…protest against the exclusion of women from the election
Ndiowu community in Orumba North Local Government Area of Anambra State, has urged Governor Chukwuma Soludo to as a matter of urgency extend the date for the Community’s Igweship election scheduled for Monday, January, 12, 2026 to avert a looming crisis.
They called for the election to be postponed to Easter period to allow tensions calm because doing so now may permanently shatter the peace and unity prevalent in the community at the moment.
Angel Network News (ANN) reports that
the indigenes of the community took this position, shortly after a peaceful protest against the exclusion of women from the election, and the proposed use of secret ballot voting system in contravention of the constitution of the community.
Their protest they also said revolves around the alledged plan by the State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Hon Nwabunwanne Collins to conduct Igweship election (Eze Ndiowu) against the constitution of the town on Monday, January 12th, 2026.
During a town hall meeting held on Saturday with representatives from the offfice of the commissioner, the women, youths and the aged protested against government’s insistence that the election must hold on Monday, January 12, as against the wishes and preference of the indegenes.
Speaking in a media briefing at the Town hall on Sunday, the former President General of Ndiowu Development Union, Chief Chike Emenike, appealed to Soludo to urgently intervene to avoid break down of law and order ahead of the planned Igweship election which he said was to be contested between Barrister Ogochukwu Nwankwo, Mr Onyeka Nwafor, Onyeka Kanu, Mr Obuneme Okeke and Chief Chibuzor Okeke.
Chief Emenike, expressed fears that the community would be engulfed in crises of unimaginable dimensions if the government through the State Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters and Orumba North Council Authority, refused to postpone the election day to 2026 Easter day celebration as unanimously agreed by the community.
According to the PG, the Monday, January 12th, 2026 scheduled day for the election as fixed by the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy matters under the leadership of Hon. Tony Collins Nwabunwanne, which he stressed was not in line with the government’s properly gazetted community constitution would lead to chaos .
“It has never happened since the creation of Ndiowu community where Igweship election is held outside the constitution of the town with secret ballot formula and the disenfranchisement of women in electoral process.
“Our last traditional ruler died 11-years ago and we don’t want someone who is based in Abuja, Lagos, Calabar or Port Harcourt to be our traditional ruler. If the State Government goes ahead with the plan to conduct the Igweship election that means they are imposing a Monarch against us and the gods of the land.
“We are peace loving people. We don’t want our community to be on fire. We want Governor Soludo to urgently intervene by calling his Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy matters, Hon Tony Collins Nwabunwanne and the Executive Chairman of Orumba North Council Area, Mr Casmir to order and respect the wishes of Ndiowu people by shifting the election to 2026 Easter day celebration as generally agreed by the community”, Emenike said.
The President General argued that the new day will enable the community to properly inform sons and daughters of the town residing outside the state about the agreed new date.
In their separate speeches, Ndiowu women leader, Lady Ifeyinwa Okafor and her Youth counterpart, Comrade Onyeka Okeke, threatened to bycoot the process, if the government fails to cancel the election and postpone it to appropriate time suitable for the members of the community to participate in the electoral procesess.
