The Agwa Central Development Union (ACDU) has raised alarm over what it described as the reckless and provocative conduct of the Agwa Central Union (ACU), accusing the group of weaponizing community platforms against perceived opponents.
According to the ACDU in a statement endorsed by its BOT, this brazen overreach poses a direct threat to the fundamental rights of Agwa indigenes, particularly their freedom of association and expression, and is capable of destabilizing the peace and unity the people have long worked to preserve.
The Union lamented that since it unveiled its National Executive Committee (NEC) members, the ACU leadership has been in disarray, resorting to intimidation, unlawful removals of respected leaders from community forums, and even issuing a 72-hour ultimatum to its members.
The ACDU described these actions as not only desperate but also a dangerous attempt to silence dissenting voices and monopolize community affairs in Agwa.
Read Full Statement:
AGWA CENTRAL DEVELOPMENT UNION (ACDU)
ACU’S OVERREACH IS A THREAT TO PEACE AND RIGHTS IN AGWA CLAN
The good people of Agwa, through the leadership of the Agwa Central Development Union (ACDU), strongly condemn the punitive and provocative actions of the so-called Agwa Central Union (ACU) leadership in weaponizing Agwa community platforms. This provocative overreach constitutes a direct threat to the fundamental rights of Agwa people, including their right to freedom of association and expression.
Since we released the list of the National Executive Committee (NEC) members of the ACDU, the ACU leadership has been in a panic mode, resorting to threats. As of the last count, Benson Akunya, the so-called ACU PG, removed the Vice Chairman of Oguta LGA, Hon. Dr. Chima Abiaziem, Hon. Ethelbert Nnanna Nze, former member of the Imo State House of Assembly, former multiple-time local government chairman, Hon. Sir Collins Chibueze Ughalaa, Special Adviser (Public Orientation) to the governor from the Agwa Leaders Forum. Agwa Leaders Forum is not ACU Leaders Forum.
On Tuesday, the ACU issued a statement where they threatened to remove our members and leaders from Agwa platforms if they fail to exit Agwa platforms within 72 hours, ending at 6pm of Thursday, August 21, 2025. This is reckless, to say the least. It is important to note that whereas the ACU threatened punitive measures, they have already removed the Vice Chairman and former House of Assembly member on Saturday, August 17, 2025. This is the same way they inserted the signature of a dead traditional ruler on a document purporting to be the position of Agwa people on state creation. The traditional ruler died on June 6, 2025, whereas the document was dated July 10, 2025.
A few years ago, the rudderless ACU leadership weaponized Agwa platforms by removing dissenting voices on the proposed multi-billion naira Agricultural Processing Zone (APZ) which Governor Hope Uzodimma brought for the development of Agwa and its environs. The ACU leadership called it RUGA and removed those who disagreed with them, tagging them enemies of Agwa.
Sadly, a few days ago, the so-called ACU leadership instructed their woman leader, a civil servant and permanent secretary in Imo State, to call the brand new National Woman Leader of the Agwa Central Development Union (ACDU), Mrs. Loritha Adaure Ihemedu, on the phone and queried her for accepting to serve Agwa people. When she did not get the answers she wanted, she resorted to removing her from the Agwa Women Progressive Platform. Adaure has been an ardent member of the association for over 25 years.
The ACU is rattled by the release of the ACDU NEC list. What would they do when we release the list of the chapters and standing committees?
Before now, the cartel had unleashed their attack dogs on journalists and publishers who performed their professional duties by reporting and publishing our stories in response to the reckless position of the ACU on state creation. A few minutes after the stories went viral, the ACU attack dogs called the Daily Sun correspondent and the publisher of Innonews.com.ng to query and threaten them for publishing our stories. When did Agwa descend this low?
For clarity, the Agwa Women Progressive is not a branch of the ACU. The Agwa Women Progressive was established about 30 years ago by noble women and wives of Agwa extraction, when the current chairman of the National Executive Committee of the Agwa Women Progressive was probably not married to an Agwa man and many members of the ACU were still teenagers. Apart from annexing Agwa Women Progressive, the ACU is also annexing groups like Agwa Daughters and Unique Sisters, and they are heavily levied by the ACU.
We thought that a permanent secretary appointed by Governor Hope Uzodimma a few months ago should be worried that she is leading a community group that is against the governor and incites the people against the governor who appointed her. She seems to be working with the government by the day and joins the opposition by the night. We thought that this would agitate her mind. We never knew that she has graduated to coercing other Agwa women who have the courage to stand tall with the rest of Agwa people and the government to abandon their support and join their opposition against the government of Governor Hope Uzodimma.
In its good days, the Agwa Women Progressive saw great women leaders such as the late Lolo Eunice Ukwu, late Mrs. Sophia Nwagbo, late Mrs Josephine Ogbonna, Mrs. Cordelia Anumaka, late Mrs. Scholastical Nnadika, Ezinne Irene Umezuruike, and late Lolo Rita Nnorom, amongst others. These visionary women leaders contributed in no small measures to the peace and development of Agwa, but ACU now carelessly defecates on their honour and legacies.
The Agwa Women Progressive has a rigorous and expensive membership process. How the ACU now attempts to annexe and monopolise the group is nothing but a provocative overreach.
The ACU is annexing other groups and levying them heavily because it falsely claims to be the apex socio-cultural organization without consideration for our socio-cultural dynamics. In April 2025, the cartel stopped a peaceful rally organised by Agwa people under the auspices of the Agwa Welfare and Trusted Citizens to support the peace initiatives in Agwa and discourage criminal activities. The cartel stopped the peace rally because the group did not take permission from them, and they feared that the peace rally would expose their underbelly. The ACU wants to be the only cock that crows, and they want to run Agwa aground.
We knew that the ACU is an unruly headless mob, but we never knew that they were also soulless. We have restrained ourselves because we gave the traditional rulers in Agwa our commitment in our meetings with them that we will be peaceful in our activities, but the provocative overreach of the ACU in weaponizing Agwa platforms, calling our members and leaders on the phone and threatening them with evictions from platforms that belong to Agwa is capable of igniting crisis and undermining the peace and unity that our community has worked hard for. We cannot accept this going forward.
The ACU’s attempt to silence dissenting voices and control community discussions is an affront to democracy and good governance. We view this action as a reckless endeavour capable of igniting crisis and undermining the peace and unity of our cherished clan.
We therefore call on the ACU leadership to:
1. Immediately cease the weaponization of community platforms and de-escalate the avoidable tensions her leadership is deliberately building up.
2. Respect the rights of Agwa people to freedom of association and expression.
3. Foster an inclusive and respectful environment for community discussions.
4. Note that the argument that the Agwa Leaders Forum was created by them does not make it an ACU platform, and evicting our members and leaders from the group is unacceptable.
5. Note that the ACU does not have the right to monopolise Agwa platforms.
6. The ACU should quickly reinstate our members and leaders removed from Agwa platforms such as Agwa Leaders Forum, no matter who created it, as the association belongs to Agwa leaders, not ACU leaders.
The actions of the ACU leadership are a betrayal of the trust placed on them and a demonstration of disregard for the welfare and rights of Agwa people. We urge all community members to stand together in condemning these actions and demanding accountability from the ACU leadership.
The leadership of the ACDU will not hesitate to take appropriate actions as it deems fit in response to any further provocations from the ACU or their agents.
A word should be enough for the wise.
Signed:
BoT
