Ifitedunu Crisis Persists as Two Traditional Rulers, Two PGs Fight For Supremacy [VIDEO]

There is currently a huge crisis in Ifitedunu community of Dunukofia Local Government Area of Anambra State, which may snowball into loss of lives if Prof Chukwuma Soludo’s government fails to act fast.

This is as two traditional rulers and two Presidents-General have emerged in the community, all fighting for supremacy.

The crisis has caused the duly elected and government certified President-General of Ifitedunu Town Union Chief Uchenna Nwoye Oragwuncha to currently go into hiding, after he was beaten up like a common criminal by a dissident group allegedly led by the factional monarch of the community, Chief Vincent Udobi.

Videos of the brutal beating of Oragwuncha surfaced on the internet two weeks ago, as he was being pummelled by some thugs, while police operatives watched.

The PG who spoke from exile said Chief Vincent Udobi is currently acting and parading himself as traditional ruler in the community as he now confers chieftaincy titles on indigenes of the community to the outright disregard and disrespect of His Royal Highness Igwe Dr. Emeka Ilouno, who is the authentic government recognised traditional ruler and the one presiding over the customs and traditions of Ifitedunu community.

Chief Uchenna Nwoye Oragwuncha who disclosed that the Vincent Udobi led rebel group has installed another President-General in the community even as his tenure is still running, maintained that he has both video and pictorial evidences where Vincent Udobi is acting as traditional ruler and conferring chieftaincy titles on people, stressing that Udobi has sworn never to allow peace reign in Ifitedunu community.

Oragwuncha said it all started in 2017 when he was the Vice to one Sam Nweke who was the President-General at the time. That Vincent Udobi and Sam Nweke had plotted to dethrone Igwe Emeka Ilouno and made futile efforts to co-opt him into the evil plot but he blatantly refused to be part of such sacrilege. He said Vincent Udobi pleaded with him to support Sam Nweke in the clandestine plot to remove Igwe Emeka Ilouno from the throne and get 5 Million Naira cash reward thereafter. He said his refusal to accept the 5 Million Naira gift and be part of the grand design to evict the monarch were the sins he committed against Chief Vincent Udobi whom he said has vowed to feed his body to the vultures if he is found anywhere in Ifitedunu.

He said he advised Vincent Udobi and Sam Nweke to write to the state government if they feel the traditional ruler was not doing things right in the community instead of plotting to dethrone him. Oragwuncha further disclosed that when he expressed interest to contest for the office of the President-General of Ifitedunu, he approached Vincent Udobi to seek his support but Udobi told him to his face that he will never support him and that even if he wins, he will make Ifitedunu ungovernable for him; all because he dissociated himself from the evil plan to unjustly remove Igwe Emeka Ilouno from the throne of Ifitedunu community.

The PG said, ” Vincent Udobi is now acting as traditional ruler of Ifitedunu because he is already giving chieftaincy titles to people. He gave three people chieftaincy titles in January this year whereas we have an existing Igwe on the throne. It is because I did not support his evil plots that Vincent Udobi and his thugs beat me up like a common criminal at Nkwo market. I have the video clip of where Vincent Udobi and his thugs were beating me. It is only the traditional ruler His Royal Highness Igwe Dr. Emeka Ilouno that has the constitutional rights to confer chieftancy titles in the community and no other person. This is based on the town union constitution and state constitution.

“The state government on 28th of July, 2023 issued a letter to the community reaffirming me as the duly recognised President-General of Ifitedunu Town Union. But these people are still laying siege in my office with their thugs and still maintaining their stand led by Vincent Udobi that if they see me anywhere in Ifitedunu they will kill me. I am calling on the state government and security agencies to come to my aid and bring the culprits to book. ”

Recall that recently, the lawmaker representing Dunukofia state constituency in the House of Assembly, Mr. Chuks Azotana had moved a motion on the floor of the House of Assembly calling on Governor Chukwuma Charles Soludo to direct the Commissioner for Local Government, Chieftaincy and Town Union Matters to take immediate action and bring the culprits who beat the President-General and his executives up and igniting crisis in Ifitedunu to book.

When journalists reached the commissioner, Tony Collins Nwabunwanne, he assured THE RAZOR that the Soludo government has intervened, and warned the culprit to desist from attacking Oragwuncha, or hindering him from carrying out his function as the President General of the community.

The commissioner said the factional monarch has been prevailed upon, especially as Oragwuncha has only December to conclude his tenure in office, before a fresh election would be conducted.

“We have done a lot to ensure peace in various communities. The case of Ifitedunu is one of them. The young man who is the authentic PG was accosted by some renegades in the market square where he went to supervise some projects he was doing for his people, and beat him up.

“We have intervened, and we found out that one of the major cause of the hatred against the PG by these factional leader was simply because he removed a plaque in the communities civic centre, which read that one of factional leaders was the one that built it.

“The community in its general agreed that the plaque should be removed as the man who installed his name on it was not the only one who singlehandedly built it. Since then, they have been terrorizing him and trying to make the community ungovernable for him.”

Meanwhile, the opposing faction of monarch and PG have declared war on the commissioner, accusing him of siding Oragwuncha because they are friends.

But the commissioner said: “I’m not siding anyone, we are just trying to ensure that there is peace in the state.”

Oragwuncha who spoke to THE RAZOR said he has remained in exile because his life is at stake as Vincent Udobi whom he described as parallel traditional ruler is bent on terminating him if he ever step foot in Ifitedunu town.

THE RAZOR made attempts to reach Udobi for reaction, but was not successful.

However, the immediate past President-General of Ifitedunu Town Union Chief Samuel Nweke, who is an ally of Udobi was quoted as dismissing Oragwuncha’s claims. He said they were all lies from the pit of hell. Nweke maintained that the Oragwuncha has been impeached by the community and that the impeachment stands. That nobody is chasing him except his sins and atrocities against Ifitedunu community.