By Emeka Chiaghanam
Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, has pardoned
popular native doctor Chidozie Nwangwu, better known as “Akwa Okuko Tiwara Aki”, and appointed him Ambassador for Youth
Reformation in the state.
Soludo signed the order for Nwangwu’s immediate release on
Friday, following a visit to the Nigeria Correctional Service facility in
Amawbia, where the native doctor had been serving an 11-month prison sentence.
The governor also pledged to work with Nwangwu following his
release, signalling a shift from his previous status as a convicted inmate to a
public-facing role under the state’s youth reformation programme.
Nwangwu’s release followed his conviction in February at the
Awka High Court after he pleaded guilty to charges connected with the practice
of “Okeite” and related matters
under a plea-bargain arrangement.
The court had sentenced him to 11 months in prison and
ordered the destruction of his shrine at Oba, in Idemili South Local Government
Area, where the native doctor had operated.
He was among eight native doctors arrested in 2025 following
the enactment of the Anambra State
Homeland Security Law 2025, which provided a legal framework for action
against certain activities associated with insecurity and ritual practices.
Nwangwu faced charges relating to the promotion of money
rituals, quick wealth and the use of human parts for ritual purposes, according
to the account of his case provided by the state government.
After his conviction, he was taken to the correctional
facility in Amawbia to serve his sentence, subject to conditions that included
renouncing his fetish practice and committing himself to youth reformation.
Nwangwu accepted those conditions and had been serving his
sentence until Soludo exercised the prerogative of mercy, bringing his
imprisonment to an early end and assigning him the new ambassadorial
responsibility.
The development was announced by Dr Nelson Omenugha, Special Adviser to the governor on Youth
Reformation, in a statement issued on Friday following the governor’s visit to
the correctional facility.
Omenugha said the governor’s decision reflected the thinking
behind the state’s youth reformation programme, which he described as going
beyond punishment to include correction, restoration and giving people an
opportunity to take on a new purpose.
He thanked Soludo for extending what he called a hand of
mercy to Nwangwu and for giving him responsibility within the state’s youth
reformation effort.
“This is the heart of Youth Reformation: not just
punishment, but correction, restoration, a new purpose and a new Onye Anambra,”
Omenugha said.
Nwangwu’s appointment places him within a government
initiative focused on youth reformation, following a case that had drawn public
attention since his arrest alongside the other native doctors in 2025.
The governor’s decision also comes as the state continues to
pursue measures against practices associated with quick-wealth schemes and
ritual activities, while promoting what the administration describes as
constructive and productive choices among young people.
According to the statement, Soludo believes Nwangwu can work
with the government in advancing its youth-focused objectives following his
release from custody.
The appointment does not erase the circumstances of
Nwangwu’s conviction or the conditions attached to his sentence; rather, it
gives him a new public responsibility after accepting the terms imposed
following his guilty plea.
His case began under the state’s wider enforcement of the
2025 Homeland Security Law, which led to the arrest of eight native doctors and
brought renewed attention to allegations surrounding ritual practices and the
pursuit of sudden wealth.
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