Pete Edochie’s community fingers police in turmoil over land dispute

•His 70 year –old brother bundled to Abuja

By Vincent Ujumadu, Awka

NTEJE, the home of the famous Nollywood actor, Chief Pete Edochie, is in disarray following a protracted land tussle in the area. So far, five persons had been killed and at the last count, about 31 persons from the area were awaiting trial at the prison custody.

The latest incident in the town was the arrest of 18 persons from the area by stern-looking policemen from the Special Anti Robbery Squad, SARS, Abuja. Among the latest victims is Pete Edochie’s brother, Chief Ikechukwu Edochie, a 70 year-old man, who was bundled into a police vehicle on his way to church and no member of his family has been able to communicate with him since the incident took place over a week ago.

Others taken to Abuja along with Edochie were Chief Cyril Nwankwo, Mr. Vincent Okongu, Pastor Vin Nnaemeka, Modilim Nwene, Anthony Ewenike, Dominic Oboh, Sunday Mobi, Paul Aghadinuno,Monday Nwafor and Nwoye Amamchukwu. The rest were Obelagu Mobi, Koife Chukwuemeka, Ogwugwua Nweke, Fidelis Cordi, Ibe Kenneth, Chijioke Anyanti and Uchenna Oraegbunam.

Before the latest arrests, five persons had so far lost their lives in Nteje over the land tussle said to be masterminded by a prominent indigene of the town.

The Nollywood actor, Pete Edochie told Saturday Vanguard in a telephone interview that it was surprising that a 70 year-old man should be accused of kidnapping, which, he said, was the reason given for the arrest, even as nobody had been kidnapped in the area for a very long time.

Edochie said: “What I hear is that some people were plotting our land and I.K was among those who did not want the land speculators to continue.   His immediate younger brother was also arrested by the police and I don’t know why the police is keeping these people in detention indefinitely and kept them incommunicado.”

The president general of Nteje, Mr. David Enuah traced the incessant arrests in the community to the Ezeship dispute, regretting that Nteje has been torn into two factions. While pleading to the two groups to sheath the sword, Enuah said what was happening in his community could not encourage any meaningful development, warning that having money should not be a reason for someone to hold his community to ransom.

He said: “What is happening in Nteje is disheartening and painful. There are no longer young men any longer in Nteje as most of them have fled for fear of being dubbed a kidnapper. What surprised most of us was the decision to arrest people who are above 70 years on the allegation that they are suspected kidnappers.

“We have been doing everything humanly possible to ensure that peace reigned in Nteje, without success and we have resorted to prayers by calling on God to intervene in the matter.”

Enuah said that another worrisome issue was the frequency by which police from Abuja came to arrest people in Nteje. “We have the Zone nine in Umuahia headed by an Assistant Inspector General of Police, , and the Anambra State police command headed by a Commissioner of Police, CP, yet they are bypassed by an Assistant Commissioner of Police, ACP, who is always coming here to intimidate our people with the connivance of an influential person from this town,” he lamented.

The traditional ruler of the town, Igwe Rowland Odegbo, who escaped being arrested during the last visit by the Abuja police, following Governor Willie Obiano’s intervention, has also cried out over the incessant harassment of his people by the police from outside the state, regretting that his community was under police siege.

Igwe Odegbo said the genesis of the land dispute in Nteje was that some people organized themselves and became land speculators, adding that they have been illegally selling communal land for many years.

According to the Monarch, the problem was that they were not making appropriate returns to the villagers, hence the trouble that led to death of three persons on 11th of March this year when two factions involved in the sale of the land clashed.

He also said that even when the military later intervened in the matter to quell the riot, one of the groups attacked the soldiers, leading to the death of one other person whose body is still in the mortuary. He added that another casualty was one of the people dealing on cows in the area, who he described as the latest victim.

Calling on Governor Obiano to set up a panel of inquiry to look into what is happening in Nteje, Igwe Odegbo said: “The major problem we have is that one policeman, who was at the Special Anti Robbery Squad, SARS, Awkuzu and now an Assistant Commissioner of Police in charge of SARS in Abuja, is being used to come into Nteje and arrest people and take them to Abuja without recourse to the Anambra State police command.

“There was even a petition that I, the traditional ruler, should be brought to Abuja and they would have carried me if the Anambra State governor had not intervened. I was addressing a village meeting when the policemen came and said that I was needed in Abuja. However, following the intervention of the governor, they asked me to come at my own time, but I knew that was a face-saving measure on their part.

“When one person was killed recently, the same Abuja SARS came to Nteje and arrested many people who are yet to be released. I don’t know why Abuja SARS should be bypassing Anambra State police command to come and carry people to Abuja. What borders me is that when three people were killed in March, there was a petition to the police, while another group wrote another petition and included me.

“What has been happening here is that petitions have been flying and arrests made indiscriminately. I really don’t understand why our people should be intimidated by a group and trying to rope in the traditional ruler because someone was opposed to my being crowned the Igwe of Nteje.

“Our community needs help because we are under police siege from Abuja.  Those arrested were carried in two buses and taken to Abuja on trumped up charges and I would have been among them if I am not the traditional ruler.”

The royal father suggested that a law should be passed to ensure that police should not come from outside a state police command to arrest people and take them out of that state.

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