Tension is rising in Awka, the capital of Anambra State, following a clash between security operatives and leaders of the Ezinano community over a long-standing land dispute with the neighboring Umuzocha community.
The situation escalated when hundreds of Ezinano community leaders, women, and youths gathered on the disputed land, seemingly to assert ownership. However, heavily armed operatives from the Awkuzu Police Station arrived and ordered them to vacate the area immediately.
One of the Ezinano community leaders stated that a potential violent confrontation was averted due to the swift intervention of the Anambra State Commissioner of Police, Obono Nnaghe Itam, who directed all parties to leave the scene to prevent bloodshed.
The conflict reportedly intensified when the Ezinano community learned that members of the Umuzocha community were constructing perimeter fences and buildings on the contested land, despite an ongoing court case over its ownership.
An Ezinano resident expressed frustration, questioning why the Umuzocha community had involved the police to provide cover for their construction activities on the disputed property. According to him, when Ezinano members arrived on the land, they were ordered by the police to leave or face serious consequences, prompting one of them to urgently call on the Commissioner of Police for intervention.
Mrs. Gloria Chiama, a local farmer, criticized the police's involvement, arguing that the role of law enforcement should be to maintain order, not to interfere in community land disputes. She called on relevant authorities to restrain the police from taking sides in the conflict.
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In response to the tension, the state's Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Tochukwu Ikenga, urged the Ezinano community leaders to formally present their grievances to the police. "If they have any issues, they should come straight to the command," Ikenga stated. He emphasized that the community had the necessary contact details for both the Commissioner of Police and himself and encouraged them to use official channels for lodging complaints.
It is worth recalling that earlier, on September 11, 2024, the elders and leaders of the Ezinano community had filed a petition with the Police Service Commission (PSC), copying the Presidency, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), the Complaint Response Unit of the Police Force Headquarters in Abuja, and the Anambra State Commissioner of Police. The petition accused the police of meddling in the land dispute.
