A monarch’s long walk to victory ...As Appeal Court re-instates Eze Ilomuanya

Emeka Ibemere

 Although it is generally said that uneasy lies the head that wears the crown, many, especially in this part of the world, will prefer to wear the crown and allow their heads to suffer discomfort, so to say.
The foregoing scenario seems to be playing itself out in Imo State, where Governor Rochas Okorocha and a monarch’s personal differences are causing ripples. It is, indeed, a war of supremacy.
An Appeal Court victory of Eze Cletus Ilomuanya, a former chairman of the council of traditional rulers, Imo State and the chairman, Southeast council of traditional rulers, has divided the monarchs in the state and the Orlu zonal branch of the Imo State traditional council of Ndi-Eze, where he hails from.
A source close had claimed that the state governor, who singlehandedly removed Eze Ilomuanya, on assumption of office, was behind the recent altercations among the Orlu and the entire Imo State monarchs.
 It was gathered that the Governor working on the Orlu zonal branch of Ndi-Eze allegedly asked one of them to refute in a recent newspaper publication (advertorial) the victory of Ilomuanya, as discussed in their mgba-nko (meeting).
But since Eze Okeke carried out that act, he has since been at war with the other Ezes from the state and his zone, who accused him of not serving their interest in the whole saga.
  Eze Okeke, allegedly acting on the script of his hirers, denied any discussion on the Appeal Court victory of Eze Ilomuanya at their last meeting in Orlu. But the group actually discussed the matter and agreed to visit the governor so as to plead with to him to obey the court ruling by re-installing their former chairman.
Against this backdrop, some of the Ezes that attended the meeting, where the matter was discussed, are now spoiling for war wih Okeke over his alleged publication in which he referred to the monarch as a liar.
They maintained that they truly discussed Ilomuanya’s victory extensively at their meeting.
Reacting to the issue, the Orlu Local Government Chairman of Ndi-Eze, Eze Ugonna Iriele, expressed disappointment at the action of Okeke.
He wondered how an Eze of Okeke’s status would talk with the two sides of the mouths.
Eze Iriele disclosed that it was him (Eze Iriele), who raised the issue of Ilomuanya and it was discussed extensively, especially how to reconcile the Eze and the governor for the benefit of Imo in general and Ndi Eze, in particular.
It was gathered that during the meeting, Eze Okeke suggested that Ndi-Eze should meet with the governor and seek a way to bury the hatchets.
Also,  Eze (Barr.) Anayo Durueburuo, Eze Okwudor, was quoted to have kicked against Okeke’s action, saying, “I was abashed by the publication because in the meeting at Orlu, we, the Ezes from Orlu Zone, had a motion concerning the Appeal Court victory of Eze Ilomuanya. We discussed and agreed that we are going to meet with Governor Rochas Okorocha and persuade him to adhere to the court judgment and reconcile with the authentic chairman of Imo State traditional rulers council, Eze Ilomuanya, who is his brother.”
According to him, he was shocked to hear that Eze Okeke went to the prints to deny the discussion of Ndi Eze Orlu Zone without their consent.
The two Ezes, therefore, referred to the publication as false and maintained that Eze Ilomuanya’s Appeal Court victory was discussed extensively in their meeting.

It will be recalled that the governor, two years ago, deposed Eze Ilomuanya as the chairman of Imo State council of traditional rulers and relegated him to his autonomous community in Orlu.

Eze Ilomuanya’s problem started when he took a trip to South-Africa in a peace-making mission.

Igbos in South Africa then had been polarized over the leadership position of Ohanaeze NdiIgbo in South Africa, which he personally went to settle.

Reports say it took some eminent Igbo’s sons and daughters more than one year to forge a fragile harmonization of the warring factions, which eventually saw a peaceful election endorsed by all the Igbos in South Africa.

The issue of Ezeigbo/Onyendu remains the remote cause of discord in the unity of the factions in South Africa.

