By Chuks Collins
Another Anambra community, Umuchukwu/Nkerehi that has been boiling over the years, is presently set to explode if not tactfully managed.
And no one, especially the community leaders, Stakeholders, religious leaders and town Union executive members and the President General,(PG) Emeka Adunchezor would claim not to know or been put on notice.
Adunchezor, despite several unanswered phone calls, text/WhatsApp messages has apparently left things to the whims and caprices of some power merchants who according to our investigations were bent on buying over everything in Umuchukwu.
Incidentally few names have remained recurring in all the crises.
These include Adunchezor who is the PG, Barrister Kenneth Maduka. Dr Godwin Maduka and Hon Emeka Onwusoronye.
The bone of contention appear to be the leadership or who sits on the revered throne of the community as her traditional ruler.
Unfortunately, the PG who was accused of being a mere puppet and benchwarmer has refused to respond to any of the questions put to him by reporters who have been visiting Umuchukwu since the matter became public over the years.
The Madukas were also accused to be evasive. The elder of the two brothers was allegedly accused of trying to impose his views on the community on virtually every issue. This according to the allegations range from the name/renaming of the community, the town Union leadership and now the choice of who becomes the traditional ruler.
While almost all the natives were alleged to have been browbeaten into submission, few people like Mr Onwusoronye have remained resolute, insisting that due process must be followed.
On two occasions, Onwusoronye had gone to court to prevent unlawful acts or breakdown of law and order.
First was holding the election of the new traditional ruler at unusual season in the community’s calendar of important activities and or fixing the date in a hurry.
Sensing danger, he went to court to obtain injunction to grant reasonable time for the information to circulate well for all those interested to get home to participate. This according to information, didnt go down well with those who had planned it that way.
Again, most community in Anambra State has a format of rotation, for equity but in Umuchukwu, funds were alleged to have been use massively to truncate the method.
One of the main gladiators in the struggle for the throne Mr Emeka Onwusoronye, a University don has stood out towards a more peaceful method to resolve the issue to avoid crises or creation of bad blood.
While others including some stakeholders in the community continued to talk tough Onwusoronye visibly prefers dialogue and a roundtable discussion.
He had approached the courts on two different occasions to halt what he saw as a wishy-washy process.
That was why he quickly in a latest Save our Soul letter to Governor Chukwuma Soludo called for his intervention.
Efforts to get the views of the two Maduka brothers were rebuffed. However, efforts have been intensified to get them or their spokesperson to speak on the matter.
But according to Onwusoronye’s letter of March 4, 2026 to Gov Soludo, and the Anambra High Court order dated March 31, 2026 suspending the Igweship selection process fixed for April 6, 2026 or any other subsequent date pending the hearing and determination of Motion on Notice for interlocutory injunction in this matter.
Everything is now put on hold.
Journalists investigations discovered that a section of the community sympathetic to the Madukas allegedly altered the more peaceful rotational method, altered the secret ballot method of voting, while the last Igwe was from their zone of the community, they want to perpetuate that zone permanently on the throne using subterranean methods.
According to a native, Chief ibezie Omeudo, that was an invitation to crisis and anarchy.
