News From Nigeria
The reason why we are so full of cynicism and nihilism is because we have not been able to dig deeply into what afflicts us and propound lasting solutions to our problems. All the solutions we have at this time were hurriedly foisted on the nation by a beleaguered and departing military.
When people compare Nigeria to other countries that are doing well, they tend to forget one big elephant in the room. Those countries they compare Nigeria to were never subjects of coup and counter coups. There was something very peculiar about the military regimes that ran Nigeria. They totally abrogated any form of democracy. From 1966 until 1999, Nigeria never had any parliament. As bad as Saddam of Iraq was, he did not abolish the parliament of his country when he took over. Citizens still had a modicum of debate on local issues. This was not the case with Nigeria. The military came in and threw away the culture of debate that was very robust in Nigerian nascent democracy.
In the first Republic Tafawa Balewa will address his constituency about the goings on in parliament. Other regional leaders did same and citizens were engaged. What is happening in our present situation is the harvest of the many years of military misrule. The present crop of politicians is the product of the military. They have no clues and are very imperious and distant from the people they serve. A majority of them are illiterates, clueless and products of forged certificates. Up from 1999, I am yet to see any representative or senator address their constituents about any solution to the myriads of problems facing the country. They are distant from the people who elected them and imperious like the military that selected them. They have no sense of civic responsibility. They are there to coast and collect their huge salaries and allowance and go home. The Nigerian parliament is a big joke. It is like Will Rogers Republic. Anytime they make a law, it is a joke and anytime they make a joke, it becomes a law.
As citizens, we have to think deeply on how to get rid of this odious system without involving the military in our body politics. A military regime is always a curse on any nation. The military cannot solve any problem. It is very unfortunate that prominent Nigerians succumb to this foolishness and visit people who were nothing but soldiers of fortune. Anyone who gained power through the military in Nigeria was a soldier of fortune who in a democratic system will be a nonentity.
Buhari was a military leader. He became clueless as an elected leader. David Mark spent more than twenty years in the Senate, and nobody knew what he stood for. I gave these examples so that Nigerians can see that the Military have no solutions. They are all about bravado and subterfuge. Nigerians must articulate the way forward. The reason why there is cacophony of ethnic reductism is that Nigerians don’t feel represented at any level. All the tiers of governments in Nigeria are sham. The leaders are not properly vetted, and they are very distant from the citizens that they are supposed to serve. They are imperious. They use their security to clear citizens from the roads they did not construct. We have to think deeper.
The present constitution cannot be workable in Nigeria no matter how much we tinker with it. That constitution is a product of military Regime that alienated and infantilized the citizens. They say it is an American style Constitution. That is a big lie invented by the military. The similarities between US constitution and the Nigerian constitution are night and day. There should be no comparison. The American constitution frees the citizens; the Nigerian constitution imprisons the citizens. The Nigerian constitution caters to a unitary executive while the American constitution is a federal document. To suggest otherwise is a big fraud.
In order to extricate ourselves from the imprisonment of this document, we must evolve a system in which every citizen will feel represented in a multicultural and multiethnic society. This is what I advocate and what I think will work for a country like Nigeria.
Nigeria already has six geopolitical zones. Each geopolitical zone should elect its President and Vice President who will represent each region at a council of presidents at Abuja. This council of presidents will be for a period of six years. The presidency will be rotated among these six presidents every year. The substantive president for each year will represent Nigeria at international Fora for that year. Their vice presidents will be the liaison and head of regional parliament. For any legislation to be law, two third must accent. The Senate should be abolished, and Reps should become senators for a term of five years.
The various houses of assemblies should be collapsed into the regional assemblies. The title of governor should be changed to state Coordinator who will be Chair of the state contingent at the Regional assembly and be answerable to the citizens. Most of these state assemblies are doing nothing apart from influence peddling.
A situation where the representatives of the people cannot be challenged in open debate is odious. This is what we have now. When each region sees their representation at the center, the agitation for North Central, East and west will evaporate and Nigeria can concentrate on the business of building Nigeria. All the aforementioned can be tinkered with by scholars and we can have a workable constitution.
Another aspect that will be relieved is the heavy logistics involved in trying to elect one candidate throughout the country. Now people will just elect who will represent them at the center. Let political scholars get involved in this project instead of lying to ourselves that we are practicing true democracy. We also must eschew this culture of Nihilism and engage in rebuilding the edifice that was destroyed by the military.
