Featured, Politics
By Victoria Frances
UDOKA Ejiako, president general, PG, of Akwu-Ukwu Improvement Union, Akwu-Ukwu, in Idemili-South Local Government Area of Anambra state, is a Knight of St. Mulumba, KSM, with Enugu sub-Council. Ejiako is described as a terrible character who connived with some boys from the community to wreak havoc on the farms and landed property belonging to St. Pius X Seminary. Realnews learnt that some notable members of Akwu-Ukwu locked him up in Abuja recently for previous financial mismanagement. But a notable politician bailed him out.
Notwithstanding that he is a knight of the Church and sworn to protect it from nefarious attacks, the president general stood by and watched the wanton destruction of the farmlands and property of the Seminary, which was legally acquired. Realnews contacted him on his phone, and he requested that a questionnaire be sent to him so he could take his time to respond, as the case was in court. Two weeks after the questions were sent, he did not respond, even after a reminder was sent. But he was quick to grant an interview to another journalist subsequently, stating that the court barred Reverend Father Celestine Umeh, the rector of the college, from entering the piece of land, but that the Church ignored the court, went in and cultivated, and so, the dissatisfied Youth of Akwu-Ukwu went and destroyed what the seminary planted in consonance with the court order flouted by the church. He also went to court to file an appeal in defence of the youths who destroyed the farmlands.
This development prompted Umeh to state that “Our enemies have gone faster than us to institute a new case, with the PG as their defendant. Our lawyer has just been served, and we are taken unawares. The enemies of the church have gone faster than us to institute a new case, with the PG as their defendant. We are beaten but never allowed to cry.”
Realnews was alerted to the precarious situation at the seminary when it received a distress text from Reverend Father Celestine Umeh, stating that the seminary is in serious trouble.
It was gathered that Akwu-Ukwu Youth, allegedly instructed by Daniel Ogbuefi and led by their Commander Maduabuchukwu Ibe, went about very grievously destroying the Seminary farms and land. The text read: “The destruction is grave. It keeps me restless for about a week now, running for my life because they swear to kill me and any person from the Seminary if we dare come out; they were chanting war songs.”
Realnews gathered that the Church properly acquired the plots of land and registered them properly in the court of law. “Even the ones the Church bought from Mr. Emmanuel Anekwe and Ejike Family about 10 years ago are also being annexed, cutting down plantains and breadfruit seedlings, etc.,” the text stated. Realnews learnt of a rumour that they sold some plots already to an Ozubulu man. Not minding that there are two cases in the court now with respect to the land.
Consequently, the Reverend Father appealed to the president general to call the vigilante and stop the Umuodoliga wing of Akwu-Ukwu Youth, led by Commander Maduabuchukwu Ibe, as instructed by Daniel Ogbuefi to stop them from carrying out the barbaric, criminal, and malicious destruction of the farms of St Pius X Seminary, Akwu-Ukwu, Onitsha, Nigeria. They allegedly used two men called Mr Praise and Songs and Mr Ekeogba, who live at the Owetaluji Estate, he said.
The pleas were not heeded. Consequently, the youth cut down over 3,000 plantain, banana, over 100 breadfruit trees, avocado, ordinary pears, etc. “The destruction is unquantifiable. The area covered over 30 plots of land, including plots of land bought a few years ago from the Ejike family and the Emmanuel Anekwe family,” he said.
“More than this, they inflicted trauma on the entire seminary life, priests, seminarians, and workers. They continue to carry on false propaganda that Seminary land has no legitimate documents. Once more, we must note that the Catholic Church does not wrestle or confiscate land from any people. She acquires whatever land she occupies legitimately. May God touch the hearts of these people who neither know the truth nor desire to know it,” Umeh told Realnews.
The priest recounted how he reported the case to the police, but got no redress. “For 8 days, they criminally trespassed on the seminary farm, destroying all crops, more than 3,000 plantain, banana, breadfruit trees, avocado plants, etc. The police did not stop them, although we petitioned them on the first day and went to the Area Command daily; the PG of Akwu-Ukwu and the vigilante did not stop them.
“The Seminary family: priests, seminarians, and workers wanted to intervene, but it was risky to fight those armed with knives and clubs. They even threatened to kill us. So we went back to the police, who said, “Do not take the law into your hands; they did nothing.”
Realnews reports that the destruction of the farm land took place despite the fact that the case is being heard in court. “They preempted the case in court as they did in 2022 when they attacked the Seminary first,” the priest said.
According to him, the Seminary came to Akwu-Ukwu in 1989; all land documents and surveys were completed and signed in 1992 by Igwe Thomas Oforkaja. “We have these documents,” he said.
He said that part of their anger, as they complained, is that the Seminary did not construct and tar the roads in Akwu-Ukwu, that the seminary did not bring them electricity, etc. But they waited until all the elders who endorsed the “Deed of Conveyance” passed on. But we have just one person remaining.”
At the time of the investigation, on March 29, Realnews gathered that the youths went to the land, and they started burning the places they had cleared and plotted out, maybe to begin construction.
“I alerted the police, and the Area Commander asked me not to go, that I should not take the law into my own hands. Yet he refused to send his policemen to arrest those men.
“We already paid their mobilisation fees for their vehicle and petrol to be used. Today is the 9th day since I started reporting to them on a daily basis. Their Area Command is about 4 minutes drive from the seminary.
“Madam, what do you think is holding them from coming? Could it be that our enemies have long legs? We are going back to court in May, but shall we stand at a distance and watch them destroy our livelihood in this moment of difficulty in society?” he said.
Realnews gathered that the police did not go at all, although the Seminary facilitated the process for the police to go and stop the wanton destruction. The priest recalled that “Even the DPO has not come here. I heard from a reliable source that he is aware that they sold the seminary land. And Daniel Ogbuefi, the land grabber, is his friend. The land grabbers entered our farm again yesterday. The seminary called the Area Commander.” He was told the seminary would be forced to take the law into its own hands. But the DPO cautioned and warned them not to take the law into their own hands. “I asked what he wants me to do. He said that he is inviting the PG today at 12:00 noon. I asked why he had not invited me to the meeting, and he asked me to wait until he calls me. It is 1.19 pm now. He has not called me.”Also, Umeh
said: “Since the beginning of this problem as I complained to the police on 21.04.2026 until today 12.05.2026, the Area Commander is sitting on our petition, no arrests have been made – (not withstanding that we paid for fueling the police vehicle for their personnel), the Police IPO has never visited the site of the mayhem, there has been no interviews and no prosecution of the case. All that the Area Commander instructed me was: “Do not take the law into your own hands.” Is this his way to run the country?
Contacted, Mike Anaude, area commander of the Police Area Command, Oraifite, Anambra State, told Realnews that they summoned the PG to bring the youth who destroyed the farms on Friday, May 8, and also invited the Seminary to come for a peaceful resolution of the crisis.
Only time will tell when the police will move to stop the wanton destruction of property and farmland belonging to the St. Pius X Seminary, masterminded by the president general of the Akwa-Ukwu Improvement Union, who is also a Knight of the St Mulumba of the Catholic Church.
Video
A.I
May 12, 2026
Tags: Commander Maduabuchukwu Ibe Daniel Ogbuefi Mike Anaude Mr. Emmanuel Anekwe UDOKA Ejiako Victoria Frances