Land dispute: No end in sight for 2 warring Anambra communities

There seems to be no end in sight the land dispute between Umueri and Aguleri communities in Anambra East Local Government Area of Anambra State.

Ikenga Umueri village has faulted the resolutions by some traditional rulers in the local government area on the boundary demarcation between the two communities.

It also said the steps taken by the state government towards resolving the boundary dispute were faulty and urged the government to implement existing white papers on the matter.

The boundary crisis led to the destruction of lives and property in Umueri and Aguleri communities on January 16, prompting the state government to constitute a panel of inquiry to find out the remote and immediate causes of the crisis as well as identify, determine and demarcate the boundaries between the two communities.

Due to the volatile nature of the matter, the panel referred the identification of the boundaries to the traditional rulers of the entire Anambra East Local Government Area.

However, the resolution by the traditional rulers that Eziovele axis will be the boundary between the two communities, was not accepted by the people of Ikenga Umueri who claimed that the said area was an ancient ancestral route linking them with their people living in the riverine areas.

A 95-year-old man in the community, Chief Chibuzor Nnakee, who expressed worry over the latest development, wondered why a committee that is made up of five traditional rulers from Aguleri and one from Umueri will be asked to decide the boundary between the two communities.

Chief Frank Ibegbunam said the resolutions reached by the traditional rulers did not go down well with them as their traditional ruler, Igwe Ben Emeka, who was a member of the committee did not have the approval of the people before agreeing to the said boundary.

Another resident of the area, Comrade Chike Odili, regretted that the land dispute is affecting both farming activities and other developmental ventures in the area.