Delta Community Petitions IGP, Defence Minister, Alleging State-Aided Invasion Of Ancestral Land

By Chuks Eke—

Aggrieved indigenes of Ogbe-Ozoma community in Okpanam, Oshimili North Local Government Area of Delta State, have formally submitted a strongly worded petition to the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and the Honourable Minister of Defence.

They accuse Chief Chinedu Okeke, popularly known as “Ekwe-Ogidi,” of orchestrating a violent, bloody, and state-aided invasion of their centuries-old ancestral land.

In a swift reaction, the Delta State Police Command clarified that the police cannot intervene in land matters without a valid court order.

According to the petition, signed on their behalf by their Solicitor, Sir Ifeanyi Ejiofor, Esq., KSC, and addressed to the heads of the nation’s security apparatus, the alleged invasion, which occurred on December 11, 2025, was not only brazenly unlawful but was executed and shielded by over 40 heavily armed policemen and soldiers.

The community describes their actions as a “chilling orchestration of impunity.”

The community recounted that the invasion took place on the very day their ongoing land dispute suit—Suit No. AKW/118/2025—was scheduled for a hearing before the High Court of Akwukwu-Igbo.

During the hearing, the presiding judge had expressly admonished all parties to maintain peace and respect the authority of the court.

In flagrant defiance of this judicial caution, Chief Okeke allegedly mobilised a heavily armed contingent of policemen and soldiers to launch a coordinated assault on the disputed land. This resulted in the wanton destruction of structures valued at over N1 billion.

The petitioners stated that video evidence attached to the petition reportedly captured uniformed officers brandishing weapons, issuing tactical commands, and providing security cover for the invaders as properties were demolished.

The community decried the incident as a reckless violation of the IGP’s earlier directives against police involvement in land matters, a gross abuse of state security apparatus for private, unlawful ends, a contemptuous affront to judicial authority, and a dangerous precedent capable of provoking avoidable communal unrest.

They further expressed shock that such a massive deployment of armed personnel could be mobilised for the private venture of an individual, especially at a time when President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had directed the withdrawal of police operatives from VIPs across the nation.

The petitioners are therefore calling for an immediate, full-scale investigation to identify the officers involved, the authority under which they operated, and their role in the destruction of landed property.

They also seek the institution of disciplinary and criminal sanctions against all security operatives found complicit.

Furthermore, the petitioners are calling for the immediate restoration of law and order within their Ogbe-Ozoma ancestral land and protection for the community, who have refrained from reprisals to prevent a breach of peace.

The Ogbe-Ozoma community emphasised their commitment to peace, civility, and due process of law, but declared they “cannot stand helpless in the face of what they called ‘weaponised impunity carried out under the shield of state uniforms’.”

They urged the IGP, the Defence Minister, and all relevant authorities to act swiftly not only to safeguard lives and property but also to uphold the integrity of Nigeria’s justice system and restore public confidence in the nation’s security institutions.

All efforts to contact the accused person, Chief Chinedu Okeke (aka Ekwe Ogidi), proved abortive as his phone was switched off. However, the Delta State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Bright Edafe, told newsmen via phone that he was not yet aware of the incident. He reiterated that the police cannot interfere in land matters without a valid court order.

According to Edafe, “Before the police can delve into a land matter, there must be a valid court order to warrant such an interference.”