Lawrence Nwimo, Awka
Anambra State High Court sitting in Awka, Anambra State, has ordered the remand of an Abuja-based businessman and community leader, Chief Dennis Ezebuilo, at Awka Correctional Center till 20th June 2023 for his bail application.
Ezebuilo is one of the claimants to the seat of the Traditional Ruler of Amanuke in Awka North Local Government Area.
He was remanded at the Awka Correctional Center over his inability to appear before the court in the case between him and Inspector General of Police bordering on Ezeship tussle in his community since 2023.
According to the charge sheet marked A/26c/2022, “Denis Ezebuilo had unlawfully on December 31, 2019 with the intention to create communal war, proclaimed himself the Eze-elect of the Community.”
He also, “on December 19, 2019 unlawfully claimed legitimate traditional ruler of Amanuke, just as he portrayed himself as Traditional Ruler of Amanuke Community, offences punishable under section 19 (a) of Traditional Rulers laws No 14 of 2981 of Anambra State.”
After reading the counts of charge to him, he pleaded not guilty to the three-count charge and was remanded for avoiding the court since 2022.
Ordering that the accused be remanded at the correctional center Awka, the presiding judge Hon Justice Charles Okaa, said that the defendant should not be playing with court process.
When defendant’s counsel pleaded that the court should release his client to him and that he would produce him at the next adjourned date, the judge replied that the defendant was not entitled to such benefit.
The case finally adjourned to 20th June for the motion for his bail application.
Reacting to the remand order, his lawyer Kenneth Onyekachi said the court took decision based on the fact that the defendant had been avoiding appearance from court since the charges against him last year.
According to him, he put up a bail application but the court declined it based on what it feels is better for the interest of justice.
“We have agreed to come back on 20th June 2023 to make application for his bail application. Apart from that, we will put our defence that the defendant was duly elected and he is the people’s choice for the throne. All the people around the court and court premises are for the defendant because they elected him as their traditional ruler. He was elected the traditional ruler in the public and not in secret place,” he said .
According to the lawyer, some powerful individuals in the community are not comfortable with him and decided to humiliate the people’s choice.
He also stated that they inherited the case on 14th June (yesterday) and discovered that the defendant had not been properly served throughout.
Onyekachi further said that the former lawyer handling the case had also brought issue of improper service to the defendant.
He said that the defendant who is based in Abuja had not been properly served “and cannot appear when he is not aware of sittings.”
“We also saw in his case file that he has been hospitalised and needed to be monitored by his doctor.
“We could have come up with the medical documents to court but due to the urgency of the sitting today we did not have time to bring them together,” he said .
Reacting, the former President General of the Community, Mr Ejiofor Augustine, said that “what is happening at Amanuke is that some people are intimidating the whole community for their selfish interest.
“Few people are trying to intimidate the defendant who is the people’s choice. The defendant was elected in 2013 as the traditional ruler of Amanuke community and after a year and four months somebody in the government used his influence and brought in another person as the Igwe. We the members of the community are rejecting any other person other than Denis.
“They are using government power against the community,” he said.
According to him, Denis Ezebuilo was elected by the community and crowned the traditional ruler of Amanuke by the oldest man in the community, one Mr Aniemena and on the process of government confirmation, somebody brought in another person as Government’s choice.
