Late Odimegwu Ojukwu
Emeka Osond
Note Do not click this link (+18)=Do not click this link (+18)The will read last week by the counsel to the late Ikemba of Nnewi, Odimegwu Ojukwu, has continued to elicit reactions, as his lawyer, Mr. Emeka Onyemelukwe, said Monday that one of the late warlord’s sons, Mr. Emeka Ojukwu Jr., lied when he said he (Onyemelukwe) was not his father’s lawyer.
Emeka Jnr. had dismissed the will, saying that it was not his father’s own and that the de facto will was in the possession of the family.
He also claimed that he was not aware that Onyemelukwe was his father’s counsel, describing the will read at the Enugu High Court as fake.
However, providing evidence on his long-standing relationship with the late Ojukwu with documents, Onyemelukwe insisted that he prepared the late Biafran leader’s will in July 2005.
He said that Ojukwu had no other will and that the one read in court last week was incontestable.
“It was a blatant lie for Emeka Ojukwu Jr. to say that he did not know me and that I was not his father’s lawyer, when I was the person that prepared the legal documents for Ojukwu’s commercial property at No 26 Sokoto Road, Onitsha, yielding millions of naira, which Emeka Jr. is managing and collecting rent.
“I was also the lawyer that handled Ojukwu’s case against the Federal Government from the High Court to the Supreme Court.
“I was also the master of ceremony (MC), when Emeka Jr. wedded at the Holy Ghost Cathedral, Enugu to the daughter of the late Chief Cyprian Ekwensi.
“That wedding’s reception was held at Nike Lake Hotel, with Justice Iguh, formerly of the Supreme Court, as the chairman of the occasaion.
“Before Ojukwu’s will was read last week, I was the one that sent text messages to all the parties concerned, including Emeka Jr.
“I got his two telephone numbers from Mr. Val Nwosu, Ojukwu’s nephew.
“I also sent the text to Ebele who is Ojukwu’s daughter from Stella Onyeador, and Mark Ezemba who was Ojukwu’s best man during his wedding with Bianca. So the pretence by Emeka that he was not informed about the reading of the will does not hold water.
“His claim that I was not his father’s lawyer is also not true. On July 24, 2009, I was the person that registered the Power of Attorney on Ojukwu’s property at No 7 Forest Crescent, Enugu.
“I am also in possession of the Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) of Ojukwu’s landed property contained in the will,” he said.
Twenty four hours after the will of the late Ojukwu was read, Emeka Jnr. had alleged that the will read by Onyemelukwe was fraudulent, stating that the lawyer was not his father’s counsel but the private counsel to Ambassador Bianca Ojukwu, wife of the late warlord.
He claimed that he had a copy of the original will written by his father and not what he termed the “fraud” presented as Ojukuw’s will.
SOURCE Thisdayonline.com