A source in South Africa accused Ilomuanya of fomenting trouble among the Igbos by supporting one faction of Igbos in South Africa. “Ilomuanya was the brain behind the factions in South Africa on the grounds that he recognized one person against the other, even when he abolished Eze NdiIgbo in Diaspora,” the source said.

Prior to Ilomuanya’s trip to South Africa, the Governor had placed a ban on foreign trips by Ndi-Ezes in the state. 

The Governor extended the ban on those who ruled their kingdoms from abroad and said they would lose their thrones, if they refused to return to their domains.

But Daily Newswatch gathered that Eze Ilomuanya, in defiance of a standing order against him not to leave his autonomous community by the state governor, jetted out to South Africa on a mission to accomplish an unfinished peace process going on among the Igbos.

Eze Ilomuanya, the traditional ruler of Obinugwu Autonomous Community, Orlu Local Government Area in Imo state, has constantly been fighting over his throne since the inception of the incumbent administration.

Okorocha’s disdain against Ilomuanya was his attempt to work against his governorship ambition. He was allegedly pencilled down as one of those who teamed forces and provided funds for ex-governor Ikedia Ohakim.

According to the governor, Ilomuanya’s involvement in politics, even when he was a traditional ruler, played against the rule of monarchy.

Eze Ilomuanya was appointed chairman, Imo State traditional rulers’ council during the administration of Chief Achike Udenwa.

It was gathered also that it was during Udenwa’s tenure that he became chairman, South East council of traditional rulers. His detractors said that he allegedly waged several battles against some Igbo businessmen residing outside the south East, who gave themselves the title of ‘Eze NdiIgbo’ in their respective towns and states of abode. 

Then, Eze Ilomuanya had petitioned all the 36 state governors and warned them against recognizing anybody as Eze NdiIgbo.

He made attempt to abolish Eze NdiIgbo positions on the grounds that the tribe could not have ‘Ezeigbo’ outside Igboland. 

 He even threatened to drag the ‘impostors’ to court.
But with the exit of former governor Ohakim, Ilomuanya’s empire and threat went into oblivion. 

 Okorocha was said to have openly expressed his anger over the traditional ruler’s open support for his political opponent’s second-term bid.
  He was alleged to have even joined the former governor’s campaign train, a development which many believed facilitated his removal as chairman of the state’s traditional rulers’ council when Okorocha became governor.

But as a man, who had fought so many battles, Eze Ilomuanya refused to surrender to his new fate, as he was said to have fought tirelessly to regain his position by engaging in war of attrition with his successor, Eze Samuel Ohiri, and the state government.

In an apparent move to stop him, the state House of Assembly, acting on a petition submitted by one Ikechukwu, a staff of Eze Ilomuanya, revoked his staff of office. 

Ikechukwu had, in his petition, claimed that Eze Ilomuanya was not qualified to be a royal father, against the backdrop of his alleged past inappropriate acts.

Consequently, the state House of Assembly invited the monarch to appear before it, in order to respond to the allegations levelled against him.
He allegedly ignored the invitation, but a sent a lawyer, one Declan Madu, to represent him.

But the lawmakers were not satisfied with the answers provided by Madu, prompting them to pass a motion at an executive session and requested Governor Okorocha to suspend him from office.

But there were unconfirmed reports that governor Okorocha worked on the lawmakers to recommend the suspension of the controversial traditional ruler.

Meanwhile, Okorocha disclosed that the major reason he distanced himself from the embattled traditional ruler, even when he was yet to actualize the decision of the House, was that Eze Ilomuanya had lost touch with his kingdom and people whom he was their chief custodian of tradition and customs.

According to Okorocha, Eze Ilomuanya was booed by the crowd, who also threw pieces of sachet water at him, when he took him to a public function in Owerri recently.

This, therefore, confirms the frosty relationship between the governor and the traditional ruler.

