By Gabriel Chy Alonta
Residents of Isuaniocha in Awka North local government area of Anambra state, have urged the warring parties to sheath their swords so peace and development could return to the community.
The people spoke through their president-general, Mr. Paul Okoye, and stressed the need to resolve the lingering crisis in the area.
According to Mr. Okoye, there were no serious problems in the community as portrayed in some sections of the media, “but the only issue is that a particular family, the Onyeagolum’s, decided to wage war with the rest of the people in the community for their own personal gains”.
The president-general, who was recently elected, however, said his administration was for peace and called on all parties to come together with a view to resolving the issues on the altar of peace.
“The problem in Isuaniocha is not as big as people are made to believe, the problem is that a small group of people have been perpetrating a lot of crime in the community because they have money. They have been the problem we have, they killed somebody and instead of coming to plead with the people to forgive them, they are busy using the Nigeria Police to harass the people because they have money.
“There is a tradition in this town, there is a way such things can be settled, but they are using money to threaten even the people they killed their relations. But I want everybody to come back, let’s reorganize Isuaniocha and let peace reign”, he pleaded.
Reacting to recent accusations against the Anambra state Commissioner for Homeland Affairs, Mr. Chikodi Anara by a former president general of the community, Comrade Tony Onyeagolumq, the new PG said Mr. Anara was instrumental in ensuring that there was peace in the community during his days as senior special adviser to Chief Willie Obiano.
According to him, the entire area would have been deserted if not for the intervention of Mr. Anara, who called government attention to the leadership highhandedness of one Onyeagolum tearing the town into parts.
He said, “Tony Onyeagolum should know that Mr Anara was the reason people are still in Isuaniocha today. He used his office as SSA to the former governor to fight for peace. It was the first time I was seeing police work hand in hand with thugs and all sorts of people. They will arrest people, you will see some names on their list, and you will not see some.
“I was the financial secretary to Mr Onyeagolum, I was the assistant secretary under the leadership of Offorbike Mkpume, I served under all of them before becoming the president-general so I know them very well. Mr.i Anara wanted to bring peace but these people don’t want peace”, he posited.
He, therefore, appealed to the Governor Soludo led administration, to set up a fact finding team to the community with a view to inviting all the parties and bringing lasting peace for the overall development of the area.
Also speaking, the youth leader of Isuaniocha , Ozor Onyemazu Ngini disclosed that Mr Tony Onyeagolum was elected illegally as confirmed by his lordship, Hon. Justice D. A. Onyefulu in his judgment on Wednesday 3rd April 2019 at High Court, Onitsha. He explained that contrary to the claims by Mr Onyeagolum that he was removed for not selling school land, his removal was as a result of his overzealousness and highhandedness within the period he held sway. He said the intervention by the government to remove him was apt and was done in the best interest of the entire community.
He alleged that it was in one of the numerous illegal arrests by the bad eggs in the Nigerian Police used by Mr. Onyeagolum that they killed one Mr Somadina Okafor who was not even an indigene of the community and knew nothing about the crisis. The youth leader used the medium to commend Governor Chukwuma Soludo for appointing credible and seasoned sons of Isuaniocha and Awka North in general into his cabinet, a gesture, he said, confirms the high expectations of the masses who voted him.