The Traditional Ruler of Obi-mbieri autonomous community in Mbaitoli Local Government Areas of Imo State, His Royal Highness Eze Josiah Osuji, has described the allegation leveled against him that he is using the military to stop his late uncle’s wife’s burial, as false and baseless.
The monarch, who was also accused of locking members of his extended family out for over six months has also described such as an attempt to malign his hard-earned reputation.
In a statement signed by the palace secretary of the community, Clifford Ukwujiaku, the monarch said the accuser, Adolphus Osuji, is never a member of Osuji Akpakaeme family but of Meforom, hence, cannot force himself into Osuji’s dynasty just to partake in the sharing of the Osuji’s estate.
According to him, “Describing me as a foster son of the family by a renegade like Adolphus is an abomination.
“Adolphus’ late father, Ebenezer and my own father, Osuji Agbakaeme, had no blood relationship of any kind. The said Ebenezer was my father’s servant in those days, and by virtue of this, he knew everything about my father’s property. I was only three years when my mother died and my sister, Comfort took me to Lagos.
“In my absence over the years as a toddler, my father handed over all his properties to the late Ebenezer on trust. Now that I have grown to become the traditional ruler of the community, I have come to demand for those lands in their custody. That’s where the problem started.
“I wonder how a foster son in a family as they described me could be made the traditional ruler of a community for more than a decade. I was made Eze during Governor Achike Udenwa’s tenure and the members of my community including him (Adolphus Osuji) supported me.
“Adolphus is more or less my son that has benefitted everything from me. All my buildings in Nigeria, he built. All my goods and businesses, he managed and supervised. All importations my companies made in recent times, Adolphus was in charge. He was like my manager and Chief of Staff. What have I not done for him?
“When he contested for councillorship and won, I funded it. The young man has made over 200million naira from me but ask me today what he used the money to do, nothing.
“He does not have a house in the village neither does he has a land or compound in the village. He goes around telling people that I locked him and his siblings out, how? His only grudge against me is that I told him and his brothers including his late mother to make available all the 14 portions of lands in their custody handed over to their late father on trust. All they told me was that their father is my father’s son and I am a foster son hence, has no right to ask for the family property.
“They took their mother away from where she was staying comfortably in my house until her death. What have I done wrong?
“I have to tell you without mincing words that I am not aware of any burial or burial date of the said Uncle’s wife or anybody in Osuji’s family, talk more of stopping same.
“The entire Obi-mbieri autonomous community regrets the unguarded utterances and derogatory comments of Adolphus Osuji against his person.
“The uniform men you see in my house were given to me by the IGP upon application to him as a traditional ruler. They are only for security, nothing else.
“My regret is that all my efforts to make Adolphus somebody met brick walls and that’s why he continues to see my father’s inheritance as his only means of survival.
“The earlier he stops all this blackmail against me, the better for him because no amount of propaganda will make him a son of my father, Osuji Agbakaeme or qualify him to partake in the sharing of the family property.
“It is unfortunate that Adolphus started the media propaganda and blackmail with defamatory comments against my person. He forgot the matter is still ongoing in High Court. They want me dead so that they will intimidate, harass and threaten my children and eventually take my father’s inheritance. That won’t be possible!” the monarch concluded.
