He is no stranger to royalty, having grown up surrounded by it. He is deeply familiar with the customs and traditions of his Uvuru. The coronation of His Royal Highness Eze Sir Iheanacho Chinyereze Mbalewe as the Ezeoha III of Uvuru Autonomous Community in Aboh-Mbaise Local Government Area of Imo State is set to take place on December 27, 2025, coinciding with the community’s annual cultural celebration (Okwunakuwa Day) and just days before the 45th anniversary of Ezeoha I’s coronation, the first traditional ruler of Uvuru Ikedinairi, His Royal Highness Eze Reuben Ugwuegbulem Mbalewe, which occurred on January 1, 1980.
Ezeoha III is the sixth child of HRH Eze Reuben Ugwuegbulem Mbalewe, the late Ezeoha of Uvuru Ikedinairi, and his wife, Ugoeze Patience Ahunna Mbalewe. Eze Sir Iheanacho Chinyereze Mbalewe is the sixth of Eze Reuben U. Mbalewe’s 18 children and the first among six sons.
The joy his birth brought to the large family was immense, as they had eagerly awaited the arrival of the heir to the throne.
The Mbalewes hail from Umuorianu, Umuaghara Okwunakuwa, Uvuru. Young Acho, as Ezeoha III is affectionately known, began his primary education at Municipal Council School, Orogbum, Port Harcourt, but completed it at All Saints’ Primary School, Uvuru, following the family’s relocation to the village during the Nigerian Civil War in 1967.
The new Eze continued his secondary education at Ife Secondary School, Ife Ezinihitte, and Presentation Secondary School, Ogbaku, in Mbaitoli Local Government Area of Imo State.
He briefly worked with Union Bank in Lagos before being admitted to Temple University in Philadelphia, USA, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing and Economics. He then pursued an MBA in Management at Golden Gate University in San Francisco, California. Ezeoha III also took part in the National Youth Service Corps program in Kaduna State.
For many years, he was employed by IMS Ltd, a subsidiary of SCOA Nigeria Limited, and ABC Merchant Bank Limited, where he advanced from Credit Analyst to higher positions.