An appeal has been made by hundreds of protesters from Awa Community in Orumba North Local Government Area to the Anambra State Government to intervene in an alleged attempt by notable individuals in the community to take over activities of the town union to further his goals of becoming the traditional ruler of the town.
Majority of the demonstrators were youths, women and some elderly men. They bombarded the main gate of Anambra State Government House, Awka, chanting songs of anger and displeasure and raising placards with different inscriptions to symbolize their feelings.
The protesters who tagged themselves as “concerned citizens of Awa”, said their major interest was the return of sustained peace in the community; an ambition that the named mastermind along with his cohorts is working hard to thwart.
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In a written petition submitted by the protesters, the alleged mastermind along with few notable members of the town had allegedly altered the constitution of the town and manipulated the town union leadership to favour his ambition.
Furthermore, it explained that the group had stage-managed an election into the Awa Development Union, on the 31st of December, 2020, with 13th of February, 2021, already fixed for the Igweship election.
The protesters were led by the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Willie Obiano on Community Liason, Honourable Chukwuemeka Egwuonwu. He said that the process of electing a traditional ruler in the town is clear, with the alleged masterminds working to alter the process to satisfy their selfish goals, and appealed to Governor Willie Obiano to weigh into the brewing violence in the town by calling the masterminds to order and cancelling both the said town union election and the new Igweship election.
Engineer Paul Nwa, a former President General of Awa Development Union, who was also a part of the protesters, called for effective process in electing any leader in the community. He alleged that the desperation of a few overzealous people would only bring crisis and avoidable violence in the peaceful community.
In response to the demonstrators, the Anambra State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Chief Greg Obi, who was represented by the Public Relations Officer in the Ministry, Mr Henry Nwasike, urged the people to stick to peace in search of results to their agitation, assuring that the government would look into the issues raised and find a lasting solution to the disagreements.