DR AUSTIN ORETTE WRITES FROM HOUSTON TEXAS
BY DR AUSTIN ORETTE
The Problem of Nigeria is the Fulani. Solving this problem is the beginning of a new Nigeria. This is why every Southerner and Middle belt citizen must take a stand against Fulani colonization. The Fulani people are very retrogressive.
Lord Lugard in his memoirs refers to them as fatalistic people without any ideals. He cautioned that these people are severely diseased and any society attached to them will never see any progress and will live to regret it.
Nigerians are in a serious state of national regret because of this ethnic and theocratic minority. All the indices of misery in the North which the Fulani colonized through theocratic subterfuge are stratospheric. The Fulani people have been running apartheid system in Northern Nigeria, using the Hausas as door mats. These are people who want leadership without any responsibility.
For too long, they took Nigeria for a ride by grafting themselves to the Hausas that they are oppressing. Throughout the Sahel, the Fulani who is a nomad has no reputable domicile. They are not in charge of their homestead in the Senegambia and Futa Jalon. They were never tolerated there hence Usman Dan Fodio left with his zealots for greener pastures.
Since their conquest of the Hausa kingdoms in the North, they have been on a race back to the first century. The fifty years that their armies ruled Nigeria has always been a journey to yesterday with theocratic decrees. They ruled Nigeria for fifty years and the most ignorant, stupid and parasitic people are from the North. It is okay to dominate with knowledge and technology. The only thing these brutes gave to the north is sharia education. The whole North has been turned into a domicile of religious bigotry and Muslim terrorists. No people with this kind of bankrupt mentality should be allowed access to power in a modern state.
We are in an era where people in other climes are talking of quantum computing and these theocratic Fulani people tell the Hausas that the best education is memorizing the Quran and it is okay to kill anyone who disagrees with their medieval incantations. They send their own children to the best schools with stolen money from Nigeria. This is odious. There is nothing the Fulani people achieved in Nigeria that is based on merit.
Recently about a thousand Fulani people who have no basic education were flushed out of high position in the Nigerian Central bank. A people less than ten percent of the population of Nigeria with no skill and education are over represented in every major Nigerian ministries and parastatals. They have corrupted the judiciary and made Nigeria a lawless society. No Fulani got anything in Nigeria by merit. Whatever wealth they have were bestowed on them by the Fulani military that ran Nigeria aground. They are not religious people. They use religion to create the subterfuge necessary for the enthronement of their mediocrity. What kind of people will ask for a naval headquarters in a desert terrain? This is not the mindset that can build or develop any nation. This is why I ask every Nigerian to understand that all the economic and security issues in Nigeria today are created by the Fulani. They are nomadic people and they use subterfuge and entropy to make advancement. These are deliberate ploys to make educated southerners to subscribe to the Japa syndrome perennially and thin the army of the opposing camp. They use religious gobbledygook to recruit the people they deliberately kept ignorant. This is the time to stop them and save the nation. All the issues that are plaguing Nigeria today is caused by the Fulani people. Late Muhammadu Buhari was president for eight years and did nothing about security or the economy because it was not in the interest of the Fulani. He used Nigerian money to construct a rail to Niger Republic. This is who they are. We must stop them and make them understand they don’t own Nigeria. This is why we must curtail their influence that is out of proportion to their numbers, education and technological know-how.
They took Nigeria into OIC and smuggled Sharia into a constitution of a multiethnic and multi religious nation. This is sacrilegious and beyond pardon. The British colonized Nigeria and left. The Fulani people colonized the North and never left. It is time to disband their apartheid regime in the North. All Southerners must unite on this. An enlightened leadership can never emerge in Nigeria if the Fulani problem is not solved. This is a task that must be done. We must make this their last Jihad.
DR AUSTIN ORETTE WRITES FROM HOUSTON TEXAS
INTRODUCTION
On June18, 2025, an Urhobo friend forwarded an article by one Mr. Zik Gbemre on the above subject. I thanked him for it. I also thank Mr. Gbemre for penning the said article, because he has broadened the debate of Okpe Union’s demand for the recognition of Okpe as a distinct ethnic nationality, outside the territory of the Okpe Kingdom. Thus, I shall disregard his insulting outbursts against my person. We have to focus on the main ISSUE, which is the retrieval or restoration of the independence of the Okpe Nation. Let us exchange facts based on historical and cultural evidences instead of trading personal insults and falsifying History.
