From Jude Chinedu, Enugu
The traditional ruler of Ihekwuenu Aku community in Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area of Enugu State, Igwe Christopher Okwor, has reacted to the accusation that he was behind the demolition of a 65-year-old man’s house in his community.
Igwe Christopher Okwor said that the visually impaired man, identified as Anibeze Nnadi, was only used as a bait by those who had vowed to frustrate his leadership of the community and take away his ancestral land.
Recall that it was reported that a two-bedroom bungalow being built for a visually impaired man by a philanthropist was demolished by the traditional ruler.
The victim who is not yet married and without a child had explained that, “It was out of pity that Ezemagu asked me to show him a place so he can build a house for me because the present place I am living is one-room mud house with a leaky roof.”
However, Igwe Okwor said that Ezemagu, in his land grabbing ploy, went ahead to erect the building for the blind man in a land which was in contention just to whip up public sentiment
Okwor said that the structure in question was being built inside his compound by Ezemagu as a revenge for his stopping his land grabbing activities in the community.
Documents sighted by Daily Sun indicated that Ezemagu’s family in suit number 0G/7/2019 claimed that the traditional ruler encroached on their family land. Igwe Okwor however claimed that it was the same spot which was in contention and in court that the building was erected.
The traditional ruler wondered how they turned around to ascribe ownership of the same land to the blind man.
He said that, “The virtually impaired man was never a party to the suit instituted by Ezemagu family’s ownership claim of the land neither does he own any land close the the area.”
He alleged that the same Ezemagu had assaulted him and members of his family in 2019 because he adjudicated in a case bothering on his encroachment on people’s land revealing that he had filed several petitions to the state government and security agencies against Ezemagu’s land grabbing activities in the community.
In his response, Mr Nnamdi Ezemagu said that the only reason why the traditional ruler was mentioning his name was because he had resisted his attempts to grab peoples land in the community.
“He had said that as the traditional ruler, all the lands in the community belongs to him. As a lawyer I cannot allow him to do so. The land where the building was demolished was not the same land which is in court. That land is not in contention between anybody and it is not in court anywhere in Nigeria.
“The one in court is suit number OG/7/2019 where he encroached on my own family land. That land where the building was demolished belongs to the family of Anibeze Nnadi Ozor. The land in question is not a subject of litigation anywhere in Nigeria.”