The traditional ruler of Orji autonomous community, His Royal Highness, Eze Innocent Opara, whose alleged excesses, inclination to unlawful actions, conduct and attitude, have, on several occasions elicited tension, rancor and acrimony in the area, is presently sitting on a keg of gun powder, as the community has threatened legal action against him for unilaterally dissolving the Comrade Leo Oguike-led Town Union executive, and barring Orji Women Organization, the apex umbrella body of married women in the area from organizing the 2024 Women August meeting like their counterparts from other communities in the state and beyond, among other unlawful actions.
A respected community leader who commented on what he described as “Eze Innocent Opara’s unbridled excesses, penchant for engaging in, encouraging, aiding and abetting disregard for due process, rule of law, equity, justice and fairness, berated the Monarch for always being on the front burner of public discourse for negative reasons that dent the community’s image and project the indigenes in very bad light. Hence, it is time to institute legal action against him with a view to calling him to order”.
Other Stakeholders who spoke in the same vein, wondered why, Eze Opara flagrantly engages in actions that are not only inimical to the development of the community but are also capable of rocking its foundation, pointing out that the community has decided to call him to order by resisting his impunity. Hence they engaged the services of a lawyer to make him understand that he acted beyond his constitutional limits.
Meanwhile, Barr D.I. Ali (Mrs) of Chief FC. Ndukwu and Associates (Ekechi Chambers) with office at No 72 Wetheral Road, Owerri, in a letter dated August, 16, 2024, and addressed to HRH, Eze Dr Innocent Opara, Eze Ugo II of Orji autonomous community, in Owerri North Local Government Area of Imo State, drew the attention of the Monarch to relevant sections of the community’s constitution that make his purported letter of dissolution unlawful, null and ultra vires.
The letter captioned, “YOUR PURPORTED DISSOLUTION OF DEVELOPMENT UNIONS IN ORJI AND THEIR PRESIDENTS GENERAL: A DEMAND FOR A REVIEW OF YOUR POSITION AND WITHDRAWAL OF YOUR LETTER”, reads thus, “we are Solicitors to the appointed registered Trustees of the Orji Development Union (ODU). of Orji Uratta in Owerri North LGA of Imo State.
It is the Instruction of our Clients that in an undated letter titled “Dissolution of Development Unions In Orji and their Presidents General signed by you, Chief Chris Enyi and Chief Chukwuma C. Egbuokporo whose positions are styled as Acting Chairman of Cabinet and Secretary of Royal Cabinet respectively and addressed to the Obilobi Chairman of Orji, wherein you purport to have dissolved the elected President General, Nze Ihejieto Ken Chukwumna (A.K.A. Akanwu) and the appointed President General, Mr. Leo Oguike and their ODU Organizations.
Your said letter by its content, as it relates to the Orji Development Union (ODU) and its Executive/management body led by Mr. Leo Oguike, is illegal, void and of no effect whatsoever. There are two portions of the ODU constitution 2003 wherein you could stand on to dissolve the ODU, The first is the later portion at section 19,12, which by its subject matter appears to be foisted on the said section 19.12. However, a closer look at the provisions therein will yield the obvious interpretation that the portion refers to the dissolution of Executives of the Town Union as a Town Union, as a body, does not have an expiration date.
Even where it is properly determined that the portion of section 19.12 refers to the dissolution of the Executive of the Town Union, the conditions for the Invocation of that section of the ODU constitution was not complied with by you.
Secondly, section 68 of the ODU constitution 2003 which empowers the Eze Ugo to dissolve Town Union or Village Executives in the event of crises must be read subject to the provision of section 19.12 of the constitution which requires 2/3 of the members of the Town Union to forward petitions to the Eze Ugo calling for such dissolution which condition was not complied with by you, You also failed to abide by section 18.5 and 22.4 of the ODU constitution by falling to consult with both the ODU and the Representative Council before taking your recent decision to dissolve the development Unions when there was no extreme emergency as envisaged by section 22,2 of the said constitution.
It is the further instruction of our client that you purport to have called for submission of names from the Village Heads to be used for the reconstitution of the Representative Council when the tenure of the Executive and then Representative Council of the ODU is yet to expire and when no section of that constitution of 2003 empowers your office with such duties, please be guided accordingly as this may lead to deep crises in your Community that result in fresh litigations in Courts.
Moreover, the ODU has since 2022 become an incorporated body and registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) under the Companies and Allied Matters Act (C.A.M.A.]. The Incorporated status of the ODU has virtually removed it and its Appointed Trustees and Executive body or management from such Associations or Unions you could dissolve by flat. Such powers of dissolution are now vested in the Courts, Your purported dissolution of the ODU, and its Management and Trustees must thus be seen to be ultra vires, and accordingly, null.
Further still, your purported dissolution of the ODU will ultimately mean the sweeping away of the Orji Autonomous Community Constitution upon which you were selected, presented and now act as Eze of Orji Community. The absence of that constitution will ultimately, bring your legitimacy to question.
It is in view of the foregoing that we are instructed to advice that you should painstakingly review your Legal position as it relates to our client and accordingly withdraw your said offending letter and its purport. Where you fail, refuse or neglect to accede to the demands of this letter within 14 days of the date of the letter, our clients will have no alternative than to sue you to a court of law to judicially nullify your said letter and actions you may have taken on same. You have been advised.
Please accept the complement of our highest professional regards”.
