Under the Rivers State Local Government Laws, particularly as they relate to the administration of community governance structures, a Community Development Committee (CDC) cannot be the product of unilateral political appointment. It must instead be constituted, nominated and ratified by His Royal Highness and his Council of Chiefs, who remain the custodians of the customs, traditions and native law of the people.
Whatever one’s view of him, Ambassador Friday Ovumgba is the substantive CDC Chairman of Egbeda Community, a settled reality. It is well established, both as law and as customary convention, that no CDC can exist, function, or enjoy legitimacy without the consent and blessing of the Royal Highness and the Council of Chiefs.
That is precisely why Ambassador Ovumgba, after earlier attempting to operate independently of the traditional institution, ultimately returned to embrace it, having learned how counter-productive it is to work against the community’s traditional authority. Hon. Bartholomew Osah, the former CDC Chairman, understands this reality just as well.
It is a settled principle of administrative law that the Executive Chairman of a Local Government Council has the statutory power to appoint a Caretaker or Interim CDC where there is a genuine and demonstrable breakdown of law and order that leaves a community without leadership. But this power is not absolute; it is conditional and limited.
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A Local Government Chairman cannot appoint a CDC for a community at will. To carry the force of law, any such appointment must be made in consultation and agreement with the Royal Highness and the Council of Chiefs. An appointment made without the involvement of the traditional stool is invalid from the outset.
In the case of Egbeda Community, the Executive Chairman of Emohua Local Government Area, Hon. Chidi Lloyd, acted outside his authority and in violation of existing law when he purportedly appointed a parallel CDC. This action is not only legally and procedurally flawed but also constitutes a direct affront to the customary autonomy of the Egbeda people.
As a result, some stakeholders and concerned indigenes of Egbeda have already gone to court to challenge and set aside the appointment. The matter is therefore before the courts, and any attempt to impose the disputed CDC on the community in the meantime risks stoking unrest.
I therefore urge all well-meaning, law-abiding and peace-loving indigenes of Egbeda to remain calm, maintain the status quo, and allow events to unfold. In due course, the judiciary will make clear who the legitimate CDC Chairman is.
In light of this, members of Egbeda Community are calling on the Executive Governor of Rivers State, His Excellency Sir Siminalayi Fubara, the Commissioner of Police for the Rivers State Command, the State Director of the Department of State Services (DSS), and other relevant individuals and institutions to call Hon. Chidi Lloyd to order and restrain him from disrupting the peace currently prevailing in Egbeda.
In conclusion, there is no breakdown of law and order in Egbeda Community that would justify such executive overreach. Hon. Chidi Lloyd lacks the standing and legal authority to impose a politically influenced CDC on Egbeda Community. The peace that the community has worked hard to sustain over the years must not be sacrificed for political convenience.
