Picture: Anambra State House of Assembly
By Ebuka Onyekwelu, Ph.D
The Anambra State House of Assembly has commended Governor Charles Chukwuma Soludo, CFR, for his timely intervention in the crisis between Amaeze Aguleri in Anambra East Local Government Area and Umuoba Anam in Anambra West, which claimed at least three lives.
The commendation followed a motion sponsored by Hon. Obi Nweke, representing Anambra East State Constituency, and seconded by Hon. Patrick Udoba, representing Anambra West State Constituency.
The House unanimously commended Soludo’s intervention while calling for a permanent solution to the recurrent violence in the affected communities.
Moving the motion, Nweke said violent confrontations involving communities in Anambra East and West LGAs dated back more than a century.
“Violence is prevalent in the communities and dates back to over a century ago,” he said.
He recalled the intervention of former President Olusegun Obasanjo in the violent conflict between Umueri and Aguleri in 1999, noting that the former president personally visited the communities at the time.
Nweke said the latest clash was relatively short-lived because of Soludo’s swift intervention.
“About three lives were lost. If not for Mr. Governor’s intervention, it would have snowballed into something more disastrous,” he said, urging the governor to sustain his intervention to ensure lasting peace.
Supporting the motion, the Majority Leader of the House, Hon. Ikenna Ofodeme, said the crisis was largely connected to boundary disagreements and communal land disputes.
He noted that similar conflicts had occurred in other parts of Anambra State over land-related disagreements and could be resolved through civil court processes rather than violence.
Ofodeme also called for accountability, insisting that those responsible for organising or sponsoring violence must face the consequences.
“People must be held liable. Those involved in organizing this war must be decisively dealt with. This approach (violence) is unacceptable,” he said.
Also contributing to the debate, Hon. Jude Umennajiego and Hon. Jude Akpua commended the governor for his urgent intervention and called for punitive measures against sponsors of the violence, as well as community leaders found culpable.
The lawmakers stressed the need for all parties to embrace dialogue and lawful mechanisms for resolving disputes to prevent further loss of lives and destruction of property.
Tags: Anambra Assembly, Soludo, Aguleri–Umuoba Anam Crisis
