Murder for land: Communities under siege, petition to obi of Ogwashi Ukwu

Emeka Ibemere

A family and two communities are up in arms against those, who murdered their two sons of the same father over sale of several plots of land belonging to Agidiase and Agidiahe quarters in Ogwashi Ukwu Kingdom, Aniocha  south local government Area of Delta State, South-South, Nigeria, which are being sold illegally to strangers.

Now the communities are under siege and have written to their traditional ruler, the Obi of Ogwashi Ukwu, over threat of live and property in Ogwashi Ugwu posed by gang of land grabbers to restore peace and security in the land by investigating the Iyase, Chief Collins Afuwah, the alleged mastermind of land seller.

 Trouble started for the family of Ngozi Ejiofor, of Agidiesei quarters; of Ogwashi Ukwu when gunmen numbering over 20 stormed his farmland in a desperate bid to sell the farm land but because of the opposition of the two brothers, who were allegedly at the farm when the goose invaded the property on different days they strangulated one, while the other was shot to death.

It was gathered that the late Peter Emeka Ejiofor and Mordi Enwe

azu, were killed by the rampaging land grabbers in a brutal manner. The killing which took place on August has put fear into the communities and forcing them to be pegging down in going to their land farms for fear of death.

For years, the Agidiase and Agidiahe communities have been fighting against illegal sell of their land by some unscrupulous indigenes of their communities who are not minding the future of their generations, yet unborn to collect peanuts and ‘dash’ out their inheritance for free. The communities have gone to courts, but have been denied justice by a cabal who have infiltrated the judiciary in Delta State to perpetrate crimes. Not bordered, the communities vowed not to relent to make sure that Ogwashi Ukwu lands are secured from bands of criminals.

Prior to the murder saga, on July 30 2014, a senior citizen and an elder and father of the deceased had written a petition to the authorities and stakeholders, including the Obi of Ogwashi-Ukwu highlighting the dangerous trend in the kingdom, especially the criminalisation of Ogwashi Ukwu youths by one of the indigenes of the community fingered in the illegal selling of land belonging to the two communities. In the petition, which was made available to Daily Newswatch and entitled: “the apparent militarisation of Ogwashi Ukwu and destruction of our farmland by Chief Collins Afuwah: A plea to call him to order.”

The petition which was also made available to the Governor of Delta State, Chief Emmanuel Uduaghan, the Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Asaba, Chairman Aniocha South Local Government Area, Commissioner of Police, and Delta State Command, Asaba, was also sent to the Divisional Police Officer, Ogwashi Ukwu and Council of Elders, Ogwashi Ukwu harped on the militarisation of Ogwashi Ukwu youths, the use of a de facto militia to destroy the farmlands, food crops, economic trees and ancient boundary trees, also condemned the fermenting of the foundation for festering crises in Obi Ogwashi ukwu kingdom by chief Collins Afuwah, said to be the Iyase of Ogwashi Ukwu kingdom and prayed that the Obi and the security agencies in Nigeria should safe the communities from the hands of the alleged Afuwah.

On three occasions, I and my sons encountered a company of young men numbering 10 on my farmland. Eight of these men were armed with guns and matchetes. The remaining two were manning a bulldozer”, Elder Ngozi Ejiofor, writes in his petition to Obi.

“These men, constantly smoking marijuana, Indian hemp were engaged in constructing roads and demarcating of plots on my farmland, thereby destroying my food crops, economic trees, ancient boundary trees and cash crops. They could hardly answer our questions; the armed men were trotting about threateningly with their guns and other dangerous weapons”.

According to Ejiofor, who signed the petition, the gunmen trespassed on his farmland and that nobody notified him of the intention to carry out such an exercise and the legality of such plan. He disclosed that he and the community never entered into any dialogue with any person on the issue.

He explained that the armed men simply swooped on them and started destroying their land farm, cash and food crops and in the process fostering a deep sense of insecurity on the community.

 “We no longer go to our farm without fear and the only response we get from the invading army of land speculators was that chief Collins Afuwah, the Iyase of Ogwashi Ukwu sent them,” Ejiofor said.

