Soludo Names Traditional Ruler Amid Court Order Dispute in Nsugbe

Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra State has given a certificate of recognition to John Nweke as the traditional ruler of Nsugbe Community in Anambra East Local Government Area. This happened despite a court order that stopped his election.

Mr Soludo presented the certificate to Mr Nweke on Tuesday. This came after Mr Nweke was said to have become the traditional ruler during a controversial election on Sunday, which was barred by a state high court order in Anambra.

“Respectfully, Barrister John Nzekwesili Nweke is now officially the Igwe (traditional ruler) of Nsugbe,” the governor stated during a meeting with traditional rulers at the Government House on Tuesday.

He then handed him the certificate of recognition. Mr Nweke is the elder brother of Tobechukwu Nweke, the Senior Advocate of Nigeria and Attorney-General of Anambra State.

Tension in the Community

Tension has been rising in Nsugbe Community since Saturday. This was due to an alleged plan by some people to carry out the election on Sunday.

A group called Concerned Indigenes and Stakeholders in Nsugbe wrote a petition to President Bola Tinubu on Saturday. They accused the Anambra State Commissioner for Local Government and Community Matters, Vincent Ezeaka, and the attorney-general of acting “unlawfully and contemptuously” by trying to hold the election that the court had blocked.

At least 13 members signed the petition. Notable signatories included Anambra North Senator Tony Nwoye, former senator Alphonsus Igbeke, and Uzoechina Benedict, the Secretary General of Nsugbe Development Union.

The group explained to Mr Tinubu that the conflict arose from disagreements on how to select the next traditional ruler. Some people wanted a delegate system while others preferred universal adult suffrage in Ivite Quarter, the part of the community chosen to provide the traditional ruler.

They noted that those against the delegate system filed a lawsuit on 8 July. Justice Jude Obiora then issued an injunction on 5 August against the election that was set for 8 August.

The petition included a copy of the court ruling that stopped the election. The court ordered all parties to keep the situation as it was on 8 July, the day the lawsuit was filed, until it was resolved.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the status quo hereby ordered means that: (a) no party, whether by himself, his agents, servants, privies or any person acting on his authority or any entity howsoever described, shall organise, conduct, supervise, conclude or give effect to any election or selection of the next Igwe (traditional ruler) of Nsugbe from Ivite Quarter on Saturday the 8th day of August, 2026 and pending the determination of this suit,” the court ruled.

The Concerned Indigenes and Stakeholders in Nsugbe claimed that despite the court order, Mr Ezeaka allegedly suspended the elected executive of the Nsugbe Development Union on 28 August. He then put in place a caretaker committee “with an express mandate to conduct the selection of the Igwe Nsugbe.”

They raised concerns that officials planned to hold the election on Sunday, 30 August, breaking the court order. They called on Mr Tinubu to stop the planned election and to investigate the commissioner’s actions regarding the Nsugbe Development Union executive.

Official Denies Complicity

The Commissioner for Local Government and Community Matters, Mr Ezeaka, did not answer calls for comments.

When contacted on Sunday afternoon while the election was being organized, Attorney-General Tobechukwu Nweke told PREMIUM TIMES that he was not involved in the election process.

“I have not been involved in this process from the beginning to the end. I have been minding my business, discharging my duties as the attorney-general of the state.

“But Senator Tony (Nwoye) wants to use blackmail to gain political points by always accusing me of interfering in the process,” he said.

The commissioner stated that as a member of Nsugbe, he receives information about the community but does not take part in the election. He said he knew that the town union and electoral committee had set the elections for 8 August and agreed on the delegate system, which was opposed by Mr Nwoye and others.

He added that the Anambra State Government approved the town union and electoral committee’s decision. He explained that to keep the peace, he suspended the town union and set up a caretaker committee.

According to him, the caretaker committee later met with community stakeholders, reconciled the parties, and supported the universal adult suffrage for Ivite Quarter proposed by Mr Nwoye and his group.

PREMIUM TIMES learned that the zoning arrangement favored Ivite Quarter because the other two quarters, Ezi and Ikenga, had already produced the community’s traditional ruler.

The attorney-general maintained that Mr Nwoye is not from Ivite Quarter, where the leadership position was zoned, and should not challenge the election mode.

He also claimed he was unaware of the court ruling that barred the 30 August election.

“If you look at the order of the court, the election the court stopped was the election for 8 August being organised by the town union and that (electoral) committee.

“That’s not the election that they are holding now,” the attorney-general said as of 3:30 p.m. on Sunday.

Cancelled Election?

PREMIUM TIMES found out that the court-barred election faced disruption when some community members protested at the venue on Sunday, challenging the election.

This newspaper saw hundreds of community members shouting “no election,” as security forces fired tear gas canisters at them.

When contacted, Mr Nwoye claimed the attorney-general mobilized over 100 members of the Agunachamba vigilante group to intimidate innocent Nsugbe indigenes challenging the election.

“This is victory for constitutional democracy and rule of law,” he said about the protest by the indigenes.

NTA Onitsha reported on Sunday that police operatives, led by Assistant Commissioner Ibrahim Ezekiel, stopped the election due to the chaos and protest.

However, it was later gathered that the election organizers moved to the Anambra East Local Government Headquarters in Otuocha, a nearby community, where they held the election.

The Anambra State attorney-general defended relocating the election, explaining it was necessary after Mr Nwoye and his group allegedly came to the original venue with thugs to disrupt the process.

“He went there with thugs, threatened to disrupt the process. The security people were there. They tried to manage the situation, but no way.

“So, the caretaker committee decided to leave to avoid breakdown of law and order, and they have now relocated to a different venue,” he said.

Ezeaka Speaks

PREMIUM TIMES contacted Christian Aburime, spokesperson for Mr Soludo, on Wednesday. We asked why the governor recognized the traditional ruler despite the court order against the election.

Mr Aburime told our reporter to reach Mr Ezeaka for details.

When contacted, Mr Ezeaka claimed the state government was not involved in the lawsuit. He said the court order did not stop the government from forming a committee to conduct elections.

The local government commissioner insisted that he or the government did not participate in the election. He admitted that the government allowed the election after getting a report that the community had resolved its disputes.

“The caretaker committee we set up wrote back saying that they have made peace in their community. We said, ‘if you have settled, then go ahead and hold your election,’ and they did,” he said.

When asked if resolving the dispute made the court order invalid, the official said the order was against the town union executive, not the state government.

Mr Ezeaka did not answer further questions about the court order violation.