The protesters placards
By Jon Egie
The people of Iwhreko community in Ughelli have called on Governor Okowa to urgently come to their rescue as their lives were in danger from threat issued by the Ovie of Ughelli and unprovoked violent attacks by Ekiugbo people.
The save our soul (SOS) call was made by the President-General of Iwhreko community, Mr Godwin Onabedje yesterday while addressing journalists at the community town hall.
He recalled that last week Thursday, Sept 16, Ekiugbo youths ambushed and sporadically shot at Iwhreko youths who were celebrating the Ihenrin culural festival, killed one and wounded many who were in critical condition.
The people then protested the unprovoked attack to the palace of the Ovie, carrying the corpse.
The next day, instead of showing concern over the series of unprovoked attacks by Ekiugbo on Iwhreko people, the king issued a letter commanding the Iwhreko people to cleanse his Palace which he claimed was desecrated by the presence of a corpse.
The letter which was signed by the Ovie royal secretary, Oderohwo Solomon said: “HRM has given you three days to cleanse the Ovie Palace on or before 31st September for bringing a dead body to the gate of the palace, failure to adher to the instruction shall lead to arrest.”
The letter was specifically addressed to six members of the Iwhreko community namely: Onabedje Godwin, Samson Abudu, Mama Gabmas Emariovwore, Mama Patricia Arigo Akpowevwe, Austin Odugbo Okirhieri and Daniel Uloho.
In response, the six took the matter to court and instituted a case in Suit No UHC/152/2021 seeking enforcement of their fundamental human rights and praying the court to declare that among others, the threat of arresting the applicants over the cleansing of the respondent’s Palace was illegal, unconstitutional, unwarranted and a calculated act to infringe the applicants’ fundamental right to personal liberty, dignity of person, freedom of thought, conscience and religion and freedom of movement.
Onabedje said it was consequent upon the court notice that the monarch, in court contempt, mobilized the women from various parts of the kingdom to confront and invoke a curse on the Iwhreko people. But on arrival, the women could not cross over the traditional straws running across the entrance of the community and had to return home.
Iwhreko people in their numbers then gathered at the community hall from where they staged a protest march within the community, calling on Governor Okowa to come to their rescue.
Some of the placards read: We say NO to oppression, We own the land on Iwhreko Market, Iwhreko people’s lives matter, Okowa come to our rescue.
“We cry out to Governor Okowa and to the world to come to our help. A king is supposed not to lie against his subjects, somebody was killed I don’t even know the person, he was not an indigene of Iwhreko and the king is alleging that I desecrated his Palace. Governor Okowa please come to our rescue before we are all killed.”
Contacted to explain the content of the letter signed by him, the royal palace secretary, Oderohwo Solomon said, “I don’t understand the whole thing, I was only directed to write but dropping a dead body at the gate of the Palace is a bad omen”.
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