The small town of Ifitedunu in Dunukofia Local Government Area of Anambra State is at daggers drawn following the manner in which its Town Union leadership is handling the N20 million expected grant from Governor Willie Obiano’s government.

The grant is the money promised by the governor to all the communities in the state for community development to help give them a sense of belonging.

The governor had on the day of announcing the scheme directed that each community’s proposal for the project they desire to embark on must be accompanied with signatories of the traditional ruler and that of the President-General of the community with a clause that any community without a traditional ruler should accord the right of signatory to the President-General with stakeholders also appending their signatures before submission to the office of the Commissioner for Local government, Chieftaincy and Town Union matters.

However, the President General of Ifitedunu, Chief Samuel Nweke has been accused of sidelining the traditional ruler of the community, HRH. Igwe Emeka Ilouno despite his being alive and well by manipulating a letter written for intent for assessing the money.

The President General has also been accused by the town Union’s stakeholders of falsifying the signature of their traditional ruler, an action that has hitherto led to the dropping of the town from benefiting from the N20 million development project.

The community stakeholders have written a petition against the PG to the state governor through the Special Adviser to the Governor on Chieftaincy and Town Union Matters, Hon. Ikechukwu Onyeabo, and signed by the Vice-President General of the town, Sir Uchenna Nwoye Oragwuncha, the Secretary General, Barr. Uche Nwoye, the Assistant Financial Secretary, Pastor Walter Muodili and the PRO, Mr. Josephat Nwobi.

The petition which was made available to New Telegraph yesterday accused the town’s PG of complexities and constituting a cog to peace in the community through his actions.

The letter which was copied to the Anambra State Association of Town Unions (ASATU), the traditional ruler of Ifitedunu, HRH Igwe Emeka Ilouno and Member Representing Dunukofia Constituency in the State House of Assembly, Hon. Lawrence Ezeudu read in part: “We the aggrieved members of the Ifitedunu Town Union on behalf of the entire people of Ifitedunu community , write to inform you of the excesses of Chief Samuel Nweke , the incumbent President-General of the Ifitedunu Town Union (I.T.U) which consists of acts capable of undermining the relative peace and tranquility our beloved town has enjoyed in the previous years and which acts are ultra vires to the constitution of Ifitedunu Town Union.

“Such acts being inconsistent with the clear and express provisions of Ifitedunu Town Union (ITU) Constitution.

“The President-General has been taking major and crucial decisions affecting our community without deliberating such issues with the members of the executives of Ifitedunu Town Union (ITU). For instance, he single handedly appointed one Evangelist Jasper Azodo as the patron of ITU without following the laid-down procedure of such appointment as provided under Article 16E of ITU Constitution, 2000.

“The President General, in flagrant violation to the constitution of Ifitedunu Town Union, leased a portion of the Civic Centre land belonging to the ITU to an individual after summoning an emergency meeting of the executive council meeting without referring the matter to the general meeting for ratification as provided for under Article 24of the ITU constitution.

“The President-General has usurped the duties of the other elected officers under the constitution of ITU as provided under article 15C and 15E respectively, which provided for the functions of the Secretary-General and the Financial-Secretary respectively.

“The President-General has denied the Secretary-General access to the minutes of the executive meeting and has kept same under his custody after same must have been typed and signed.

“The President-General has written letters which require both his signature and that of the Secretary and signed same single handedly. For instance, he single-handedly wrote a letter to the various Age Grades in the community mandating them to donate 1000 pieces of block in which letter he claimed that was the decision of the Executive Committee when, in fact, he has not summoned any executive meeting of ITU for more than two months now as provided under Article 25 (g) of the constitution of ITU. A copy of the said letter is hereby annexed herewith.”

They further alleged that all his acts are in violation of laid down rules and gross violation of provisions of the Ifitedunu constitution, hence, the community is prone to experience chaos and breakdown of law and order if nothing is done urgently.

•Photo shows Governor Obiano.

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