By Bala Umaru
There is an alleged plot to murder Hon Prince Ned Nwoko.
According to reports, the abominable plan is being hatched inside Kuje Correctional Centre, KCC, in Kuje council area , about 40km , Southwest of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja , Nigeria.
The odious characters behind the abhorrent plot to terminate Prince Ned Nwoko’s life are inmates of KCC facing charges of terrorism and murder.
They are being detained, pending their bail, through the orders of a court of competent jurisdiction in Abuja for the mindless mayhem these alleged criminals unleashed on some selected people of Idumuje-Ugboko in Aniocha North Local Government Area, LGA, of Delta state, between May 18 and 25, 2017.
Their outrageous plan was overheard at night by a fellow inmate as they were discussing the plot, claiming Prince Ned was responsible for their travail.
The inmate also overheard them as they talked about one of their alleged leading sponsors and coordinator of their criminal enerprise, a man that he described as an oil and gas magnate who hails from the same village as the lnternational Lawyer, iconic business man and philanthropist, Prince Ned.
This inmate then conveyed the horror plot pronto to a member of his church who is a top entrepreneur. This member runs a big organisation with several products and the innate recalled that Regina Daniels Nwoko , Prince Ned’s wife , is a Brand Ambassador of the entrepreneur and church member’s company. He therefore quickly conveyed the information to him urging him to deliver this ominous message of imminent danger to his Brand Ambassador , Regina Daniels Nwoko, so that she may reach her husband for immediate action.
WHY THEY WANT TO KILL PRINCE NE
So, why would those criminals be plotting to eliminate a man seen as a rare, genuine and altruistic philanthropist, not just by his Idumuje-Ugboko community and people of Delta state but Nigerians in general.
The first point to state unequivocally is that these criminals who are about 30, some still at large, were arrested for the havoc and devastation they perpetrated against Idumuje-Ugboko community, where Prince Ned hails from. And the distinguished Lawyer is unpretentious about his support for their diligent prosecution.
The tragedy that befell the once serene village which reached an ugly climax with the siege of those criminals began immediately after the death of the king, the Obi of Idumuje-Ugboko, His Royal Majesty, Obi Albert Nwoko III, PhD, MON. His eldest son, Prince Chukwunonso Nwoko, addressed as Prince Nonso , was alleged to have buried his father on the same day he died and crowned himself king in total breach of Idumuje-Ugboko custom, tradition and the whole rites and rituals that often lead to the ascension of a new Obi to the throne of their forebears.
Prince Nonso’s alleged brazen usurpation of the throne pitched him against other eligible contestants.The legal tussle that followed disrupted the unity of the community as the village became polarised.
Prince Nonso who is known to be brash and dictatorial went after those who did not support his impudent declaration of himself as king and his autocratic rulership. He was alleged to have imported hoodlums to attack those who refused to support him and these were some of the most respectable members and leading traditional figures in the community.
The inmates plotting Prince Ned Nwoko’s assassination in Kuje Correctional Centre, KCC, were among the hoodlums allegedly imported by Prince Nonso. These vile criminals murdered, in cold blood , two men, burnt houses, looted properties , vandalised cars and subjected highly regarded men , women and youths to horrific brutalization. Some of these respectable men and women were allegedly dragged to the Idumuje-Ugboko Palace and practically dehumanised as they were stripped naked and whipped with rods in the presence of Prince Nonso who was alleged to have watched this gory live drama with delight.
After months of living in shame and anguish, these victims through their Lawyer petitioned the Inspector General of Police, IGP, the Attorney General and Minister of Justice and the Human Rights Commission of Nigeria. The resulting investigations by the Commission and several Civil Society Organisations, CSOs, established a clear case of gross human rights violation, terrorism and murder. Many of the hoodlums who were not from the community fled while Prince Nonso went into hiding.
Having embarked on man-hunt for these gangsters, the police have nabbed some of them while it continues to hunt for the rest. The name of one of the arrow heads of the murderous ring was specifically mentioned by the inmate who exposed their plot.
Now, Hon Prince Ned Nwoko , who is Prince Nonso’s cousin became a major target of the murderers when it became clear that he was not also supporting his cousin. This was , first and foremost, because the kingship tussle is already a matter before the court and Prince Ned, as a Lawyer, knows the case is subjudice and therefore would not overtly discuss the case or support anyone except for amicable resolution of the royal dispute.
However , the well respected International Lawyer is supporting the prosecution of these Kuje inmates without wavering because all the victims of the attack are his supporters. They are people who are inflexibly supporting and celebrating the proposed establishment of STARS University in Idumuje-Ugboko by Prince Ned, a venture Prince Nonso is strangely opposed to.
This developmental project was indeed rejected by Prince Nonso who vowed to reverse the approvals for the land given by the community for the establishment of the university simply because Prince Ned refused to endorse his usurpation of the throne. But this quest is absurd because the entire community knew that the billionaire business man got every necessary approval backed with documented evidence before he commenced construction at the site of the university.
For this reason, Prince Nonso then manufactured and added another lie, telling the whole community that the billionaire business mogul was not building any university but had deceived the entire village beause the massive land was for Islamic ventures as Prince Ned is widely known to be a muslim. He therefore mobilised the village urging them to join him in his quest to excommunicate and banish his generous cousin and benefactor from their community claiming Prince Ned had a plan with external support to begin a gradual islamization of their people and to usurp the throne as a muslim king with the support of the external forces.
He was able to sell this cock and bull story to some of the members of the Nwoko Royal Family and the community at large. But many of the discerning people also knew that while Prince Ned is a muslim, he is not religious, not mention being a fundamentalist. And he had never preached or attempted to convert any of them to Islam. They also were aware that the community is a part owner of the proposed university as it holds 40% equity in the university. So, how could the land be for an Islamic mission. This explains why Prince Nonso lost woefully all the court cases he pursued vigorously with the retrogressive intention to top the establishment of the university in Idumuje-Ugboko using all sorts of disguises.
Having failed to legally stop the university and many members of the community realising the truth and deserting him and his sponsors to support Prince Ned, he resorted to barbaric options to deal with those who support his accomplished and celebrated cousin’s university project.
The victims of the one week of terrorism in Idumuje-Ugboko were among these suppoters of Prince Ned. And this is simply why the reticent International Lawyer is strongly supporting the prosecution of the terrorists so that it will serve as a timeless deterrent to those that may conceive of such savagery in the future.
For his unambigous support of the prosecution, the financiers of Prince Nonso’s gory enterprise have allegedly been telling the criminals in KCC that Prince Ned is the man behind their incarceration and he has to be eliminated for them to be free.
Their sponsors are therefore frantically raising funds to meet their bail condition so that they would come out of the prison to do the dastardly job of murdering a man whose only guilt is choosing to build a university in his village to create jobs for his people and bring development to the community.
The list of the sponsors and the donations made towards this inhuman project of eliminating their own blood is an open secret and in circulation among the indigenes of Idumuje-Ugboko.
It is therfore of critical importance for the police to delve into this matter and treat it with utmost gravity.
The police need to go beyond the criminsls now to unravel these sponsors, men and women who have unabashedly been instigating the gruesome violence in Idumuje-Ugboko and raising funds to finance a bloodletting enterprise . And in this quest to unmask them, none of those remotely connected to the funding of these murderers and their spooky plot in prison should be spared no matter how big or accomplished.
They should be arrested and be made to face poetic justice through the force of the law.
This is the only way that enduring peace and justice can be restored in Idumuje-Ugboko .
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