THE ISSUE
Students of Nigerian history are familiar with the British colonial policy of fusing diverse ethnic nationalities into one. Outside the contemporary Delta State, this British policy was more pronounced in the “Hausa-Fulani” phenomenon which most Nigerians, until recently, assumed to be one ethnic nationality. We are living witnesses to the awakened consciousness of the Hausas as they engage in an existential struggle to extricate themselves from the “Hausa-Fulani” appellation. It was this same British policy that birthed the false classification of Okpe as “a clan of Urhobo”. At its infancy they referred to Urhobo as “Sobo”. Contemporary Okpe
nationals were born and raised in this falsity especially as they relate externally.
This classification has robed Okpe of its ethnic identity, as contributions by Okpe nationals are credited to the Urhobo and not to the Okpe nationality. This cataloguing illegally extinguished Okpe ethnicity and institutionalized the assimilation of the Okpe nationality by the Urhobo.
For the benefits of Mr. Gbemre and his cohorts, it is pertinent that we recall the British fusion of Okpe with the Urhobo by providing the following excerpts from the website of the Okpe Union:
“According to R. E. Bradbury, a renowned British scholar, (The Benin Kingdom and the Edo-Speaking Peoples of South-Western Nigeria, 1970, p.128) the classification of Okpe among the Urhobo was influenced by geographic contiguity and the expediency of British colonial administration “rather than a linguistic basis.” He concluded that “Okpe is …closer to the Edo of the Benin Kingdom than are the Urhobo dialects proper”. In the 1930s the Okpe was placed in “Western Urhobo” and the Isoko in “Eastern Urhobo.” By administering the Okpe under the Urhobo umbrella, the British set in motion a process that led to the gradual but a systematic erosion of Okpe ethnicity which was erroneously subsumed under the Urhobo. Over time, this grave error of British colonialism assumed a “truth” of its own as the outside world and several Okpe began to refer to the Okpe as “Urhobo.” This falsity was inherited by post-colonial Nigerian governments. A similar fate befell the Isoko of “Eastern Urhobo.” However, unlike the Okpe, their western counterpart, the Isokos were able to extricate themselves from the Urhobo appellation and restored their independence as a distinct ethnic nationality”.
“Notwithstanding the long years of interregnum, and the attempts by some powerful leaders to establish mini kingdoms, the Okpe people remained together as a Nation, thus giving significance to the slogan “Okpe Agbamua eni” (the unity of Okpe is an Elephant or Okpe Unity enables the lifting of an elephant). The establishment of the Okpe Union on May 16, 1930, in Lagos, galvanized the Okpe people into greater resolve. The Okpe Union, the oldest registered ethnic organization of Delta State, and in Nigeria, became the mouth piece of the Okpe Nation and a defender of Okpe Identity. It championed the fight for the restoration of the Okpe Monarchy and succeeded in doing so when the British colonial regime approved the coronation of the second Orodje of Okpe Kingdom, Esezi II on January 1, 1945. Though the monarchy was to rotate among the four ruling houses, it was however decided by the Ruling Houses that a prince from the Esezi Ruling house be
crowned the Orodje, as a way of appeasing the gods for the curse placed on Okpe
Kingdom by Esezi l”.
It is instructive to note that, during the Midwest and Bendel State regimes era, when the current Edo and Delta states were together as one state, the colonial blurring of Okpe ethnic identity receded tremendously as Okpe people became practically recognised as a people with a distinct language. This paved the way for the use of the Okpe Language for public newscast and language requests and magazine programmes in the then Bendel Broadcasting Service Radio and Television, separate from the Urhobo Language. This was continued in Delta State in the first years of the military regime. Unfortunately, when the first Civilian Government of Delta State headed by Governor Felix Ibru came on board, there was established a policy of officially recognizing five Ethnic Groups in Delta State which were, in alphabetical order, Anioma, Ijaw, Isoko, Itsekiri, and Urhobo. The Ikas, Ndokwas (Ukuanis) and the Enuanis were to express or parade themselves as Anioma people; the Okpe and Urhobo people were to express or parade themselves as Urhobo people while the Ijaw, Isoko and Itsekiri retained their identities that they already had in the defunct Bendel State.
