Peace has returned to Amaeze Community, Ishiagu, in Ivo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State after a successful election conducted at the weekend.
Amaeze Community is one of the rich communities blessed in the State with natural minerals.
The mineral-rich community was polarised following incessant bickering by stakeholders of the local government who were battling to install the new leadership of the community.
The leadership crisis in the community led to some stakeholders in the community trading blame and accusations over the killings and destruction of valuable properties in the area after several attempts to conduct the election failed repeatedly, forcing Governor Francis Nwifuru to swing into action.
Governor Nwifuru then directed some ministries in the state, including the Ministries of Border Peace and Conflict Resolution, Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, and Rural Development, to conduct the election for the community and bring lasting peace to the community.
The ministry set up an electoral committee, which conducted the election while the Commissioners of the ministries supervised the election.
The committee was headed by a Catholic Priest, Rev. Fr. Samuel Okoro, with four candidates participating in the election.
Option A4 was used to conduct the exercise, which saw the people of the area queuing behind the candidates of their choice after their accreditation.
Announcing the results of the election, Rev. Fr. Samuel Okoro said, “Christian Okonta garnered 2 votes, Patrick Uchenna had 17 votes, Onyekachi Nweni had 411 votes, and Ogbonna Nweni had 543 votes.
Onyekachi Nweni and Ogbonna Nweni, who are brothers from the same mother and father, were the major contestants in the election.
Both of them enjoined the support of various stakeholders in the Amaeze community and the Ivo local government in general, who were battling for supremacy to produce the new leadership of the community.
Chairman of the Ivo local government area, Chief Emmanuel Aja, hailed the peaceful conduct of the election.
He said, “There is a lot of crisis in Ivo LGA; my number one priority is to bring peace, and today I have achieved that.
“I have brought peace to the Amaeze Community. People died during the community elections because of the kangaroo business they do in periods like this, but now I said no to evil and the people’s mandate must be counted.
“The people must rejoice; we don’t want a situation where people in Abakaliki or anywhere else will be appointed into positions for our communities.
“I’m very happy for the peaceful elections of the Amaeze community. Those who were voted into office today should know that the people who voted for them are looking up to them to perform, and they must be ready to do what people will see.
“I want to appreciate Governor Francis Nwifuru, who insisted that the right thing must be done in this election”.
On his part, Chief Cletus Nkah, Special Assistant to Governor Francis Nwifuru on Internal Security in charge of Ivo LGA, commended the committee for a free and fair election.
He noted that the election was the most peaceful so far in the community and urged those who were elected to ensure the return of peace to the community.
“This is the first time we are having a free and fair election in the Amaeze community. For that, I want to thank the Governor for setting up this committee that conducted this election”.
On the security challenges in Ivo Local Government, he noted that he has hosted all the local vigilantes in the local government with all the security agents in attendance, adding that a lot of things have started changing after the meeting.
Nkah added that he has set up a high-powered committee after the meeting to ensure that the security challenges in the local government are nipped in the bud and warned against politicising the security challenges in the area, as according to him, everybody in the local government is paying the supreme price of the insecurity in the area.
He dismissed the insinuation in some quarters that he is having a running battle with the local government Chairman.
“I don’t have any problem with the Chairman. What I insisted on was that the security architecture of Ivo should be overhauled. Let us reorganise the security architecture of Ivo. I am not having any problem with him; I am only saying let us work hand in hand to make sure that we get the security architecture very right, and if things are not going well, I have to complain, and I am sure everybody is sitting up by now”, he stated.
The newly elected Chairman of Amaeze Community, Ogbonna Nweni, promised to run an all-inclusive administration to bring peace to the community.
“I am promising those who contested with me that I will carry them along, What we did today can be likened to dog play: if you fall for me, I fall for you; if not, the election would have been cancelled.
“We adopted peace in this election, and this peace will bring in the commissioning of projects in no distant time; this peace will follow us all through our tenure in Jesus’ name.
“This is the first time we are having a free and fair election in the Amaeze community, and for that, I want to thank the Governor for setting up this committee that conducted this election”, he stated.
His elder brother, Onyekachi Nweni, said he was happy about the election because the person who won him was his direct younger brother.
“This is Onyekachi Nweni and Ogbonnaya Nweni, and this is what I have been praying for God to do for us. Remember that we are brothers, with the same mother and the same father. So, I have no reason to make trouble for the election.
He called on his supporters to accept the outcome of the election and join hands with the new leadership to move the community forward.
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