In Anambra, 60-year old widow, cries out over alleged oppression by rich neighbour

A 60-year old widow, Agnes Muoneke and her son, Ifeanyi, from Igbuala village, Ifitedunu, have sent a passionate appeal to Governor Willie Obiano, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), the member representing Dunukofia Constituency in the State Assembly, Lawrence Ezeudu and other relevant authorities, to save them from the hands of their rich neighbour, Engr. Godfrey Chukwudi Obinabo, who is oppressing them.

TNC visit and investigation revealed that buildings and farmlands belonging to Muoneke family were allegedly demolished by the accused person, Chukwudi Obinabo, who had put the widow’s son away in prolonged Police detention, following frame-up allegations.

The matter has also caught the attention of the State chapter of the National Human Rights Commission, while Police officers from Ukpo Divisional Police Station had visited the scene, following a formal complaint by the Muoneke family.

A source at the State chapter of the National Human Rights Commission, NHRC, said it was while Ifeanyi Muoneke was in prolonged detention at the CPS Awka, that Obinabo, who had made several but failed attempts to convince Ifeanyi to sell his portions of land, hired some gun-wielding touts and a bulldozer, and maliciously destroyed Ifeanyi Muoneke newly built house, his shop, two shops and farmland owned by his parents.

“He spent almost 4 days at the Police station before he was charged to court for burglary and housebreaking. At the court, the learned Magistrate made an enquiry into the case which made him find out that he was brought to court on wrong count/offence and he now ordered the Police prosecutor to go back to the station and amend the charge to stealing as well as grant Mr Muoneke bail.

“When they went back to Ukpo Police Station and were now perfecting the bail conditions in order to grant him bail, some policemen acting on the directive of the Commissioner of Police came from Area Command Awka with a paper to meet the DPO and after meeting him around 5pm, the DPO ordered the policemen to stop the grant of bail and allowed the policemen from Area Command Awka to take Mr. Ifeanyi Muoneke with them to Area Command Awka from where he was taken to CPS Awka for detention in their cell,” the source said.

Corroborating the report, Mrs Agnes Muoneke said while his son, Ifeanyi, was in over two weeks Police detention, a gang, under the cover of men suspected to be Police, came at night and pulled down the family buildings and destroyed their farmland with economic trees, shooting sporadically to scare people away, after making her family members homeless.

“I and my children are like fugitives in our own community. We do not have any place to lay our heads. We don’t know what we have done wrong to warrant this kind of treatment by our neighbour. I know my God, the God of widows will come to my rescue,” she sobbed.

Narrating his ordeal, Mr. Ifeanyi Muoneke said when the incident happened while he was in detention, his brother, Mmaduabuchi, made a formal complaint to Ifitedunu Town Union.

“Engr Obinabo had approached me to sell the land to him which I refused. I told him that I intend to live on that portion of land and have also started developing it. All of a sudden, they cooked up allegations against me and locked me up for over two weeks. It was while I was away that they perpetrated this act. All I am saying is that government should come into the matter and ensure that justice is done. We don’t have any other person to run to rather than the appeal we are making to relevant authorities to come to our aid,” he said.

When contacted, the President-General of the town, Sir Uchenna Nwoye, acknowledged receiving the complaints by the Muoneke family, regretting that several invitations to the accused, were never honoured.

“I had called the said Obinabo severally on the matter but he didn’t answer my calls nor called back. I later sent an SMS to him, but to no avail. I then referred the matter to the peace committee and which they have invited him on Friday,” the PG said.

Meanwhile, when TNC reached out to the accused person, he said he was on transit and was going to respond to the allegations at a later time.

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