However, as the James Ibori Government established the DESOPADEC Law of Delta State in 2007, Ndokwa was officially recognised as an ethnic nationality in the DESOPADEC Law which rendered the previous ethnic nationality policies obsolete. In fact, the Delta State Government followed up by issuing a letter of apology to the Ndokwa Nation for previously omitting its name from the list of recognized ethnic nationalities. Unfortunately, the Okpe people did not seize the opportunity to protest the omission of Okpe. By the time Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan came on board, the struggle concentrated on having a Commissioner for the Okpe Nation in the DESOPADEC Commission scaled through when the House of Assembly moved a motion to dissolve the Commission. Governor Uduaghan then reconstituted the DESOPADEC Board to include an Okpe Commissioner in the person of Chief Joseph Egigba. In 2015, the Ika people also succeeded in having the DESOPADEC Law amended to reflect Ika ethnic nationality in the DESOPADEC Law. One implication of the recognition of an ethnic nationality in the DESOPADEC Law is that the group becomes entitled to an Executive Director and a Sub-Budget. In terms of slots, projects and impact on the area, the difference cannot be overemphasised. Today, as Okpe which is bigger than several of the recognised ethnic nationalities in the DESOPADEC, and even has more quantum in petroluem and gas production is not recognised under the law.
EXPOSING THE WRONGFUL CLASSIFICATION
“Even though the Okpe succeeded in resuscitating the Okpe Monarchy, the struggle for the reinstatement and recognition of its distinct ethnic nationality is an ongoing task that the Okpe Union is spear-heading in collaboration with other Okpe organizations in the sensitization of the population and the Government of Delta State”. (https://okpeunionng.net/okpe-kingdom-history/)
For more details on the distinctiveness of Okpe ethnic nationality vis-a-vis the Urhobo, Mr. Gbemre and his cohorts are advised to consult the Keynote Address by HRM Orhue l, Orodje of Okpe Kingdom, entitled: “TRADITION AND GOVERNANCE IN OKPE KINGDOM: A KEYNOTE ADDRESS DELIVERED ON SEPTEMBER 1, 2007 BY HRM ORHUE 1, LL.M., CFR, mni., ORODJE OF OKPE KINGDOM AT THE 3RD ANNUAL CONVENTION OF THE OKPE UNION OF NORTH AMERICA HELD AT MARRIOTT HOTEL, COLLEGE PARK, MARYLAND, MD.USA,
AUGUST 31 – SEPTEMBER 03, 2007”(https://okpeunionng.net/tradition-and-governance/)
In the above referenced Keynote Address, HRM Orhue l, Orodje of Okpe Kingdom succinctly stated as follows:
“Okpe is a unique ethnic nationality. It has distinctive roots in ancient history, tradition, culture, customs and language.” He added: “Our people are rooted in migration from the Bini Kingdom. This historical experience is similar to most other ethnic nationalities of the Western Niger Delta. Of all these nationalities however, Okpe History, language, tradition, and culture are closer to those of Bini which form part of the Edo group of languages.”
Dr. (Prince) Isaac Sunday Mebitaghan, JP., (A Brief History of Okpe Kingdom, New Era Publications, Benin City, Nigeria, 2001.) and Rev. Dr. Charles E, Osume (The Okpe People, Mosogar Antioch Baptist Church, Mosogar, 2nd Edition, 2022) provided detailed analyses on the origins of the Okpe people that clearly affirmed the distinctiveness of the Okpe people as belonging to the same ancestry and language unlike the Urhobo ethnic nationality.
In its study on the History of the Okpe People of Delta Central, Udogun Okpe stated emphatically that “Okpe is indubitably known to be a distinct and autonomous Kingdom, an ethnic entity from its beginning. The people and their language are distinct and are named after their progenitor, Okpe, whose four sons (princes Orhue, Orhorho, Evbreke, and Esezi – OIN) founded the present day Okpe Kingdom”. (Udogun-Okpe, THE OKPE PEOPLE OF DELTA CENTRAL SENATORIAL DISTRICT, DELTA STATE, NIGERIA, 2020, p. 2.)
