Sources claimed that the royal father on Wednesday 20th April buried certain substances suspected to be charms at the main gate of the palace, a development which did not go down well with other family members who are also residents of the royal compound.
As part of the efforts to get to the root of the matter, some youths in the community on Saturday 23rd April gathered in their good number as early as 7.00am to exhume the substance which they claimed is meant to subject the people especially the youths to perpetual bondage.
Law enforcement agents and media practitioners also rushed to the palace to catch a glimpse of what the youths would unearth at the palace. They started by spraying substances suspected alcoholic drink on the spot where the suspected charms were buried after which they commenced digging.
It did not take long before the crowd that gathered started covering their nose due to stench emanating from the shallow pit the youths were digging, some indeed ran away from the vicinity because the smell was very thick.
Unperturbed by the smell, the youths continued digging until a goat whose limbs and mouth was tied with black cloth, a tied cock and other substance suspected to the charm rapped in green leaves were exhumed which led to the shout of abomination among them.
Ugochukwu Umezoke who is a prince but said he would not like to be addressed as such because of the shame the royal father has brougth on the family said he had to return home from his Lagos base to see for himself what was reported to him described the incident as very shameful and a big disgrace to the family.
"Last Wednesday, at a time when everybody must have gone to work, my mother's house help, Peter, was instructed to go and cut grass in front of our compound, after doing it for some time, he got tired and decided to rest inside the Obi, not long after he went in there, he saw the Igwe and three other persons approaching the gate with a live goat, cock and other materials. After making some incantations, the boy said who is about 13years old said that they tied the goat and the cock and then buried same alive.
"When they discovered that they were not alone as expected, they attempted to push the boy away but he insisted that he had to finish the task he was asked to perform before leaving and the Igwe at that point asked them to leave the boy alone that he is just a little boy who knows nothing.
"The boy eventually reported the matter to my mother who became so worried and send for me and my younger brother who is a Rev Fr, then I decided to come back home from Lagos where I am based to do something about it, if not I know my mother will not be at peace and that is not good for her considering her age.
"My Rev Fr brother actually called the Igwe over the matter but he told him he was in Abuja but leaving for America the following day. He strictly instructed my brother not to do anything about what he did until he comes back from America." Ugochukwu Ezeoke explained.
He said that the family had to look for specialists who came around in company of the youths to exhume the charms which he claimed is meant to keep the family members perpetually on the ground and by extension anyone that passes through the royal gate.
"I am particularly pained because it was just in 1999 that we did a family cleansing, Rev Fr David did that for us. The entire Ezeoke family fasted and prayed and even paid heavily for the cleansing so that our family can be free but it beats my imagination that His Majesty will want to plunge us back to backwardness and darkness again with his charms. I tell you something, we have not even completed the process of cleansing since then to tell you how difficult the process of family cleansing is.
"We have dug it out, it is no longer an ear say, we have seen the tied he-goat, tied cock and other things, please help us ask Igwe what he intends to achieve by burying those things at the center of the central gate of the royal family compound. Why didn't he just bury the things in his own gate?"
Asked if there is a family tussle, Ugochukwu said "I am telling you in God's name that the family is not struggling with him for anything, we are all supportive of his reign, even when his father died in 1979, we have other eminently qualified uncles like the former Speaker of House of Representatives, Rt Hon Edwin Umezoke who could have used his vast connection to take the throne but they all left the throne for him.
He also alleged high handedness and arbitrariness on the part of the Igwe as the people of the town who normally trooped to the palace in the days of the former Igwe have since stopped paying homage to the incumbent.
A youth leader in the community, Nkechi Nnabugwu in anger asked the Umezoke royal family to present another royal seed for the throne as the youths are no longer ready to stomach the atrocities and abominations that has become the hallmark of Igwe Amichi. She also pointed out that since the Igwe is resident in America, it is doubtful if he can conveniently perform is roles as the royal father of the ancient town. "The youths are not asking the Umezoke royal family to surrender the throne to another family but they should look inward and give us someone who is fit for the responsibility of a royal father and not a ritualist."
Nnabugwu said the developments where charms are exhumed in the palace is not a good reputation for the people of Amichi.
Another family member, Prince Afam Umezoke in his own comment said he was happy that many youths witnessed the process of exhuming the foul smelling ritual substances in the palace. He said that it was God that exposed the Igwe who chose in a modern day to do what his forefathers did not do in their days.
"I joined these youths to exhume this deadly things because the Igwe has been doing this kind of things in his place, now he has taken it further by bringing his evil act to the central gate of the royal family, if we don't check him now, he may one day bury human being alive here and we don't want that to happen."
Asked to comment on the demands of the youths of the town for another Igwe, Prince Afam Umezoke said that if the entire Amichi people is united on that demand, the family will not hesitate to give them another one who is not a ritualist. He said that the town can not afford any backward tendency now that the town is forging a progressives front in the newly constituted Amichi Development Union(ADU).
Meanwhile another royal family member who will not want his name in print however absolved Igwe Oforbuike Ezeoke of any wrong doing, noting that the Igwe did the sacrifice to wad off premature death among the Umuada of the community as there are reports of premature and untimely death among the women. He said it is only an irresponsible royal father that will fold his hands and allow his subjects die prematurely without doing anything to save the situation.
All attempts to reach the Igwe on his international line provided by his family members did not yield any positive dividends.
Pix 1: The specialist pouring gin on the spot before excavation began
Pix 2: Exhumed blindfolded and tied goat, tied cock and other substance suspected to be charms.
Pix 3: Ugochukwu Umezoke
Pix 4: Prince Afam Umezoke
unedited from Isaac Ojo
Royal Rumble in Amichi: As Igwe Oforbuike accused of being a ritualist
Reviewed by Unknown
on
Tuesday, May 24, 2016
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Reviewed by Unknown
on
Tuesday, May 24, 2016
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