Akwa Ibom Erupts: Impeachment Threat Sparks Violent Disruption

A meeting of councillors in the Ini Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State was reportedly disrupted on Thursday, leading to injuries for no fewer than 10 individuals, including legislative members, a journalist, and a cameraman. The incident, which occurred at Odoro Ikpe, the local government headquarters, involved alleged armed hoodlums who stormed the legislative session. The meeting had been convened by aggrieved councillors seeking to scrutinize the council’s financial records amidst serious allegations of financial irregularities and a pervasive lack of accountability against the council chairman, Hon. Inibehe Umah.

The councillors asserted that Chairman Umah had consistently refused to provide essential details regarding the council’s income and expenditure. Furthermore, they alleged that he had withheld statutory funds and allowances rightfully due to members of the legislative council. During a briefing held at the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Akwa Ibom State Council, the lawmakers accused the chairman of operating the council without transparency since he assumed office in October 2024. They claimed, "The chairman lacks the virtues of accountability and openness. He has abused office since coming into power."

Concerns were also raised that governance activities within the council were largely confined to social media publicity rather than actual service delivery. The councillors stated, "The chairman runs Ini Local Government Council alone and only functions on the pages of social media, Facebook and WhatsApp. If you come to the council, nothing is happening." Mr. Donald Usoroh, the Leader of the Legislative Council, who sustained injuries to his leg during the fracas, recounted that the chairman, Hon. Inibehe Umah, allegedly stormed the legislative chamber with dozens of hired thugs who then proceeded to attack councillors during their plenary session.

Surrounded by seven other councillors from the 11-member council, Mr. Usoroh emphasized that the lawmakers were assaulted while attempting to fulfill their constitutional oversight responsibilities. He lamented, "Today is a sad day for democracy in Ini Local Government Area and for legislators across Nigeria." Usoroh further clarified that, according to the council’s by-laws, the legislative council is empowered to examine and debate monthly statements of income and expenditure submitted by the chairman. Specifically, he cited Section 28, subsection C, which mandates legislators to examine and debate such financial statements, and Section F, which grants them powers to exercise oversight functions to enhance the smooth running of the council. He added that since their inauguration on October 9, 2024, Chairman Umah had prevented them from exercising these legislative powers.

According to Usoroh, the councillors had formally invited the chairman on June 2, 2026, through the council clerk, to appear before the legislative council and present comprehensive details of the council’s finances for a one-year period. However, instead of honoring the invitation, the chairman allegedly mobilized over 100 thugs to disrupt the legislative session. "Sadly, when we went there today for our plenary, which we usually have every Tuesday, the chairman, Mr. Inibehe Umah, mobilised over 100 thugs to come and harass us, beat us and desecrate our chambers," Usoroh alleged. The attack resulted in several councillors sustaining various degrees of injuries, and mobile phones belonging to lawmakers were reportedly damaged. Additionally, two cameras belonging to a local journalist were seized, and both the journalist and his cameraman were assaulted during the incident.

The aggrieved lawmakers have since appealed to Governor Umo Eno to intervene swiftly and call the council chairman to order. They warned that the ongoing tension and crisis within the council could significantly undermine peace and democratic governance within the local government area. Efforts to obtain a reaction from Chairman Inibehe Umah proved unsuccessful, as his telephone line was switched off at the time of filing the report. Consequently, the serious allegations made against him could not be independently verified, and the council chairman had yet to respond to the claims as of press time.