As the mouth piece of the Okpe Nation, Okpe Union has been consistently steadfast in its advocacy for the restoration of Okpe independence as a distinct ethnic nationality and not a sub-group or clan of the Urhobo or of any other ethnic nationality in the world. This position on the retrieval of Okpe independence was strongly restated by Okpe nationals during the 95th Anniversary Celebrations of the founding of the Okpe Union on May 16, 2025 in Lagos. For example, in his comments on the subject at the 95th Anniversary Celebrations, AVM Frank Ajobena (RTD), former Military Administrator of Abia State, pointedly reiterated the distinctiveness of Okpe ethnic nationality. While he rightfully recognized the Urhobos as our neighbours, he however reminded them that “the identity of a people is fundamental to their emancipation.” He continued: “I don’t know why our brothers are apprehensive of Okpe establishing itself as a nationality. We do not share a common ancestry with the Urhobo people. We do not share the same language with the Urhobo”.
The Okpe language is very different from the Urhobo, just as the Urhobo is different from the Ukuani, and the Itsekiri is different from the Isoko; even though they may all trace their respective origins to Benin Kingdom. However, due to their proximity and century-old relationships, it is normal to find commonalities between all these diverse ethnic nationalities. However, it must be stressed that, the cosmological bond that binds an Okpe to a fellow Okpe is not the same that binds the Urhobo people. For example, when an Okpe addresses another Okpe as “omizu mẹ,” the salutation carries a more profound sociological and historical significance than the Urhobo’s “omoni.” By addressing an Okpe as “omizu mẹ,” the speaker is evoking a deep spiritual bond with his/her fellow Okpe citizen that underlines their common ancestry as the children of Prince Okpe. This is absent in the Urhobo, for example. Therefore, we challenge Mr. Gbemre and his cohorts to provide historical evidences to their claim that “Okpe is Urhobo” and that we share the same ancestry and language.
DISCUSSING THE ISSUE
Mr. Gbemre’s contribution to the debate on the restoration of Okpe as a distinct ethnic nationality is so banal that it is shameful to even consider it as a “contribution”. But, since that is the best he can offer we will include it in our response. He writes:
“I have observed the inciting utterances of one Prof Igho Natufe and gullible cheering fans at an anniversary of the Okpe Union in Lagos, where he chose to resurrect the reckless insult he has been leading some lunatic fringes within Okpe to smear the larger Urhobo nation in the name of fighting for Okpe as an ethnic nationality independent of Urhobo nation.” For him and his cohorts, the demand for the recognition of Okpe as a distinct ethnic nationality is a “reckless insult” by “some lunatic fringes within Okpe to smear the larger Urhobo nation”. This is reminiscent of the dark days of colonialism and apartheid in the colonies and South Africa, as European colonialists and the white racist regime of South Africa reacted to the demand for independence by Africans. Perhaps the next action Mr. Gbemre and his cohorts will contemplate is to employ guns and dogs to truncate Okpe’s agitation for independence.
His defense that “Okpe is Urhobo” is just to say that “Okpe is not a tribe. Okpe is one of the kingdoms or clans of the Urhobo tribe or ethnic nationality. The Okpes were under the Western Urhobo Division in the past”. This is a gross falsification of History. Firstly, we challenge Mr. Gbemre and his cohorts to provide historical evidences to their claim that “Okpe is Urhobo” and that we share the same ancestry and language. Secondly, they should educate us on the establishment of the “Western Urhobo Division”. Was it a division established through a bilateral agreement between the Okpe and the Urhobo? Or was it a division imposed by the British Colonial Government?
It is important to point out one remarkable move by the Okpe people before the Independence of Nigeria. Between 1953 and 1954, the Okpe Union (supported by HRM Esezi II, the Orodje of Okpe Kingdom) wrote to the Western Regional Government in Ibadan that the Okpe Area of Western Urhobo Division should be joined with Sapele Municipality to form an Okpe Division. Though the application did not scale through because of the consideration of the power balance of the Delta Province in the estimation of the then Premier of the Western Region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, the move was a strong indication of the resolve of the Okpe people that they have always been a distinct ethnic nationality.
