Ngwoma-Obube, an ancient community in Owerri North LGA, Imo State, is on the brink of a cultural eruption following what royal leaders describe as a brazen plot to overthrow over a century of hereditary kingship by installing a non-royal as Eze. Tensions are boiling over as the revered Onukogu Royal Dynasty publicly rejects attempts by political businessman Alex Mbata and his alleged imposters to impose Chinedu Ekeocha as the traditional ruler.
A fiery rebuttal published by members of the Onukogu royal family and elders of the community denounced a July 14 advertorial in The Horn newspaper, which claimed the community was at peace. The Onukogus described the publication as “a shameless distortion of history” aimed at misleading the public and government officials. They insist that the Ezeship in Ngwoma-Obube is strictly hereditary, passed through the Onukogu lineage since the appointment of Warrant Chief Onukogu Okeremgbere by colonial authorities in 1906.
The royal family laid out a clear and uninterrupted succession line: Eze Okeremgbere (1906–1933), followed by his son Eze Stephen Ejeleonu Onukogu (1933–1978), and then Eze Dr. Andrew Igbozurike Onukogu (1979–2024). Any attempt to truncate this historical order, they say, is “customary treason” that desecrates the cultural soul of Ngwoma-Obube. They described Alex Mbata’s group as “a hired gang of impostors, fake elders, and constitutional forgers.”
The traditional council further accused Mbata of using money and influence to destabilize the peace of the community. They claim he is not a prince, nor does he belong to any recognized royal lineage in Ngwoma-Obube. The statement also dismissed the so-called constitution presented by Mbata’s camp as a “Taiwan Constitution”—a forged, unsigned document with no basis in law or tradition.
Royal elders warned that no amount of media manipulation, constitutional forgery, or self-help schemes can rewrite a royal succession that has been upheld for over 118 years. “You can’t suddenly hit money and erase kings with bloodlines,” a community chief stated. “If we are going to talk about modernity, then such people must first denounce their Igbo roots entirely. Culture is not convenience.”
The release condemned the audacity of Mbata’s supporters, who they say have been parading around in media appearances, hurling insults at a family that has produced respected professionals, scholars, and business leaders globally. “We are not broken, and we are not desperate. It is those who seek power without legitimacy that are panicking,” it read.
The Onukogu Royal Family, Elders Forum, and Eze-in-Council called on the public, the Imo State Government, and security agencies to disregard the antics of what they described as “fake Ndi Oha” and “a false Eze-Elect.” They affirmed that Ngwoma-Obube remains one of the few communities in Imo with a gazetted, uninterrupted line of hereditary monarchy, and any violation of that sacred institution will be resisted.
