Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Soludo, has revealed that 23 indigenes of the state are currently on death row in Indonesia for drug-related offenses. Soludo shared this information on Wednesday, April 9, 2025, during a meeting with members of the All Progressives Congress who defected to the All Progressives Grand Alliance in support of his re-election campaign.
He explained that fake native doctors deceive young people into believing that charms can help them evade security checks when smuggling drugs. “Go to Indonesia, 23 Ndi Anambra are on death row there for drug-related offences,” he said. “These native doctors tell them that charms can make airport scanners go blind when they carry drugs.”
Soludo stressed that many young people have fallen victim to these deceptive practices, leading to the imprisonment of several Anambra indigenes abroad. He warned that anyone found promoting such false claims would face arrest. The governor also criticized the so-called native doctors, pointing out that many of them are unable to improve their own lives, citing the example of a native doctor whose son works as a waiter in Nnewi.
“Why didn’t he use his powers to make his son a millionaire?” Soludo asked. “These individuals deceive young people by promising wealth without effort, even claiming you can get rich through rituals like ‘oke Ite’ (money rituals).”
Soludo lamented that such beliefs are damaging the mindset of young people in the state, with some spending their days in beer parlors, hoping to get rich quickly. He clarified that his government is not opposed to traditional religion but is committed to stopping those who promote dangerous practices in the name of spirituality.
“We are not against traditional worshippers,” he said. “What we oppose are those who engage in harmful practices and deceit. The older generation of traditional practitioners were upright, believing in justice and morality. The new breed of criminal native doctors are deceiving our youth, and we will not allow it to continue