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…Rights group seeks justice
From Uchenna Inya, Abakaliki
A man, Chief Kenneth Nwiboko, his wife and 9 month old son are battling for survival after being tortured by some members of Ndebor Idembia Ishieke community in Ebonyi Local Government Area of Ebonyi State over the chieftaincy stool of the community.
Nwiboko, the wife and son were subsequently banished from the community after the torture with their household property destroyed by their attackers who also sealed the man’s house after the incident.
Dr. Sampson Oko Nweke, a human right activist in the state who visited the victims in the hospital in Abakaliki, the state capital, described their conditions as pathetic.
He said during the attack on the victims, the attackers broke both the knees and ankles of Nwiboko and shattered his waist and that when they were satisfied that he had been rendered crippled and immobile, they brought out his wheelbarrow, placed him inside it, and paraded him alongside his wife and the nine-year-old son, who were tied together with bunches of palm fronds.
According to him, in that degrading condition, he was wheeled through Ishieke Market and then to Ukwuachi Market and reportedly took them to his hostels to display them before EBSU students who are his tenants.
He disclosed that thereafter, the attackers issued a 24-hour quit notice to all students occupying his hostels and to tenants in his market shops, adding that they used palm fronds to barricade his hotels, market shops, and compound.
“This evening, I returned from visiting Chief Kenneth Nwiboko in the hospital, where he is currently receiving intensive medical treatment alongside his wife and their nine-year-old son, following the recent attack on his household and their subsequent banishment from the community, Ndebor Ishieke community, Ebonyi LGA of Ebonyi State, South East Nigeria.
“In the early hours of Saturday, 14th February 2026, an angry mob allegedly acting on the directive of his rival stepbrother, Chief Awoke Nwiboko, stormed his compound. Upon sighting him and his wife, they descended on them and tortured them mercilessly for about four hours.
“In the process, they broke both his knees and ankles and shattered his waist. When they were satisfied that he had been rendered crippled and immobile, they brought out his wheelbarrow, placed him inside it, and paraded him alongside his wife and nine-year-old son, who were tied together with bunches of palm fronds.
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In that degrading condition, he was wheeled through Ishieke Market and then to Ukwuachi Market.
“They reportedly took them to his hostels to display them before EBSU students who are his tenants. Thereafter, they issued a 24-hour quit notice to all students occupying his hostels and to tenants in his market shops.
” They used palm fronds to barricade his hotels, market shops, and compound.Their phones were seized. His livestock, yam barn, and other valuable household items, including money, were looted.
“It is the turn of their family to produce the new Igwe of Ndebor Ishieke Autonomous Community. He declared interest in the stool, alongside four other contestants, including his stepbrother, Chief Awoke Nwiboko, who was eventually crowned around September 2024.
“Dissatisfied with the process that disqualified him and enthroned his stepbrother,whom he considers grossly unqualified he filed a civil suit and copied relevant authorities.
According to him, that was his only “crime”: seeking redress through the court of law”, he stated.
Nweke who is the state Chairman of Human Rights Defenders (HURIDE) disclosed that the organization in collaboration with other human right groups in the state, shall take all lawful and necessary steps to ensure that the victims get justice. .
“We have commenced investigation into the alleged human rights violations arising from this incident, with a view to ensuring justice is served.
“The group strongly condemns this disturbing development and calls on the perpetrators to immediately return the victim to his home, make adequate restitution, and tender an unreserved apology.
“In collaboration with the Human Rights and Conflict Resolution Centre (HRCRC) and other sister rights organizations within and outside the state, we shall take all lawful and necessary steps to ensure that justice is done.
“We shall also write to the Governor and other relevant authorities to draw urgent attention to this grave situation and demand decisive action to forestall further escalation and possible loss of lives”.
