DELTA STATE GOVERNMENT INCITES CHAOS IN EGBUDU-AKAH THAT IS DENIED DEVELOPMENT

By Dr. Lucky Lormarks Obah

All that the Delta State Government affords Egbudu-Akah community is chaos, inciting crisis in the peaceful community of Egbudu-Akah kingdom.

Egbudu-Akah community in Aniocha South Local Government Area of Delta State had never benefited or enjoyed any development from neither the Federal Government nor Delta State government of Nigeria.

The Health center in Egbudu-Akah was established through the community effort in early 70s, and is maintained by the community. The only medical personnel managing the health center stuffs medication through personal and community efforts.

Presently, members of the community contributed money to renovate the lapidated well in the health center, due to lack of water in the health center and the entire community, as the same community is contributing money to provide bore hole for themselves in the community.

Furthermore, Egbudu-Akah community spends some millions of naira to grade some portion of their road that connected Ekuku-Agbor, Egbudu-Akah, Ashama, Ubulu-Unor, Ogwashi-Uku the Local Government headquarters to Asaba the State capital that has been neglected by the government. Another road connected Nsukwa, Ejeme, Adonte, Egbudu-Akah, Otolopo, Umunede,and to Agbor the Ika Local Government headquarters, also neglected by the government.

The Secondary school which had produce eminent personalities was also built through the community effort and was government approved school and WAEC Center since 1980, and within the few years ago, due to government neglect, the school population was drastically reduced, until the intervention of some community members who assisted to deploy the services of some certified teachers, NYSC members and paying them salaries on their own, giving free school uniform, exercise and text books, etc to the students, which has yielded to increment in numbers of students in the school, a bit as of January, 2025.

All that government, especially, Delta State is concerned about Egbudu-Akah, and governs them of is mainly about staff of office of the king, to incite crisis in the peaceful community without due consultation.

Egbudu-Akah is an autonomous community that installs thier king according to their law, culture and tradition, and no body imposes a king on the people. When a community installs their king, the government is to give staff of office to whom the community has installed and presented, according to their culture and tradition. By not consulting appropriately before acting to the later is nothing but generating severe crisis in the land, which invariably affects the entire state and country at large.

Few years ago, in the year 2016 to be precise, the longest reigning monarch, Olome, Okolie Alfred 1, the Obi of Egbudu-Akah joined his ancestors, and Egbudu-Akah kingdom was faced with kingship tussle. And the government of Delta State that have not made any meaningful impart to the development of Egbudu-Akah community came up with the issue of offering staff of office to Egbudu-Akah king without due consultation that led to serious crisis in the land. Peace later return to the community after about eight years of peace, unity and calmness in the community, the government of Delta State has come up again with the same issue of staff of office presentation to Egbudu-Akah king without proper consultation with the elders of the land, and in agreement with the community to give staff of office to a dully and properly installed king by the community according to their culture and tradition, thereby undermining the cultural value of a people like Egbudu-Akah, disregarding that a people's culture and tradition must be preserved, even after the people had made the government to be aware of whom has been rightly selected, and dully installed according to their culture and tradition, and whom have been on the throne after the demise of his father, his predecessor through various means of communication; the media, print and broadcast, verbal, protests, and so on, yet, because of bribery and corrupt practices, the Delta State Government, remained adamant to the yearning of the people, making the indigenes and entire community non-human, non-existent, which is so insulting, shameful, disrespectful, and disgraceful to a whole community and the indigenes as well.

It is very imperative that a government carries his people along at all times in every ramification. In traditional and cultural affairs, a government is supposed to carry their communities along especially in considering or concluding on whom to give staff of office as a king in a community, the government need to properly consult with the stake holders of culture and tradition as in case of of Egbudu-Akah land, like the 'Iyase', 'Onitshe', the 'Omu' the 'Royal family and the elders of the land, to avoid sacrilegious action in the land. Besides, it should not be only in the issue of cultural and traditional affairs in recent times that Delta State government remembers a kingdom known as Egbudu-Akah, but being neglected in every other areas of governmental developments. If there is any thing Delta State has done in Egbudu-Akah in terms of development, they should let the world know.

Above all, it is well to emphasize and resolve that the Delta State Government is so quick to act to issues that instigates chaos in the land of Egbudu-Akah, and not to that of development of Egbudu-Akah that lack access to good road, good health center and facilities, good schools, water, electricity, and other developmental amenities.