Soludo and the Future of Anambra Security
Anambra State is one of the five states of the Southeast, and one of the richest states in Nigeria by gross domestic product. Its economic mainstay is market, and indeed, has a good number of markets and cities wherefrom government sources funds, boosting its internally generated revenue base. Such cities include: Awka, Onitsha, Nnewi, Ekwulobia, Umunze and somehow Ihiala. Onitsha and Nnewi have a significant space in the commercial ecosystem of the West African continent, providing opportunities for building of individuals and entities into multiple million dollar business moguls. The state records more companies, industries and sundry business places than any other state in the Southeast of Nigeria.
Anambra is the home of numerous figures in Africa and the world over who have, and had caught their teeth in different fields of human endeavour. The great Zik of Africa, Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe is from here. The foremost African literary godfather, Professor Chinua Achebe is from here also. Here’s the home state of a female powerful literary giant, Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche. The home of the first West African vehicles manufacturer, Chief Innocent Chukwuma of the Innoson Vehicles Manufacturing (IVM), Nnewi. Here’s also the home of a onetime richest man in West Africa, Sir Louis Ojukwu. The home state of these three African highlife music icons: Chief Oliver Akanite (Oliver Decoque), Chief Osita Osadebe & Chief Morocco Maduka. Anambra is the state one of the celebrated global football icons, Mikel Obi, as well as the great Power Mike comes from. It’s the home state of the great Nollywood legend, Pete Edochie. And religion wise, it’s the home state of the first African to be considered qualified for recognition as a saint, Blessed Iwene Tansi. Anambra is the home state of a former Commonwealth Secretary General, High Chief Emeka Anyaoku. Home of a celebrated computer wizard, Dr Philip Emeagwali as well as a war veteran, Chukwuemeka Odumegwu Ojukwu, among other notable figures doing the world proud in different fields of human endeavour.
Anambra also has well-known historical and tourist sites such as the Niger Bridge, Onitsha, Ogbunike Cave, Ogbunike, Ogbambiaka Cave, Owerre-Ezukala, Agulu Lake, Agulu, Ziks Moseleum, Onitsha and others. But over the years, insecurity has remained a hydraheaded menace in the state. From kidnapping to armed robbery; from human parts trading to pickpocketing; from cultism to child trafficking; from touting to fraud, and from war to ritual killing, the state has been gasping for breath for a long while now. These and more have been of great concern to government of the state, citizens and residents of the state. Each government that came in the state took the issue of protection of lives and property seriously, designing mechanisms that could see to the arrest of the situation. In the year 2000, the then governor of the state, Dr Chinweoke Mbadinuju invited a crime – fighting mercenary known as the Bakassi Boys into the state to help him sanitize it and bring criminals to book. The arrival of these cutlass – wielding men indeed led to the apprehension of the number one criminal who had defied the inquisitive hands of the men of the Inspector General of the Nigeria Police for almost a decade. His capture and decapitation relieved the state of tension for some months, though didn’t solve the problem once and for all. However, residents of Onitsha breathed in air of relief as this particular Derico Nwamama as he was addressed fashioned himself into terror by the day in cavalcade of his brutal foot soldiers, turning Onitsha, Asaba and the environs into slaughter slabs. Anambra during that era experienced terrorism and broad-daylight bank robberies almost on weekly basis.
The issue of insecurity in Anambra State seems to be beyond what a governor could solve all alone. It’s as deep as that and has evolved decades. As time evolves so crime in the state undergoes strategic transformation, making the state a hive of terror. In Anambra, crime is a very big industry run by all manner of people in different fashions. It was this that ushered in the inglorious days of the now scrapped State Anti Robbery Squad (SARS) to Anambra. Inglorious in the sense that the police outfit began violating human rights in the course of fighting crime and criminality. The SARS state office at Awkuzu was turned into a butchery and a destination no one would like to get to, not even its neighbours. Suspects taken to the dungeon lost the hope of returning alive whether or not they were innocent. Many alleged that the Awkuzu SARS were into ritual killings and other criminal exploits against humanity and society. The era of SARS came, reigned and ended due to concerted public outcry efforts against its mode of operations. This was not only in Anambra, but nationwide. The Federal Government of Nigeria via the Inspector General of Police around 2021disbanded the dreaded police unit nationwide for peace to reign in the society, moreover Southeast.
From 2021 till date, the wave of criminality exacerbated in Anambra this time, becoming gorier than ever before. Kidnapping and killing of the captives even after collecting ransom money from their families and loved ones. These got to a head when the governorship candidate of the Labour Party in the Anambra 2021 gubernatorial election, Chief Obiora Agbasimalo was kidnapped and taken to hostage. After allegedly paying about N200 million for his release, the kidnappers went ahead to kill him. He has not been seen since 2021. As if that was not enough, in 2022, a serving member of the Anambra State House of Assembly, Hon. Okechukwu Okoye was kidnapped alongside his driver and personal assistant at Isuofia, Anambra State. After allegedly paying ransom of N100 million, the kidnappers killed him and others and hung their heads at the Chisco Roundabout, Nnewi. Just a few days ago, a serving Anambra State House of Assembly member, Hon. Justice Azuka from Onitsha North was kidnapped and after receiving N100 million ransom from his family, the kidnappers went ahead killing him. These are just a few out of the many kidnap incidents involving high profile victims in the state, recently.
In late 2024, the Anambra State Government led by Professor Charles Chukwuma Soludo proposed a piece of legislation at the House of Assembly, Awka seeking ways to tackle or end the menace of heinous crimes in the state. The bill which has now become a law aims at sanitizing the Anambra society first by monitoring the activities of the witch doctors operating within the state. Soludo believes that these witch doctors play a critical role in urging young people into crime of varying dimensions. Regulating their activities is to Soludo the very first step to take in fighting the imminent criminal activities going on in the state. This he has activated by arresting the most popular of them in the state, Chidozie Nwangwu otherwise known as Akwaokuko Tiwara Aki, a native of Oba, Anambra State. Akwa whose allies address as the Bishop of witch doctors is a popular charms maker in Anambra. He has amassed wealth in plenitude through preparing a dangerous charm called Okeite (big pot of wealth) for his clients who paid as high as N5 million each to acquire the pot. Through his Facebook platform, he always pressured young people into pursuing premature wealth by patronizing him, giving them assurance of making them stupendously wealthy within weeks. Research has it that the Okeite charm is activated with human blood and women’s sensitive body parts. It’s one charm that people dread so much acquiring due to the danger it portends.
Gov. Soludo in furtherance of his drive to eliminate crime and criminals in Anambra established a special security network officials of whom according to him were well-trained to tackle the menace headlong, and true to that, given the record of success seen so far, they’re doing so well within the few days they started operating in the state, although there are reported cases of arrest and torture of innocent people and killing of others as a result of mistaken identity. The women of Isuofia, Gov. Soludo’s community protested on the 7th of February, 2025 against the killing of three innocent men from the community who went to work at Owerre-Ezukala, Orumba South LGA of the state by the Agunechemba security network the government established. By this, it’s imperative that the government cautions the operatives of the security network on the need to look before leaping lest they start committing extrajudicial killings, thereby scoring own goal to the glory of the fifth columnists the government targets demobilizing and flush out of Anambra State! It’s expected that with the level of success achieved so far, soon the issue of insecurity shall become a bygone with Anambra State returning to its rightful position as the Light of the Nigerian Nation!
•Sir Chika Nwoba, KSC
A public affairs analyst wrote in from Ikwo, Ebonyi State.
