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
Maduako Igbokwe I Thursday, June 15, 2023
AWKA, Nigeria – Anambra State High Court sitting in Awka has remanded Chief Denis Ezebuilo in the Awka Correctional Center till 15th June 2023 for his bail application.
Ezebuilo, one of the claimants to the Traditional Ruler’s stool of Amanuke Community , Awka North was remanded for not appearing in the case between him and Inspector General of Police in a case bordering on Ezeship tussle in his community, Amanuke, Awka North, since 2023.
According to the charge sheet No A/26c/2022, Denis Ezebuilo had with the intention to unlawfully create communal war proclaimed himself the Eze elect of Amanuke Community, on 19th day of December 2019 and claimed the legitimate traditional ruler of Amanuke and also on 19th December 2019 portrayed himself as the Traditional Ruler of Amanuke Community and thereby committed offences punishable under section 19 (a) of Traditional Rulers laws No 14 of 2981 of Anambra State.
After reading the charges to him, he pleaded not guilty to three count charges and was remanded for avoiding the court since 2022.
Remanding him in the correctional center Awka Anambra State, the presiding judge Hon Justice Charles Okaa, said that the defendant cannot be playing with court process.
When defendant counsel pleaded that the court should release Ezebuilo to him and that he will produce him at the next adjourning date , the judge replied that the defendant was not entitled to such benefit, having defied the court in the past.
The case was finally adjourned to 20th June for motion for his bail application.
Reacting to remand order,his lawyer Kenneth Onyekachi said the court took the decision based on the fact that the defendant had been avoiding appearance from court since the charges were filed against him last year.
According to him, he put up a bail application but the court declined based on what it feels is better in the interest of justice.
” We have agreed to come back on 20th June 2023 to make application for his bail. Apart from that, we will put up a defence that the defendant was duly elected and he is the people 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 him, only that some powerful individuals in the community are not comfortable with him and decided to humiliate the people choice. He also stated that they inherited the case on 14th June ‘yesterday’ and discovered that the defendant had not been properly severed 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 in Abuja has 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 hospitalized and needed to be monitored by 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 .
Also reacting,the former President General of the community, Mr Ejiofor Augustine said that what is happening in 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 in the process of government’s confirmation, some body brought in another person as government choice.
He stated that government does not give any community a traditional ruler in Igbo land .
