Olaiogboji petitions Och’Idoma, others over invasion of Otukpa community by Ward Head

Olaiogboji community in Ogbadibo LGA of Beue State has petitioned the Idoma Area Traditional Council and other traditional rulers in the area over the alleged invasion of their community by the district head of Ai-Oono community, Chief Jacob Obaa Utaji.

The community in a petition signed by its lawyer, Sunday A. Ijiga Esq, claimed that Chief Utaji had sometime in 2013 filed a writ of summons against 14 members of Olaiogboji community at the Upper Area Court Otukpa; asking residents of the area to vacate their ancestral homes they have occupied for over 300 years.

Ijiga, in the petition,urged the Och’Idoma and other leaders from the area to intervene so as to forestall the looming crisis.

The petition reads below.

2nd March 2022
The Paramount Ruler,
Idoma Area Traditional Council,
His Royal Highness (HRH),
The Oche’ Idoma V,
Otukpo,
Benue State.

Sir,
PETITION AGAINST THE WARD HEAD OF AI’OONO WARD 1 OTUKPA (CHIEF JACOB OBAA UTAJI); FOR ACTS OF VIOLENT INVASION ON THE PEOPLE OF OLAIOGBOJI COMMUNITY IN AI’OONO WARD 2; OTUKPA DISTRICT, OGBADIBO LGA, BENUE STATE.

We are solicitors to HON. AGBO HARRISON OMEFU; CLEMENT ABAH; INALEGWU ANDREW; ELDER GABRIEL A. UKWA and the over five hundred natives of Olaiogboji Community in Otukpa District of Ogbadibo LGA of Benue state (hereinafter called Our Clients) and on whose instructions we enter into this correspondence with you.

The brief of our clients leading to this representation are as follows:
Our clients are the natives and indigenes of OLAIOGBOJI, who have been living peacefully in their ancestral home, known as the OLAIOGBOJI Community in Otukpa District, in Ogbadibo LGA of Benue State for over eight centuries ago.

That on the 13/9/2013; CHIEF JACOB OBAA UTAJI and one other person filed a writ of summons against 14 members of our clients’ Community at the Upper Area Court Otukpa; claiming that our clients and the entire natives of the OLAIOGBOJI community are customary tenants of the OGBEOCHAYI Community and that our clients should as a result, vacate their ancestral home for CHIEF JACOB OBAA UTAJI and his Ogbeochayi Community.

Our clients’ Community (OLAIOGBOJI Community) and the OGBEOCHAYI Community are two neighbouring Communities but belonging to two different wards. While the Ogbeochayi Community is in AI’OONO WARD 1, our clients Community is in AI’OONO WARD 2 which is outside the domain of CHIEF JACOB OBAA UTAJI.

Our clients right from the times of their forebears have inhabited the OLAIOGBOJI Community without challenge from anybody until the year 2013 when CHIEF JACOB OBAA UTAJI and his people came up with the spurious claim that the Olaiogboji land was granted to one ABAH AMEH (Olaiogboji man) by one IDENGERI OKEWU (an Ogbeochayi man).

At the end of the said trial, the Upper Area Court in Otukpa rejected the purported land grant agreement between IDENGERI OKEWU and ABAH AMEH which was the plank of Chief Jacob Obaa Utaji’s claim that our clients are Customary tenants of the Ogbeochayi people.

The court also dismissed the case of the Ogbeochayi people in its entirety. The Certified True Copy (CTC) of the said judgment is attached herewith and marked as “Annexure A” for your perusal.
Chief JACOB OBAA UTAJI and his Ogbeochayi co-representative appealed the judgment in Annexure A above to the High Court, Okpoga. The High Court Okpoga, while affirming that OLAIOGBOJI and OGBEOCHAYI are neighbouring communities, set the boundary of the two communities at OCHITALAFU (doubting tree) based on the common evidence of the two parties. It is interesting to note that the High Court Okpoga also agreed with the Upper Area Court Otukpa on the rejection of the purported land grant agreement between IDENGERI OKEWU and ABAH AMEH which was the plank of Chief Jacob Obaa Utaji’s claim that our clients are Customary tenants of the Ogbeochayi people.

