Umobor village in Akaeze community, Ivo local government area of Ebonyi state has called on Governor Francis Nwifuru to compel Ogwor village in Ishiagu community to abide by the supreme Court judgement over the age long land dispute in the area.
Umobor,Akaeze community and Ogwor,Ishiagu community are of the same local government area but have had land dispute dating back to 1923.
The area in dispute called “Elueke” is said to be a fertile land which its ownership tussle has been in contest between the two communities.

Past governments of the state have not been able to proffer solution to this problem.
Following the recent crisis that has claimed about six lives, governor Nwifuru who declared the disputed land a buffer zone, summoned the stakeholders of the affected areas in his office, constituted a reconciliation committee and gave them two weeks to make peace or risk losing the land to the government.
However, Umobor Village in Akaeze community in a letter to the Governor by their counsel Mike Ahamba,SAN, appealed that Ogwor people should abide by the supreme Court judgement of 1991.
The letter reads, ” I am addressing this letter to Your Excellency following what I may term a distress brief from the Umobor Akaeze Village leaders. May I therefore hereafter refer to them as “my clients” where the context permits.
“I have been informed by my clients that you are aware of the inter-village conflict which has flared up in lvo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State since Monday the 2nd day of December, 2024 with, unfortunately,alarming fatalities. I am also aware that you have intervened,though peripherally.
It is my information from my clients that there has been a lingering land dispute between Umobor Akaeze Village and Ogwor Ishiagu Village both of which are notable Communities in Ebonyi State. This crisis is over a farm land known as and called Elueke Umobor Land. The dispute dates.
“back to about the year 1923. According to my instructions,Ogwor Ishiagu people took my clients to the Native Court in that area at the time,but lost to Umobor Akaeze people.
Not satisfied with that decision, Ogwor Ishiagu people sued my clients again to the High Court at Abakaliki, in Suit No. AB/3/71. Once again they lost in the Judgment delivered on 25th day of March, 1974. Still not satisfied,Ogwor people (hereafter ‘Ogwor’ where the content permits)appealed to the Court of Appeal,Enugu in Appeal No. FCA/E/201/81and, again, lost in the Judgment delivered on the 1st day of July 1987.
“Determined to test what they claimed to be their legal right of ownership through the entire judicial hierarchy, Ogwor further appealed to the Supreme Court of Nigeria in Supreme Court No.SC/3/1990. But their situation did not change as they also lost at the Apex Court in a Judgment delivered on the 27th day of September, 1991.
“After this loss at the Apex Cour, Ogwor seemed to accept the settlement as final. But that was for some time, as they started encroaching on the land once again.
“Consequent upon this revived encroachment, Umobor sued them to the High Court Afikpo for enforcement of the judgments in Suit No.HAF/19M/93. When the matter came up before the High Court,Afikpo on 12th day of July 1995 before Honourable Justice L.A Achinihu,for their committal to prison, the learned Judge admonished the Ogwor defendants in open Court on the consequences of not obeying a Court decision.
“A representative of Ogwor people agreed in open Court to warn his people to give peace a chance by respecting the final judgment of the Supreme Court.The Court record is Annexure ‘C’.
Based on this commitment,counsel for the Applicants,Umobor,withdrew the application for committal of the four Ogwor leaders who represented Ogwor people to prison, and they were consequentially discharged and acquitted.
“My very humble request is that you use your good offices to impress it on the security agencies in your state,and the lvo L.G. Council of the need to get Ogwor people to appreciate that the dispute has ended by the Supreme Court judgment with which they must abide. It is difficult to understand why the Police and other officials in the Area cannot enforce the Supreme Court decision instead of making sharing of the land their point of settlement. The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria provides in Section 287(1) thus:
“(1)The decisions of the Supreme Court shall be enforced in any part of the Federation by all authorities and persons, and by Courts of subordinate jurisdiction to that of the Supreme Court”.