It also showed that the traditional ruler had lost the favour with the people whose mandate he held as the foremost traditional ruler in the state.

The Governor added that some of the pieces of sachet water meant for EzeIlomuanya fell on Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State, who was his special guest.

Okorocha described the situation as greatly embarrassing to both Governor Obi and the government of Imo State.  

After that episode, the State House of Assembly asked the governor to stop Eze Ilomuanya from parading himself as chairman, Imo state council of traditional rulers.

However, some members of the People’s Democratic Party( PDP) in Imo State, fondly called ‘Abuja politicians’ by Imo citizens, delved into the matter to stop the state governor from implementing the decision of the law-makers.

Not sure of his position, Eze Ilomuanya went to court to stop his dethronement and after a protracted legal battle, he seems to be victorious, following the Appeal Court ruling on the matter last month.

The Court of Appeal sitting in Owerri, Imo State sacked the chairman of Imo Traditional Rulers Council, Eze Agunwa Ohiri and reinstated Eze Cletus Ilomuanya who was sacked by Governor Rochas Okorocha.

The court ruled that Eze Ilomuanya should remain the chairman, Imo State council of traditional rulers until the lawful expiration of his tenure in 2015.

It consequently restrained the state governor, his Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice as well as their aides and agents from interfering with the activities of the council under Eze Ilomuanya until his tenure expires in 2015.

Delivering the unanimous judgment prepared by Justice Philomena Ekpe, the Court declared the dissolution of the traditional rulers’ council under Ilomuanya as null and void and of no effect.

The court also submitted that  section 17A of the Imo State Traditional Rulers and Autonomous Law 2006 (as amended)  provides “Resignation or Death” as the only two conditions through which any member of the council could abdicate office.

“Eze Ilomuanya neither resigned nor died, and therefore, wondered where the governor got his powers to dissolve the council and remove the appellant from office”, it ruled.

The court expressed its displeasure that the Imo State Chief Judge, Justice Ben Njemanze, resolved the matter in favour of the governor without input from the parties in the suit, which is “a grievous error in law as the Chief Judge had turned himself into a defendant and no longer an impartial Judge.”

The Igbo traditional rulers in the Diaspora, popularly called Eze NdiIgbo, have accused Eze Ilomuanya of being the architect of the disunity that has continued to rock the traditional institution in the South-East geo-political zone of Nigeria.

Speaking during a courtesy visit to the governor at the Government House, Owerri by the traditional rulers in  the Diaspora, the national president, Eze Nwabueze Ohazuruike, Eze Npume 11 of Lagos State, said the self-acclaimed chairman of South-East Council of traditional rulers in pursuit of selfish agenda, destabilized the unity of the Igbos living in other states of the federation.

He maintained that the unity of NdiIgbo in the country remains paramount and will not be jeopardized by a self-seeking and power-drunk politician who parades himself as a traditional ruler, adding that Eze NdiIgbo in the Diaspora remains an institution that has continued to promote unity and welfare of NdiIgbo.

The monarch applauded the governor for his monumental achievements in the state, especially in the areas of infrastructural development and road construction.
Eze Ohazuruike described as unacceptable the constant killing of NdiIgbo, especially in the northern part of the country and appealed to the governor to reach out to the families that lost their loved ones to the violence by the dreaded Islamic sect, Boko Haram.
He also commended the governor for the establishment of Community Government Council in the state and asked him to extend the same to them in the Diaspora.
In his response, Okorocha urged NdiIgbo and Ezes in the Diaspora to always ensure a peaceful co-existence and unity in their host states.
He announced the endorsement of their positions by the state government and disclosed plans to issue them with proper staff of office to enable them operate and coordinate the affairs of NdiIgbo effectively.

