Tension is rising in the Ingle Edumoga Community of Ingle/Okpale Ward, Okpokwu Local Government Area of Benue State, following a dispute over the appointment of the new District Head of Edumoga.
Elders, youths, and other stakeholders from the community have petitioned Governor Hyacinth Iormem Alia, urging him to intervene and halt what they describe as an attempt to undermine the traditional rotational arrangement governing succession to the stool.
In a three-page petition also copied to traditional and political leaders in the area, the community accused its monarch, who chairs the Okpokwu Council of Chiefs, of allegedly orchestrating moves to bypass Ingle Edumoga and install a candidate from another ward that had already taken its turn.
The petitioners, led by the Chairman of Ingle Community, Mr. Gabriel Ugboiyi Ogwuchea; National Matron/Women Leader, Mrs. Elizabeth Ochada; and National Youth Leader, Engr. Joseph Otobo, described the alleged move as “a gross injustice, abuse of traditional authority and a deliberate attempt to subvert the long-standing rotational system of leadership.”
They warned that any attempt to disregard the established rotational arrangement could trigger unrest and undermine peace in Okpokwu Local Government Area and Benue State.
The community claimed their position had been endorsed at an expanded meeting of ward heads held at the palace of the 3rd Class Chief of Edumoga, Chief Ojo Emmanuel Ochechema, where all ward heads unanimously agreed that it is the rightful turn of Ingle Edumoga to produce the next District Head.
The petitioners further levelled allegations of corruption and financial inducements against some traditional authorities, insisting that leadership positions should not be treated as commercial enterprises.
They appealed to Governor Alia to order an independent investigation into the zoning and rotational history of the Edumoga District Head stool and ensure strict adherence to the established rotational principle, allowing only a candidate nominated by Ingle Edumoga.
