Akwa Ibom State women yesterday marched on the House of Assembly in Uyo, over the amended Traditional Rulers Law.
They demanded its reversal.
The law nullified the hitherto rotational headship of the state’s Supreme Council of Traditional Rulers and reserved life headship (President General) for the Oku Ibom Ibibio, head king of the Ibibio, as the majority ethnic group in the state.
The women drawn from Annang, Oro and Obolo ethnic groups and numbering over 300, who arrived the Assembly complex at about 8am, barricaded the main gate.
They refused to vacate the area until the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Olatoye Durosinmi, arrived on the scene and addressed them.
One of their leaders, Dr. Margaret Udofia, said: “I’m from Essien Udim Local Government, Annang tribe. We are here to protest that we are not second class citizens. They say the Oro are third class citizens. We came to tell them that Akwa Ibom is one.
“We have equal rights in Akwa Ibom, in Nigeria. There is no first class, no second or third class. We are all one. We don’t war, we don’t want tribalism. We want peace in Akwa Ibom, nobody should come and divide us.
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“This is why we are here to tell them that the women of Annang, Oro, Obolo, all women of Akwa Ibom say we reject being second class or third class citizens. We know the House will sit today. We want the members to hear our cry so it will not affect our children in future. We want that position to remain.”
Another protester and a retired school head teacher from the Annang axis, Mrs. Iboette, said: “The obnoxious law that says only one tribe can be leader is what we are here to kick against. We are against that law the House of Assembly passed.
“It is dividing the state. This is a peaceful state. We can never allow that law to win. We don’t want it. We want the position to be rotational.”
Addressing the women, CP Durosinmi appealed to them to go back to their homes and take care of their husbands and children.
He assured them that their grievances would be communicated to the appropriate quarters.
As tension escalates over the new law, Governor Umo Eno, who sent the Executive Bill that brought about the law, has absolved himself of any blame in the matter.
He said: “The law that has just been passed by the House of Assembly is not my law. The paramount rulers of this state sat. I was at that meeting and I did not say anything. They agreed on what that law is. They themselves agreed. I said it yesterday and I am saying it today on this altar.
“If any paramount ruler that was there, let the paramount ruler prove that he uttered a voice. The only paramount ruler that raised a voice and said something to add was the paramount ruler of Itu. No paramount ruler, whether Ibibio, Annang or Oron, none of them said anything. All I did was to implement their decision. You couldn’t implement a law without going through the House of Assembly.
“If they feel that is no more their position, it is a simple thing. They are our fathers. It is to call the governor and say, please, what we did, we did not understand. This is what we now think we should do. It has nothing to do with ethnicity. It has nothing to do with favouring one tribe over the other.
“I will never have sided one tribe over another because I belong to Jesus. We all belong to one kingdom and it is the kingdom of God. Anyone who knows me knows I am a barracks boy. I grew up in the barracks and in the barracks there is no room for ethnicity.”