The governor urged NdiIgbo to regard themselves as residents of the areas they found themselves in and to respect the traditions and cultures of their host communities.
Governor Okorocha used the opportunity to inform them that the Community Government Council of his administration is aimed at bringing development and government to the grassroots and assured them that his government would consider extending the same to NdiIgbo in the Diaspora.
He promised to liaise with other governors in the south east to put up a trust fund to help those affected by the unfortunate killings by the Boko Haram sect.

Meanwhile, traditional rulers in Imo State, particularly those from Owerri and Orlu geo-political zones, have reacted angrily to the delay in the enforcement of the Court of Appeal judgement, which sacked Eze Samuel Ohiri and reinstated Eze   Cletus Ilomuanya as the lawful chairman of Imo State council of traditional rulers, vowing that they will ensure that justice prevails.

This came as Senator Hope Uzodimma, representing Imo West Senatorial District in the Upper Chamber of the National Assembly, sent in his congratulations to Eze   Ilomuanya over his re-instatement by an Appeal Court in Owerri, Imo State as the chairman of Imo State council of traditional rulers.

Uzodimma, who is the Senate committee chairman on aviation, in a statement in Abuja at the weekend, said the court verdict was victory for justice.

He applauded the Appeal Court justices for their forthrightness in ensuring that justice prevailed at last, stressing, however, that “the reign of terror is usually temporary.”

Meanwhile, the Imo monarchs, in two separate meetings, have vowed not to trade off again the restoration of the chairmanship seat to Eze Ilomuanya, pointing out that with the court’s judgement, Eze Ohiri’s days as chairman are over.

 They argued that as royal fathers, they are bound to comply with the court’s order and plead with Governor Okorocha to uphold justice and the rule of law.

Speaking after a meeting of Owerri zonal council of traditional rulers at Ezinihitte Mbaise Local Government Area, Eze   Ben Nwaneri and Eze   Chinedu Osuebi contended that the court’s judgement was unambiguous and stated that nothing short of its enforcement would be acceptable to traditional rulers from Owerri zone.

They disclosed that the monarchs from Owerri zone, including Eze Ohiri’s erstwhile deputies, have all pledged their support for Eze Ilomuanya, adding that it is imperative that the state government appreciates the wish of the royal fathers in the zone.

In the same vein, at the meeting held at Orlu Local Government headquarters, the traditional rulers from Orlu zone resolved that, in accordance with the Court of Appeal judgement, Eze Ilomuanya remains the chairman of Imo State Council of traditional rulers, even as they described the sacked chairman, Eze Samuel Ohiri as “anti-Orlu.

They also stressed that during Ohiri’s unlawful reign, monarchs from Orlu zone were treated with disdain by him.

They accused Ohiri of distancing himself from them, as he forgot that in life, nothing is ever permanent.

The Orlu monarch further resolved to send a delegation to Governor Okorocha on the need to enforce the court’s directive, pointing out that both of them are illustrious sons of Orlu zone.

They also expressed optimism that their teaming-up together would bring positive dividends to Orlu geo-political zone and her people.

Justifying their positions, the chairman of Orlu LGA traditional rulers, Eze Ugonna Iriele, maintained that since God had restored the chairmanship of the state council, through the court to its rightful owner, everybody is bound to comply.

He urged his colleagues to rise up in defence of justice, noting that Eze Ohiri failed them.

Eze   Dele Odibo and Eze I.O. Asoh further assured that the Orlu royal fathers would accompany Eze Ilomuanya to formally assume office after discussions with Governor Okorocha.

According to them, “God has given us an exceptional chairman with charisma and personality whom we are well pleased with. What more do we need?”

They maintained that the court judgment is binding on everybody.

 While addressing the monarchs earlier, Eze Ilomuanya assured the monarchs that the glorious days are back again with his reinstatement.

He explained that he resorted to the law court not because he desired to fight anybody, but to ensure that justice prevailed against the misgivings and misplaced aggression against him.

He retreated that the Council under him would work harmoniously with Okorocha, assuring that he owes the governor his commitment and support so that Imo State could move forward.