless, false and disrespectful described it as an attempt to bring the traditional institution to disrepute.

ASTRC went further to challenge the state government to substantiate its claims and provide evidence for this unfounded allegation which appeared both in the suspension letter of Igwe Neni and the BACKDATED press release to ASTRC.

10.       The chairman of ASTRC stated that the council of traditional rulers of Anambra state cannot yet conclude or take a stand on the alleged violation of the Code of Conduct until it receives a report from the ad-hoc committee it set up to meet with lgwe Neni. 

Nevertheless, it also maintained that it is very manifestly present that no written directives from the government on conferment of chieftaincy titles existed before 08 January 2024 when lgwe Neni was suspended.

11.       ASTRC noted that the reference to a second-term Honorable Distinguished Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as “one Senator Ifeanyi Ubah” is most disrespectful, offensive, and unbecoming of a responsible state government.

ASTRC also noted that as a well-known business investor in Anambra State and a generous philanthropist, Distinguished Senator Ifeanyi Ubah holds a chieftaincy title of his hometown, Nnewi, conferred on him by his monarch and Grand Patron of the Anambra State Traditional Institution, His Majesty, lgwe Kenneth O. Orizu. Therefore it is an abuse of the code of conduct to subject such a personality to checks and balances before conferment of befitting chieftaincy titles on his person.

12.       ASTRC noted that the swiftness, severity of the suspension and threat of withdrawal of Certificate of Recognition suggests that there may be other undisclosed issues with either lgwe Neni or Distinguished Senator Ubah which are being stealthily ventilated in this circumstance.

13.       ASTRC also noted with grave apprehension the progressive dehumanization and dismantling of the traditional institution of Anambra State by the present administration. According to Igwe Alfred Achebe, The leadership of the traditional institution comprises of some of the finest sons of Anambra State who achieved sterling academic heights and professional/vocational attainments. He described the monarchs as leaders who took up the role of traditional rulers of their various communities through consensus of their people with the sole aim of providing sterling leadership and giving back to society and therefore should not be ridiculed because their livelihood does not depend on the unfounded allegation of selling chieftaincy titles or the N175,000 monthly stipend from the State Government.

ASTRC maintains that by virtue of their office, age, attainment and standing in society of her members, the traditional rulers deserve far better respect and dignity, instead of being publicly bullied and unfairly shamed at every opportunity by people in the Anambra State Government.

14.       Finally, ASTRC reiterated its call on the state government to redirect its attention to the urgent needs of Anambarians which require more urgent attention. It advised the state government to jettison the pursuit of trivialities and instead focus on prioritization of catering for the needs of Anambra tax payers. It noted that issues of chieftaincy title and who gets them is not the major priority of Ndi Anambra.

ASTRC highlighted critical issues like fixing poor and collapsing public infrastructure, surmounting the glaring lack of basic amenities (electricity, potable water, healthcare, good access roads, etc), addressing youth unemployment, tackling  insecurity, catalyzing urban renewal and the constitutional running and funding of the Local Government etc as issues that deserves government attention.

The monarch ended his itemized response with the very important question WHAT HAS GONE WRONG IN ANAMBRA STATE?

FOOTNOTE:

While this development might come as a shock to peripheral observers of the unfolding melee in Anambra state, those who are unfortunate to have crossed paths with Prof. Charles Soludo are not unaware of the professors propensity for bile, bitterness, pettiness, maniacal self destructive tendencies and overwhelming willingness to go the extra mile in the execution of whatever mindless vendetta he chooses to pursue.

The contemptible disposition of Anambra state governor, Prof Chukwuma Charles Soludo attained national notoriety approximately 14 years ago when Late Dr Dora Akunyili raised an alarm over an attempt on her life after she was attacked by thugs who she alleged were sent by Prof Charles Soludo to maim her at a burial ceremony in Anambra state.

In her petition to the inspector general of police and the Anambra state commissioner of police, The late Dora revealed that she got into trouble with the professor of Economics simply because she didn’t support his attempt to win the PDP ticket for the Anambra governorship election therefore he developed the unhinged belief that he lost the primaries because of the refusal of the NAFDAC DG to support his Guber ambitions.

For proper context, Prof. Soludo is married to the daughter of Dora Akunyili’s immediate elder sister so that makes Late Dora Akunyili his sister in law but that family relationship and matrimonial bond did not deter him from meting out doses of life threatening wickedness to the late Amazon.

Long after Dora was dead and buried, precisely on the 28th day of September 2021, Dr Chike Akunyili (Dora’s husband) and seven other innocent Anambarians were gruesomely murdered in cold blood by unknown gunmen at Nkpor Anambra state.

The entire state was thrown into a state of shock, sadness, disbelief and somber.

Ifeanyi Ubah, Val Ozigbo and other frontline contestants for the Anambra Guber elections who were not related to the Akunyili family in any way halted their campaigns as a mark of respect for the dead and in solidarity with the bereaved families. 

Shockingly, in less than 12 hours after the sad incident, Prof Charles Soludo arrived at Bridge head market Onitsha with his campaign team and continued his campaign with a sheepish grin as if nothing happened.

In another unrelated epoch approximately 9 years ago, the coordinating minister of the Nigerian economy Ngozi Okonjo Iweala after encountering and understudying Prof Soludo had this to say about the man.

“There is definitely an issue of character with Prof. Charles Soludo. He is a bitter character so desperate for power and so derailed that he is capable of committing hara-kiri (suicide) just to carry out and justify a hatchet job.  Nigerians should therefore beware of intellectuals without character and wisdom because this combination is fatal”

Like the manifestation of a prophecy, in his desperate bid to hold on to power, Prof Charles Chukwuma Soludo appear to be speeding down the path of political seppuku by ridiculing and bullying his people, misappropriating his powers and abusing the office which he occupies.

Reducing the traditional rulers of Anambra state to mere pawns in his chess game and humiliating the traditional institution that they represent is merely a testament to the governor’s undisputable capacity for reprehensible vengefulness.

Anambra state today is unfortunate to be under the grim siege of an eratic executive and nobody knows who the next victim might be.

Indeed, Things has fallen apart.

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