DISTRACTING FROM THE ISSUE
In his diatribe, Mr. Gbemre wondered into territories unrelated to the Okpe Union’s advocacy for the recognition of Okpe as a distinct ethnic nationality. In his attempt to prove to his readers that he knew me, he demonstrated a complete lack of knowledge of me. Let us review his piteous references to me, as his subject of enquiry. He wrote:
“For an insight into this deep seated hate campaign, this mischievous Professor Natufe was elected with the identity, Igho Natufe by Urhobo Historical Society (UHS) as Vice President until 2004 when he was forced to resign after his attack on Urhobo prominent personalities, including Chief Benjamin Okumagba and others in a London Event during his presentation”. If Mr. Gbemre had conducted a thorough research on the UHS, he would have discovered that it has no positions of “President” and “Vice President”, but Chair and Deputy Chair.
He further displayed a gross lack of knowledge of his supposed subject by stating that:
“After his sack as UHS Vice President, he deleted “Igho” from his name and resorted to bearing Omajuwa as first name then. Just recently, same “Igho” he discarded has become his second name. He is now known as O. Igho Natufe, deliberately veiling Omajuwa, his Itsekiri identity”. I challenge Mr. Gbemre to provide his evidence of when I allegedly “deleted Igho” from my names and “just recently” restored Igho. It is very shameful of him to knowingly engage in such a misinformation. If he had taken the pain to consult the UHS website (http://www.waado.org/EditManageCom.html), he would have known that my name has always been O. Igho Natufe as listed in the Editorial & Management Committee and Officers’ columns. I am very proud of my role during my tenure in the UHS.
It is interesting that Mr. Gbemre is obsessed with me bearing an Itsekiri name. In case he and his cohorts are unaware, my maternal grandfather was an Itsekiri (from Obotagharenda) while my maternal grandmother was an Urhobo (from Okpara Inland). My paternal grandparents were both Okpe (from Sapele and Amuokpe, respectively). My paternal grandfather had four wives: three Okpes and one Urhobo (from Orogun). For his information, three of the four children (my uncles and an aunt) from the Urhobo wife were given Itsekiri names, including Uncle Dr. Victor Amoma Natufe, the current Most Senior Okakuro of the Okpe Kingdom. There are hundreds of thousands of Okpe and Urhobo that bear Itsekiri names, irrespective of whether
they have blood relationships or not with the Itsekiri. We have Okpe families that bear Itsekiri names, including Okakuro Onoriode Temiagin, whose surname was in fact changed from Ofotokun. I wonder why Mr. Gbemre has a headache with Okpe nationals bearing Itsekiri names. He should be concerned with the number of Urhobo nationals that bear Itsekiri names.
Unable to discuss the historical, political and cultural roots of the rationale for the recognition of Okpe as a distinct ethnic nationality, Mr. Gbemre resorted to attacking certain political leaders he described as “political power brokers and political jobbers” that are “beautified with chieftaincy titles” in Okpe Kingdom. Now he, a non-Okpe wants to dictate to the Okpe Monarchy on the prospective candidates suitable for chieftaincy titles in Okpe Kingdom.
He claims without any proof that: “Igho and Natufe are pure Urhobo names. The name ‘OREROKPE’ which is the ancestral headquarters of Okpe Kingdom/Clan is Urhobo language/name meaning the Town of Okpe”. He obviously does not know that Igho, for example, belongs to the Edoid group of languages, including the Bini, Esan, Isoko, Okpe, and Urhobo ethnic nationalities, respectively. Similarly, Orerokpe is an Okpe name or expression just as there is “OREDO” in Benin. Given his knowledge on the origins of names, we expect him to also declare “Okoro” as a name exclusive to the Urhobo. He should also confirm that “Zik” is an Urhobo name.
RESOLVING THE ISSUE
In addition to the fact that the Okpe people have their distinct ancestry, history and language (which Urhobo people do not understand at all), the world view of the Okpe people has always been that they are a distinct people. This is reflected in how they name products indigenous to them. Their own food, pomade, soap, medicine, etc are named with the word or description “Okpe” at the end.
Despite his condemnation of the agitation for Okpe independence from the Urhobo appellation, it is significant to note that Mr. Gbemre also recognized the right of Okpe Nation to extricate itself from the false Urhobo nationality. He agreed that “Okpe has right to even ask to be a state of its own in the Nigerian federation. Nothing wrong with that”….
