Alleged Inducement: Commissioner Ezeaka Accused of Interfering in Amichi Community Affairs

By Our Correspondent

The Anambra State Commissioner for Chieftaincy, Local Government and Community Affairs, Mr Vincent Ezeaka, has been accused of interfering unlawfully in the leadership of Amichi Development Union (ADU) with alleged financial inducement.

He is also accused of defying a subsisting court order, altering a caretaker committee approved by the community’s General Assembly and announcing the suspension of the union’s constitution.

The allegations, raised by concerned citizens of Amichi in Nnewi South Local Government Area, have sparked outrage over what they describe as an attempt to undermine the community’s constitutional governance and impose leadership arrangements without due regard to the law.

According to the complainants, a court issued an interlocutory injunction on July 21, 2026, restraining the former President-General, Mr Udebuani, from parading himself as the union’s leader or performing official duties, while also restraining planned elections.

They declared that Udebuani’s tenure expired on August 6, but Ezeaka issued a letter on August 7 extending it until 2027 or until the court order was vacated.

The complainants questioned the legal basis for the extension, insisting that an administrative directive cannot override a binding court order.

The crisis escalated after the Board of Trustees of ADU worked with the commissioner to convene an emergency General Assembly meeting, at which a caretaker committee was constituted in accordance with the union’s constitution.

However, the concerned citizens disclosed that Ezeaka subsequently altered the committee’s membership by introducing two individuals not approved by the General Assembly and assigning them the positions of chairman and secretary.

The complainants argued that the action amounted to an attempt to override the decision of the community’s recognised decision-making organ.

The controversy deepened on October 25, 2026, when the commissioner circulated a voice note announcing the suspension of the ADU constitution and its governance arrangements, purportedly relying on Section 12 of the Anambra State Homeland Security Law.

The concerned citizens challenged this interpretation of the law, arguing that the provision does not expressly confer unrestricted powers on the commissioner to suspend a town union’s constitution, dissolve its governance structures or automatically remove its Registered Trustees.

They maintained that any statutory authority to intervene in a town union’s leadership must be exercised strictly within the limits prescribed by law and cannot be interpreted as permission to disregard the union’s constitution as a registered body.

The complainants insisted that the government has no blanket authority to interfere with a community’s internal affairs, alter its constitutionally established leadership arrangements or suspend its governing document without clear legal authority and compliance with due process or without regard to the union’s constitution.

They further argued that where a town union is registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission as an incorporated trustee, the legal status of the organisation, its registered trustees and the authority of any caretaker committee must be treated as distinct matters under the applicable law.

They called on the commissioner to explain the legal basis for the alleged extension of Udebuani’s tenure, the reported alteration of the caretaker committee and the suspension of the ADU constitution.

The complainants also urged the Anambra State Government to ensure that its intervention does not undermine the authority of the courts or the community’s lawful governance structures.

They insisted that the Amichi crisis should be resolved through the union’s constitution, applicable laws and judicial processes rather than unilateral administrative pronouncements.

The commissioner had not responded to the allegations in the account available for this report.