Anambra Community Divided Over Monarch’s Stool, Calls for Governor’s Intervention

There is an ongoing dispute over the traditional stool in the Azia community in the Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State.

According to DailyPost, the dispute centres around the appointment of Chief Felix Ifeanyimuo as the monarch-elect, a decision that has polarized the community into factions.

Some residents of Azia have expressed their opposition to Ifeanyimuo’s ascension to the throne, prompting a group of elders to stage a protest at the Anambra State Government House.

Naija News reports that they accused the Igwe-elect of holding the community “hostage” and demanded that a fresh election be conducted to resolve the leadership impasse.

Contrary to these protests, Ifeanyimuo, during a press briefing on Friday, dismissed the dissenting elders as “hired people,” accusing them of stirring conflict for personal gain.

According to him, these individuals perceive the resolution of the community’s turmoil as threatening their economic interests, given that they purportedly profit from the persistent unrest.

“Those people you saw were just hired people, you cannot call them elders, They are the main problem of the community and they know that once I’m crowned, their business is gone, because the problem in the community is their only means of livelihood,” Ifeanyimuo explained.

Ifeanyimuo recounted the community’s attempt to elect a monarch nine years ago, which resulted in a tie between him and Prof Titus Eze, making them both Igwe-elects.

Following Eze’s death, Ifeanyimuo remained the sole candidate. However, his path to coronation has been fraught with challenges, including harassment allegations and demands for a new electoral process.

In an effort to restore harmony, the monarch-elect revealed that he had organized a stakeholders’ peace meeting to reconcile differences, particularly with the three individuals believed to be instigating the community’s unrest.

Despite initial agreements, Ifeanyimuo lamented that the peace efforts were undermined by subsequent actions that betrayed the spirit of reconciliation.

Amidst the escalating tensions, Ifeanyimuo has appealed to Anambra State governor, Prof Chukwuma Soludo, to intervene and help restore peace to the community.

He emphasized the urgent need for the governor’s involvement to prevent the situation from descending into violence.