BY CHUKS COLLINS, AWKA
THE Isiagu Community in Awka South Local Council of Anambra State has issued a seven-day ultimatum to one Patrick Emeka Nwabueze, a retired professor of Theatre/Film Studies and native of Awka, the state capital, to publish a retraction and also tender an apology over his recent media publication casting the community and its leadership in bad light as fraudsters and land sharks.
Addressing select journalists at the community’s central square, called Ogbo Obodobo, at a press briefing by the Isiagu Community Union, in conjunction with its Lands Committee, headed by Mr. Sunday Ozumba, and President General, Mr. Udochukwu Nnebedum, the community insisted that its leadership knows nothing about the land in question, as it never their mandate.
It described the issue “as purely a private land transaction between Nwabueze and Nwandelekwe Nwosi Family (the Christian Nwosu, aka Ozonnia) that went smoothly for years until a faceless speculator got involved.
The transaction, according to a report by the Land Arbitration Committee Chairman, Ozumba, and his Secretary, Sir Ben Nwankwo, was between Nwabueze and Nwandelekwe family.
Nwankwo, who is also the palace’s Legal Adviser/Secretary, stated that the said land was located and bounded by other parcels of lands belonging to other families, including Nweke Ube/Anagor and Ekwunife families, adding that the deal was done and perfected in 2020 without any perceived or reported rancour and the community was never informed or brought into the picture until they had a misunderstanding.
Incidentally, the land committee, according to Ozumba, only comes into any land transaction in the community to authenticate true ownership or on boundary disputes, especially where any of the parties involved is not a native of Isiagu.
Ozumba stated that his committee knows nothing about any amount of money being mentioned in the particular instance, “because we do not handle or deal on money issues at all.
“My committee, just like in the present instance, is often oblivious of the transactions or details therein, if the parties remain aloof or sidestep us.
“It’s only when they run into rough weather that they approach the committee.”
Nnebedum stressed the need for Nwabueze to immediately remedy the wild accusations against his community with a retraction and apology within seven days or meet the community in court.
He regretted that the offensive publication has put the community’s sons and daughters globally, especially their monarch, HRH, Igwe Augustine Nwankwo, in bad light, saying effect of the allegations were unimaginable, insisting that neither the monarch, any palace chief nor himself ever dabbled into land transactions.
He said it was indeed suspicious that neither Nwabueze nor any of his spokespersons bothered to acknowledge refund of the N3million already openly, as he did with other details of the transaction, recalling that they had worked out schedule to complete the refund of the N4million balance between May 17, 2024 and August 17, 2024.
He alleged that the land owners and their agents were arrested and detained, while some were still being detained by the Police.
Ozonnia stated that Nwabueze was instrumental to the delay in the refund process, as he initially refused to take back his money, insisting on being provided an alternative location since the initial site was encumbered.
When a call was put across to Nwabueze, he blamed his former students who came to his aid on learning about his predicament for the current situation.
