The Chief Judge of Anambra State, Justice Peter Umeadi, has inaugurated a seven-man judicial panel to investigate allegations against the embattled chairman of Onitsha South Local Government Area, Lady Ann Chukwuneke, who was impeached last week by councilors of the local government over allegations of gross misconduct.

The 60-year old Chukwuneke, the only female out of the 21 local government chairmen in the state, was removed while she was away on official duty in Abuja.

The panel, which has three months to submit its report, has Mr. Linus Nweke, an engineer, as chairman, with Messrs Ifeanyi Nnaobi, Emeka Ogugua, Anselm Aforka, Charles Okafor, Paul Orjiewulu and Peter Ogudebe, who will serve as secretary.

Twelve councillors out of 17 in the local government had signed the notice of impeachment, listing the following as offences allegedly committed by Lady Chukwuneke:

*Allegedly siphoned monies accruing to the council through revenue collection which, according to section 12, sub-section 2 and section 13, sub-section 1 of the 1999 local government law, were made to be paid into revenue account of the council;

*Failed to render monthly statement of income and expenditure to the council for examination and necessary debate as provided in section 43 sub-section 1 (c) of the 1999 local government law amended in 2000;

*Neglected the decisions of the legislative council on 14th August, 2014 by giving assent to approval on 15th August to an illegal taskforce whose functions as described in the appointment letter, conflict with the functions established in the OSTA bill passed by the legislative council which resulted in great disorder in the entire council.

*Neglected the decision of the legislative council on the issue of revenue appointment when the councilors requested that the executive chairman should put on hold the signing of revenue collection authority paper until further clarification;

*Gave assent to contractual agreement of the council which contradicts the provision of the law as stated in section 2 (e) of the 1999 local government law; and

*Failed to account for the monthly funds for sanitation from the state government.

Inaugurating the panel Tuesday in Awka, the state capital, Justice Umeadi called on the members to follow the tenets of fair hearing, stressing that they must invite the embattled chairman to react to the allegations leveled against her in the course of carrying out their assignment.

Lady Chukwuneke had, while fielding questions from reporters recently, expressed surprise at her ordeal, saying that there had not been any issues between her and the councillors.

She said that being the only female local government chairman in the state, she know that she would face challenges, but did not know that she would be removed from office in such a manner.

The embattled politician disclosed that the State Governor, Chief Willie Obiano, had warned her three times in the past over some alleged offences that included the demonstration embarked upon by women in Onitsha over the abduction of Chibok girls and the allegation that she was collecting N50,000 from traders to build shops on roadsides in Onitsha South – an allegation which she denied.

News Express recalls that last week, a large number of women in Onitsha besieged the local government secretariat, brandishing placards, some of which read: “This is grave injustice”, “We reject this exercise in its entirety”, “They are doing this to her because she is a widow”, “NCWS please look into this matter urgently” and “Onitsha South widows say no to Lady Ann’s removal”.

The women, who were mainly widows, said Lady Chukwuneke was the only local government chairman in the state that took care of them, adding that removing her from office was a ploy to make them remember that they have no husbands to cater for them.

They wondered what offence the chairman committed, saying they were aware that some people from outside the local government were the ones controlling the revenue-generating businesses in the area.

•Photo shows Anambra Chief Judge, Justice Peter Umeadi.