The Arochukwu Traditional Council of Abia State has said the participation of Eze Eberechukwu Oji in the Southern Nigeria Traditional Rulers’ Council does not amount to subordination or make the Aro throne inferior to any regional traditional authority.
The clarification was contained in a statement made available to The PUNCH on Wednesday and signed by Udo Chijioke on behalf of the council and the Okpankpo Aro.
The statement followed claims suggesting regional subjugation after the monarch’s participation in the newly formed forum.
The statement noted that the council had followed “with keen interest the comments, opinions, and narratives circulating in sections of the media” concerning the monarch’s involvement.
It stressed that the throne of the Eze Aro “remains supreme within the Aro Kingdom and the wider Aro Nation across Nigeria,” adding that “it is inferior to none and superior to many, given the historic role of Arochukwu as the cradle of Igbo civilisation.”
It added, “At no time has Eze Aro subordinated his throne to any other traditional authority, nor will such a situation arise now or in the foreseeable future under our watch.
“Participation in a forum does not amount to submission. Dialogue is not subjugation. Engagement is not surrender.”
The council explained that the Southern Nigeria Traditional Rulers’ Council is a platform for consultation, peer learning, and bridge-building, not a constitutional structure that places one throne above another.
“For us, the council is not a constitutional arrangement that elevates any throne over another. Any interim coordinating role does not translate into permanent supremacy.
“To interpret it otherwise is to misread the context, intention, and structure,” the statement added.
Addressing concerns about cultural identity, the council acknowledged that southern Nigeria is culturally diverse and that the traditional system is historically decentralised and community-driven.
It, however, noted that decentralisation did not prevent strategic cooperation among traditional institutions.
The council also dismissed claims that the emerging body is a political tool ahead of the 2027 elections or a platform for cultural domination, describing such assertions as “speculative, hasty, and unsupported by any visible evidence or documented constitutional framework.”
It further reassured stakeholders that existing regional councils in the South-East, South-South, and South-West are not threatened by broader consultative engagements, noting that “collaboration and structural independence can coexist.”
“There is no subordination, and none will happen. There is no surrender of identity, and none is intended.
“There will be no acceptance of hierarchy over Igbo traditional institutions. There is only dialogue among equals in a multi-ethnic, multi-religious country in a changing world,” the statement said.
The development followed the reaction of the Ogbunechendo of Ezema Olo Kingdom in Enugu State, Igwe Lawrence Agubuzu, who publicly stated during the first National Traditional and Religious Leaders Summit on Health, held in Abuja, that he did not belong to the Southern Traditional Council.
Igwe Agubuzu disassociated himself and other South-East traditional rulers from the council.
Responding to his claim, the Ooni of Ife, who is also the permanent chairman of the council, described the membership of the council as voluntary, adding that while Igwe Agubuzu declined to join, Eze Aro is the Publicity Secretary of the Southern Nigerian Traditional Rulers’ Council.
Reactions, however, trailed the statement, as some concerned Igbo leaders claimed Eze Aro had been subjugated under the leadership of Ooni.
