Oko Town Union Dissolved Over Controversial Appointment

Anambra State government has sacked the executive members of Oko town union in Orumba-North local government area due to the crisis rocking the community over the appointment of a representative of the area into the Governing Council of the Federal Polytechnic, Oko.

The state commissioner for local government, chieftaincy and community affairs, Hon Tonycollins Nwabunwanne communicated the sack of the executive members of the Oko Peoples Union (OPU) led by Mr Amaechi Okoli as the president-general to the transition committee chairman of Orumba -North local government, Mr Ogechukwu Ekwueme in a letter dated February 26, 2023.

 Titled: “Dissolution of Oko Peoples Union Executive,” the commissioner in the letter explained that the government action was taken to arrest “crisis rocking the Oko community in Orumba-North LGA as regards the town union election of Oko Peoples Union held on the 11th January, 2021”.

The commissioner stated that petitions from stakeholders in the community showed that the election of the town union was marred by protests and that the community had been in crisis since after the leadership came into place.

“After investigation and critical appraisal of the petitions before this office (Ministry of Local Government, Chieftaincy and Community Affairs) , it was revealed that the 11th January, 2021 town union election was marred with crisis and protest at the election venue,” he said.

He stated that the state government has already constituted a caretaker committee to run the OPU, ensure peace in the community and make appropriate arrangements to conduct a free, fair and transparent town election for the community in December, this year.

LEADERSHIP gathered that the sacked OPU executive unilaterally midwifed the appointment of a former member of the House of Representatives, Hon Sopuru Ezeonwuka as a representative of the Oko community without consulting the traditional ruler of the town, Igwe Prof Laz Ekwueme.

It was gathered that Igwe Ekwueme who is younger brother to the late former Vice-president Alex Ekwueme had been having an estranged relationship with the Okopoly management and the Federal Ministry of Education for accepting Ezeonwuka.

In his reaction, Ezeonwuka described the sack of OPU executives by the state  government as illegal, saying, “Even hundred million of Soludo (the Anambra State governor) cannot dissolve OPU.”

He, also, denied that it was the OPU leadership that imposed him as representative of the community in the Okopoly Governing Council, and said it was Oko Peoples Congress.