IN LIEU OF A CONCLUSION
The study of ethnic relations in Nigeria or ethnic relations in any Nigerian state, including Delta State is fundamentally a study in international relations anchored on the principles of peaceful coexistence and good neighbourliness. Adherence to these principles is imperative for the system or sub-system to function harmoniously. While competition between the ethnic nationalities helps to spur societal development, it is vital that inter-ethnic competition does not lead to a breakdown of the system. Thus, each component of the system in Delta State, listed in alphabetical order, Aniocha, Ika, Ijaw, Isoko, Itsekiri, Ndosumili, Oshumili, Okpe, Ukwuani, and Urhobo are required to adhere to the principles of peaceful coexistence and good neighbourliness while promoting their respective nationality interests.
The ethnic mosaic of Delta State presents us an opportunity to construct and maintain a vibrant and successful multi-ethnic polity. The tendency of any ethnic nationality attempting to impose itself as a great power in Delta State or in any of the Senatorial Districts must not be allowed, as it is a recipe for a collapse of the system.
In the Delta Central Senatorial District which we, Okpe, share with the Urhobo, the policy of the Okpe Nation is strictly based on mutual respect, good neighbourliness, and peaceful coexistence. This also informs Okpe Nation’s relationships with the other ethnic nationalities. Okpe Nation shall define its policy based on the principles of peaceful coexistence, and will never permit any other ethnic nationality to intrude in our policy formulation and implementation. We firmly believe that it is only on the basis of this construct, and a strict adherence to it by all ethnic nationalities, that peace and development can be attained in Delta State.
We urge all ethnic nationalities in Delta State to collaborate with the Okpe Nation in building a stronger and peaceful Delta State.
Prof. O. Igho Natufe President General Okpe Union Worldwide
June22, 2025
The Okpe Union at the weekend called on politicians and persons who have been given the opportunity to occupy various political leadership positions all over the country to remember that their primary responsibility is to ensure the welfare of the citizens and stability of the Nigerian polity.
The Union also urged elected government officials to face their roles squarely rather than being distracted or fixated on the next round of elections.
The position of the Okpe Union on the state of the Nigerian Nation was presented to the press by the President General of the Okpe Union (Worldwide), Prof Igho Natufe.
‘’There is no basis for the electorate to consider re-electing incumbents who do not deliver on the promises they have made to their constituents which constitute a social contract. It is with good governance which in turn translates to the improved well-being of the people that increases the confidence the people would have in the democratic process which we must acknowledge, has not been very high amongst the people of Nigeria in recent times.
The Union advised the National Assembly not to wait until close to the next General Elections before embarking on whatever electoral reforms for the polity.
‘’ In time past, whenever the tinkering of the Electoral Act is delayed and brought too close to another round of General Elections, political interests have created tensions which influence the review and amendment processes that the outcomes usually do not reflect the desire of the electorate for a template that ensures credibility of the Electoral Process’’
The Union further counseled the National Assembly and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to work in synergy to ensure a timeous review of our Electoral Laws and regulations to ensure that the votes of Nigerians in all parts of the country truly count.
The Orodje of Okpe, Orhue 1, on Friday drew flak from Okpe Union leaders who described his Urhobo agenda as a betrayal of the Okpe Nation.
‘’There are two contending trends in contemporary Okpe polity. Okpe Union represents the first trend that agitates for the recognition of Okpe as a distinct ethnic nationality and not a sub-group of any other ethnic nationality in Nigeria. The second trend, currently championed by HRM Orhue l (after he opted to abandon his earlier position), regards Okpe as Urhobo.
The President General, Okpe Union (Worldwide), Prof Igho Natufe commented on the contending trends in Okpe polity during the 95th anniversary of the founding of the Okpe Union.
‘’This is a reflection of the current position of HRM Orhue l, which, for selfish reasons reverted to the British colonial policy that classified “Okpe as Urhobo”, in order to secure the support of the Urhobos in his aspiration to be the Chairman of the Delta State Traditional Rulers Council’’.
The Union took a swipe at Orhue 1, accusing him of working against the campaign of Okpe as a distinct ethnic group.
‘’While we are here today in Okpe House, Obalende, Lagos, the officially recognized Registered Office and headquarters of the Okpe Union, celebrating the 95th Anniversary Celebrations of the Okpe Union, a pack of renegades are said to be in Udogun Hall, the Palace of Okpe Kingdom, claiming to be celebrating the 95th Anniversary of the Okpe Union, but are in reality, according to their own posters, celebrating Okpe as “the largest Urhobo Ethnic Nationality”.
