Reports of violence at the disputed lands between Chief Nicholas Ogbodo’s Umugwuakum and Etiti, Ngwo communities in Enugu state have been denied by Chief Ogbodo, who is also president-general of the Attakwu/Akwuke community in Enugu state’s Enugu South Local Government Area. The land conflict allegedly escalated to the point of murder, as may be remembered.
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Nevertheless, in a statement that he personally signed and made accessible to journalists in Enugu on Thursday, Ogbodo characterised as “false and malicious” the media-attributed accusation made by Mr. Kenneth Ani and Mr. Alex Amujiogu, who are the president and secretary of the Etiti, Ngwo community, respectively.
In their statement, the two men claimed that on July 12, 2025, youths from Umugwuakum Attakwu/Akwuke had attacked citizens of Etiti Ngwo while conducting a routine inspection of the disputed lands between their communities.
Claiming that no fighting had broken out between the two feuding villages’ teenagers on that particular date, he cast doubt on the assertions made by Etiti Ngwo authorities.
The Etiti Ngwo leaders’ recent outbursts, according to the President General, “are condemnable as they are false, irrational and provocative.” He went on to say that this has shown the leaders’ “outlawry and lack of respect for the Government of Enugu State,” which had warned the two communities not to set foot on the disputed lands until a decision was made by the state government regarding the boundary.
Ogbodo states that the Etiti Ngwo community is the only one capable of explaining the facts surrounding the death of a Ngwo native who was on the disputed territory that the Enugu State Government had forbidden admission to.
Ironically, the Etiti Ngwo leaders’ charge is unfounded because the youngsters of Umugwuakum Attakwu/Akwuke were at their monthly meeting on the day of the purported incident.
“Our hearts go out to the families of those who have passed away, especially those who tragically lost their lives due to preventable causes,” expressed the Umugwuakum Attakwu/Akwuke President-General.
An investigation into the alleged murder of an Etiti Ngwo native is underway after the Enugu State Police Command got a report about it through Police Public Relations Officer SP Daniel Ndukwe. The incident is allegedly connected to a property dispute.
While a thorough investigation is underway, SP Ndukwe urged the warring communities to keep calm and refrain from self-help actions, saying that initial findings point to a connection between the tragedy and the current land dispute.