The Certified True Copy (CTC) of the said High Court judgment is attached herewith and marked as “ANNEXURE B”.
Despite the aforementioned positions of the courts, Chief JACOB OBAA UTAJI and his Ogbeochayi people resulted to self-help by orchestrating and fomenting troubles, attacking our Clients on the assumption that by Annexure B above, our Clients are their Customary tenants and must vacate their customary land/community. Chief JACOB OBAA UTAJI and his co-Ogbeochayi representative have even filed another matter at the Upper Area Court Otukpa sometimes in the year 2019 against some selected members of our Clients’ Community; which case was transferred to the Upper Area Court, Okpoga.

The case is still pending at the Upper Area Court Okpoga as we speak, and even Chief Jacob Obaa Utaji gave evidence in the matter on 21/2/2022.
Our clients applied for Writ of possession over their ancestral Community based on the judgments of the two courts. But the new presiding judge of the Upper Area Court Otukpa in his wisdom granted Writ of possession to the Ogbeochayi community in respect of Ogbeochayi boundary and directed Chief Jacob Obaa Utaji and his people to remain on their side of the boundary set at Ochitalafu.

Chief Jacob Obaa Utaji and his people have acted on that writ of possession to even cross their boundary set at Ochilatafu, invade our Clients’ Community, destroy economic trees, kill livestock, loot properties, destroyed houses and maim residents of our clients’ community.
Consequent upon the ugly development, our clients have approached the High Court Okpoga to review the propriety or otherwise of the Writ of possession issued to the Ogbeochayi community instead of our client’s community. Pursuant to which the High court in Okpoga on the 21/2/2022 granted an order restraining all actions predicated on the writ of possession pending the determination of the review. The order of the High Court Okpoga of 21/2/2022 is attached herewith and marked as “ANNEXURE C”. Annexure C has been served on Chief Jacob Obaa Utaji and his co-ogbeochayi representative as well as the Upper Area Court Otukpa since 23/2/2022; yet Chief Jacob Utaji will not stop his violent attack on our clients’ community.

Chief Jacob Utaji as a Traditional Ruler (Head of AI’OONO WARD 1) acts with impunity on his violent attacks on our clients; he recruits thugs from and even outside his Community, personally directs and supervises them to invade our Clients. Of particular mention are the attacks on the 10/2/2022; 19/2/2022; 24/2/2022; 27/2/2022 and 28/2/2022. For specific mention, one Mrs. Antonia Onuh on 28/2/2022 was unconsciously beaten right in her farm by thugs under the direction and supervision of Chief Jacob Obaa Utaji. In all these, the police formations in Ogbadibo LGA; especially the Divisional Police Officer and his men at the police division in Otukpa appear very helpless in calling Chief Jacob Utaji to order or restrain his excesses despite the routine complaints of our Clients.

It is in view of the foregoing that we stand on the express instructions of our Clients to draw your attention to the looming/impending crisis facing the two communities. And as a Royal father, it is the candid belief of our Clients that you have a fatherly role to play so that our Clients are not pushed to the wall; for the consequence may not favour anyone or the general public. Our Clients with all intents and purposes do not pray for this impunity to snowball into the current Russian and Ukrainian episode.

While expressing the confidence of our Clients in the ability of your office to do the needful in bringing the situation under control, may we also extend our esteemed professional regards to the Royal Father.
Yours faithfully,

Sunday A. IJIGA Esq
(Principal Counsel)

Cc:
The First Class Chief; ADA’ ENO‘ONE,
HRH (Engr. George Ede),
The Second Class Chief; ADA’ Ogbadibo,
HRH; Chief Emmanuel Odeh),
The Third Class Chief; The Oche’ Otukpa,
HRH (Sir Sunday Ekele),
The Ward Head, AI’ OONO WARD 2/Ona’ Ogene of AI-OONO, Otukpa,
HRH (Chief Raphael Agada),
The Head, Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Makurdi, Benue state,
The Commissioner of Police, Benue state police command, Makurdi, Benue state,
The Area Commander, Ogbadibo Area Command, Nigerian Police Force,
The Director, State Security Services, Ogbadibo LGA Command, Benue state.
The Divisional Police Officer, Otukpa Division, Nigerian Police Force.
Sirs;
The above for your information and necessary actions.

Sunday A. IJIGA Esq
(Principal Counsel)