“On each of these three occasions, the men bearing arms were different and none of them was a familiar face to me or my sons. This is suggestive that the Iyase has a pool of imported armed men at his service. By extrapolation, the Iyase has at least 24 armed men at his beck and call. Since the Iyase is a high Chief in your domain and I’m one of your subjects, grant me the liberty to ask two questions.

“Does Chief Collins Afuwah run a militia and does His Majesty authorize him to organize and manage a militia organization and use same to intimidate your subjects on their lands”, Ejiofor queried the Obi, in his petition. The petitioner condemned in strong terms the gangsters that are growing in Ogwashi Ukwu which he claimed that was formed by one man because of his penchant for selling of lands.

Ejiofor queried why the purported Iyase should act outside the law and culture that created his office and vehemently worried the type of culture of impunity and element of security challenges of the town Chief Afuwah is fostering on the community. According to him, fear and insecurity have enveloped the communities and that Afuwah is enjoying the edge without anybody challenging him. The petitioner called the Obi to call his Iyase to order.

“It should also be of great concern to his Majesty that Chief Afuwah is arming and teaching the youths the use of force where the law, order, custom and tradition should prevail. Land hustling and sales cannot go on forever when there is no more land to seize and sell. What happened to the guns and the youths whose psyche the Iyase has militarized? The outcome is not difficult to predict-armed robbery, kidnapping, hired assassination and other variants of violence”. Ejiofor remarked.

“Iyase grabs the land, sells it off without creating alternative industries and other creative ventures to absorb the army of youths he has armed and farmers he has sold off their land. This is a serious issue that call for the attention of the authorities”. It was alleged that Chief Afuwah always procures surveyor and the bulldozer and afterwards give 20 percent of all surveyed land to the surveyor and five percent to members of his alleged goons.

“I’m sure, His Majesty has interest of his subjects at hear, therefore, would want to see his people enjoy better quality of life. With all due respect, I think the Iyase is a very dangerous person. Any man who doesn’t give deep thought, to the socio-cultural consequences of his actions is a clothed danger to any community, Ejiofor quipped.

“Permit me, His Royal Majesty to request that you investigate this matter and reprimand Chief Collins Afuwah, the Iyase of Ogwashi Ukwu Kingdom”.

Chief Lawrence Esedume, Ome Ihesuani of Ogwashi Ukwu and Diokpa of Agidiase also of Ogwashi Ukwu while confirming the killing said the two young boys were killed in the bush and that their lifeless bodies were discovered the next morning after a search. He stated that they are afraid to go to their farmlands again because of the activities of the alleged gangsters that are terrorizing the communities.

Professor and traditional ruler in Agidiahe Quarters, HH Nwajei Chuks Nwajei, Agumba and Akaji Obi of Ogwashi-Ukwu while reacting on the murder case told Daily Newswatch that the community is under siege.  “From 17th century, we have been having Iyase and land matter where never a problem. We were communal and one man came parading himself as Iyase and virtually sold all the land including Agidiase land. Now he has left Agidiase land and has encroached into Agidiahe land. He has more than 14 cases of land matter involving encroachment on people’s land and selling and re-selling of land”, Nwajei stated.

“He is buying cars and hasn’t awarded scholarship to any person. He recruited 15 years old children, give guns, matchetes and buy okada for them to go and lay siege in the people’s bush and selling lands. The Ogwashi Ukwu Development Union (ODU) has been saying leave Ogwashi ukwu land alone but Collins Afuwah has not listened to anybody”,

He was here in Lagos State and was selling second handed televisions and other items, now he has relocated to Ogwashi ukwu and constituting criminality in the town, selling peoples’ land and reselling people’s land. But selling land is not the issue, trying to criminalise our children is the problem and what we asking the police to investigate was to look into the arms he was using to equip small children”.

According to Nwajei, their problem is that one man is selling the land without the community being aware of the whole land sold.

“Our anger is one; that any land sold can never be recovered ever again. And when you sell one plot of land, you have enslaved over 1000 persons not to have any land of their own. And the way they are doing it, in the next three to four years, Ogwashi Ukwu indigenes won’t have place even to farm not to talk about living”.

“This is because; the people buying the lands are coming from across the River-Niger. Building factories and not employing Ogwashi Ukwu indigenes, so there are no developments whatsoever in my community. The lands are sold by one man, Chief Collins Afuwah”.