The Chairman of the Abia State Council of Traditional Rulers, HRM Eze Linus Nto Mbah, has denied allegations that he prevented a resident of Umuzomgbo, Arochukwu LGA, from burying his late wife and threatened legal action against an online blogger over what he described as a false and defamatory publication.
The monarch was reacting to a report published on July 15 by an online platform, Dream News, titled “Man Accuses Traditional Ruler of Stopping Wife’s Burial, Demands Justice,” in which one Mr Elijah Ndubuisi Amah alleged that the traditional ruler prevented him from burying his wife despite a court order.
Speaking with journalists, Eze Mbah described the allegation as “falsehood and a figment of the man’s imagination,” insisting that neither he nor the traditional institution obstructed the burial.
According to him, it was the leadership of Umuzomgbo community, comprising the chiefs and the President-General, that advised Mr. Amah to report himself to the police after suspicions arose over the circumstances surrounding his wife’s death.
He said when Amah allegedly failed to do so, the community reported the matter to the police for investigation.
The royal father said the matter remains under police investigation, adding that detectives requested an autopsy to establish the cause of death.
“The community reported to police for investigation to know the cause of the death. The news was everywhere, even the Mayor of Arochukwu LGA, the DPO and all security persons were contacted.
“The Arochukwu police now arrested Mr Elijah Amah and later sent him to the CID Umuahia.
“Elijah told the police that he has no money for autopsy. The money for autopsy was paid and he refused to go with the pathologist to do the autopsy.
“He informed the police that we don’t do autopsy in our community. This matter is still with the police as we speak”.
The traditional ruler also announced plans to seek legal redress against the publisher of the report, accusing the blogger of failing to verify the allegations before publication.
“For the so-called online reporter, who could not hear from me, or the police and even the community people but rushed to publish a one-sided report, I have briefed my lawyer. He will meet us in court”.
Reacting to claims concerning the Ezeogo stool in the community, Eze Mbah said the removal of the former holder of the title followed established traditional procedures.
“For Ezeogo title, it is very common in Igbo land. Each community has people that are responsible for producing any village head. In Umuzomgbo, Chief Anthony Aba, former Ezeogo, was removed after several warnings over misconduct.
“Those that installed him removed him based on our traditional rites. An acting Ezeogo is in place and the community is very happy and peaceful for close to a year now”, he said.
Meanwhile, the leadership of Ata Igbo Ukwu Umuzomgbo Development Union has backed the monarch, describing the allegations against him especially as aired on some radio stations on 15th July 2026 as baseless.
In a statement jointly signed by the President-General of the union, Mr Frank Kalu Okereke; the Secretary, Comrade James Ogwuo Mark; and the Deputy President-General and Chairman, Home Branch, Rev. Moses Azuma Ogbonnaya, the union said the traditional ruler had consistently discharged his responsibilities with integrity.
“We categorically state that these allegations have absolutely no basis in truth. Our Eze has always conducted himself with integrity and honour and any claims to the contrary are completely false.
The union said the issues raised by Mr. Amah were already before the police and the courts, urging members of the public to allow due process to take its course.
It also dismissed allegations that the monarch lacked transparency in the management of revenue from a telecommunications mast, stating that the accounts were presented to members during the union’s enlarged executive meeting held between April 4 and 6, 2026.
According to the union, Amah was not a member of any branch of the development union and therefore could not legitimately claim knowledge of the proceedings of the meeting.
The community leadership urged those making allegations against the monarch to provide credible evidence, warning against the spread of misinformation and defamatory claims.
Efforts to obtain comments from the police and Mr Amah on the latest claims were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report.
