Court order, not Senator Nwoye, halted Nsugbe Igweship election, documents reveal

The disruption of the planned selection of a new traditional ruler for Nsugbe in Anambra East LGA was the result of a court directive, not the intervention of Senator Tony Nwoye, court records obtained at the weekend show.

The clarification comes after the Chairman of the Caretaker Committee set up by the Anambra State Government to manage Nsugbe community affairs, Mr Sunday Attah, accused the Anambra North senator of leading a group to the election venue on Saturday and disrupting the process.

Attah told reporters that no court had barred his committee from conducting the exercise and urged the senator, an indigene of Nsugbe, to “allow peace to reign.”

However, documents from the Awka Judicial Division show that Hon. Justice Jude Obiora, sitting as Vacation Judge 1, issued a preservative order on August 5, 2026, restraining any election or selection of an Igwe for Nsugbe until the substantive case is decided.

The order was issued in Motion No. OT/1192m/2026 filed on July 8, 2026, in connection with Suit No. OT/237/2026. The lead plaintiff is Chukwuma Omenyi, who deposed to the affidavit in support. Other plaintiffs include Okechukwu Arizona Dibua, Uchechukwu Emmanuel Nwalunor, Obichukwu Nwokike and Igwebuike Ado. They instituted the action on their own behalf and on behalf of the Nsugbe Electoral Committee for the selection of Igwe Nsugbe.

Named as defendants are Eugene Ado, Sunday Ado, Sunday Nwoye, Tony Tagbo, Igweze Chinweze, Ikechukwu Nwalunor, Dr. Emeka Ezeazu, Kingsley Mokwe, Obi Christian Ebochie, John Obiora, Felix Okonkwo, Nnamdi Okeke — listed as President-General of Nsugbe Development Union — the Incorporated Trustees of Nsugbe Development Union, Sir Amarachi Franklin Okeke and Nzekwesi John Nweke.

After listening to arguments from counsel on both sides, including Chief Chukwudi Obieze, SAN, for the plaintiffs, and Amarachi P. Nwoye, M.C. Udechukwu, Chris Nweke, C.C. Ofoegbunam and I.I. Orji for various defendants, Justice Obiora declined a broad interlocutory injunction but granted limited preservative orders.

He directed all parties to “maintain the status quo as at July 8, 2026,” the date the suit was filed. Specifically, the judge barred anyone from organising, conducting, supervising or giving effect to any election or selection of the next Igwe of Nsugbe from Ivite Quarter scheduled for August 8, 2026.

The court also ruled that time will not run against Ivite Quarter to produce the next Igwe, and that the rotational turn will not move to another quarter until the dispute is resolved, either amicably or through judgment. The judge added that the orders were “without prejudice” to the court’s eventual decision on the authenticity and interpretation of the community’s competing constitutional documents.

Justice Obiora further ordered an accelerated hearing and directed the parties to file all outstanding processes within the time allowed by court rules.

Following the ruling, the Secretary-General of Nsugbe Development Union (National), Dr. Benedict I. Uzoechina, on August 6, 2026, wrote to the State Director of the Department of State Services. In a letter titled “Forwarding of Enrolled Court Order and Request for Compliance,” received by the DSS on August 7, he urged the security agency to ensure compliance “to avoid any breach of peace in the community.”

Despite the court filing, Attah insisted that because neither the Anambra State Government nor his caretaker committee was listed as a party, the order did not affect their mandate to conduct the selection.

He also said the state Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Tobechukwu Nweke, who hails from Nsugbe, had no role in the committee’s election arrangements.

With the matter now pending before the court, all eyes will be on how quickly the substantive suit is heard and whether the parties reach an out-of-court settlement over Ivite Quarter’s turn to produce the next traditional ruler.