Lawrence Nwimo, Awka
All is not well in Abba, Njikoka Local Government Area of Anambra State, as the community has been torn apart by a Town Union leadership crisis.
The people have called on the state government to wade into the matter to avert the looming danger that could lead to bloodshed and loss of lives.
Recently, a bloody clash was averted in the community on Wednesday afterEaster, as operatives of Operations Udo Ga-Achi tried to stop what looked like a wedding ceremony at Ire village of the community from going on.
A Mitsubishi bus belonging to the Abba Vigilante Group was seen with broken glasses while it was leaving the venue.
The incident which was captured in a viral video occurred barely a day after the police reportedly foiled a peaceful protest organized by some youths of the community against their President General.
Ire village, one of the four villages in Abba, in a letter dated 14th April 2025, had announced its decision to dissociate itself from what they described as “illegal caretaker President General of Abba Town Union,” a move Ire Solidarity Union Chairman, Ugochukwu Atusiuba, said followed the PG’s earlier announcement that “his leadership would no longer recognize or deal with the Ire village.”
Ikengaonline learned that the dispute deepened after the Ire Union challenged the PG’s decision to unseat Mr. Ikechukwu Egbe as Chairman of Iruokpala quarters of Ire village and ban him from holding positions in the community for 10 years.
The Ire chairman claimed that the ban was due to Egbe’s outspoken criticism of Alex Ekwuagana’s continued stay in power as Caretaker PG, adding that it was the ban that the opposition leaned on to suspend Egbe as the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) ward II chairman in the area.
“Egbe was agitating over the PG’s illegal stay in office. They conspired to ban him and suspend him from his position as the APGA ward II chairman, the ward of the member representing Njikoka II Constituency, Honourable Jude Akpua,” Atusiuba said.
Atusiuba claimed that the PG has announced that any Ire individual holding ceremony in Abba should bypass the village structure and obtain clearance at the town level instead.
He said the Ire village leadership has countermanded the directive, stating that any Ire individual hosting a ceremony should obtain clearance solely from the village and proceed with the event without interference.
Atusiuba said the Ire village leadership has also announced the formation of its own security unit and declared its readiness to resist the PG’s attempts to operate within the village.
According to him, “a family in Ire held a funeral ceremony, and instead of Abba and ATU flag, a different flag written “Ire Village Abba” was seen hanging on the gate in a video later shared online.
“On Easter Wednesday, another event was held in Ire village, and members of Abba Vigilante Group and Operation Udo Ga-Achi were mobilized to the venue. It was resistance put up by the youths of Ire village that led to the withdrawal of the Abba Vigilante Group and Operation Udo Ga-Achi from the event.”
Moved by this, the PG was alleged to have announced N100,000 fine against Ifemelumma Age Grade Abba for attending a ceremony where ATU flag was not seen, and another N100,000 fine against the member of the age grade in the family that held the event.
It was further reported that the PG went further to remind Abba people of provisions of the constitution they would be violating if they failed to hold an event without obtaining clearance from the town level.
When contacted, the President General of Abba Town Union, Mr Allex Ekwuagana, declined to comment on the viral video saying: “I do not want to comment on any video trending online.”
When asked about other claims raised by Ire village chairman, the PG asked the reporter to visit the ministry of Local Government Affairs and Chieftaincy Matters to ascertain the legality of his leadership.
“The person that paid you to write should direct you to go to the ministry of local government and chieftaincy matters and ask them these questions. If anybody is occupying any post illegally, then the ministry should be aware.”
On the alleged suspension of the APGA Abba ward II chairman, he said: “I’m not a member of APGA and if anybody is removed from the party, that person should know why.”
He said there is nothing like asking people to obtain clearance or pay money to be able to host any occasion in Abba.
However, effort made to get the reaction of the Commissioner for Local Government & Chieftaincy Affairs, Tony Collins Nwabunwanne, at the point of filing this report proved futile, as his number was not reachable.