The Union recollected an encounter of the Arc. Ralph Karieren-led National Executive Council of the Okpe Union in 2010 with His Royal Majesty where Orhue 1 wanted the Union to retract a statement published by the Okpe Union that Okpe was a distinct Ethnic Nationality.
‘’The union then had published that position so as to prepare the ground for a demand for the Delta State Government to recognize Okpe as a distinct Ethnic Nationality under the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC). But that dream was truncated as HRM Orhue I got the then Unu Okpe to sign a counter publication in the Vanguard Newspapers to the effect that Okpe was Urhobo. To put it bluntly, this position is a betrayal of Okpe Identity and a betrayal of the Okpe Nation’’.
The Okpe Union vowed to continue its advocacy of Okpe Identity, irrespective of the internal and external hostile forces.
‘’We count on the resilience and steadfastness of our members across the several branches in Nigeria and in the Diaspora as well as various Okpe groups which identify with the struggle for the recognition of Okpe as a distinct Ethnic Nationality and language. The panic that enveloped the Palace in the past couple of days regarding the listing of our Keynote Speaker demonstrates the hollowness of the renegades’’.
Leading engineering construction company, Julius Berger Nigeria PLC has been recognised as a Most Influential Corporate Voice by the Nigerian Institute of Public Relations, NIPR. The credit came at the National Spokespersons Awards 2025 which wrapped up the just ended 2nd Nigeria Spokespersons Summit jointly organised by the Institute and the Federal Ministry of Information and National Orientation, held in Abuja, Wednesday.
According to the Chairman of the Awards Planning Committee, Mr. Segun McMedal who announced the awards, Julius Berger joined two other corporate organisations to clinch the worthy recognition as influential corporate voices in the 2024/25 year under review.
He listed the adjudication criteria to include: ability to communicate clearly, concisely, and effectively, ensuring messages are easily understood, possession of skill in tailoring communication to different media channels while maintaining message integrity, frequency and quality of media engagements, including interviews, press conferences, press releases, and op-eds and ability to craft compelling narratives that effectively communicate the organization’s objectives and achievements.
Besides, the recognition, he added, was also based on proficiency in leveraging emerging communication channels, tools, and technologies to enhance engagement and outreach as well as NIPR’s evaluation of how effectively the organisations PR objectives were met, measuring the overall success and influence of communication efforts.
Thus, being media savvy and the organisation’s visibility in the media, story telling and framing ability, the use of new technologies and the outcome and impact of the effort among others helped in determining the influence of our corporate voices of choice, he said.
In a related development, Julius Berger’s Media Relations Manager, Emmanuel Isibor won NIPR’s Outstanding Spokesperson, Crisis Management, (Private Sector) Award at the event. Citing the rise and positive visibility of Julius Berger throughout 2024 till date in the media inspite of the challenges in the sector and the general public as well as regularity of the organisation’s media reports across the print, broadcast and online platforms, McMedal said, the Award was very deserving even as he urged all winners to continue to up their professionalism in the discharge of their duties as worthy ambassadors of the Institute.
In his short remarks ahead the Awards ceremony, President of the Institute, Dr. Ike Neliaku, fnipr, said, the summit leads to the awards. This is part of that whole process of remembering spokesperson so that you can help a voice. You have a platform to yourself. Not only that you come together to interact to learn to understand the new things going on in the industry. It is also for you to be able to showcase yourselves through crisis.
Declaring the event open on the first Day of the Summit, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, described the NIPR as a compelling imprimatur of professionalism in Nigeria’s public relations practice.
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Abbas Tajudeen, emphasised the urgent need for ethical leadership communication to strengthen Nigeria’s democracy, saying, “after 25 years of uninterrupted democracy, Nigeria has reached a point where our communication of leadership and policy must reflect the maturity of our democratic process.”
He warned that the spread of misinformation undermines democratic values, adding that, public relations should not be viewed as spin or propaganda but as a vehicle for truth. When communication is rooted in integrity, citizens are empowered to make informed decisions and hold leaders accountable.
The Minister of Information, Alh Mohammed Idris Malagi, fnipr, his predecessor, Alh. Lai Mohammed, CON, fnipr, former Ogun State Governor, Chief Segun Osoba, CFR, CON; former Minister of Culture and Tourism, Chief Edem Duke, fnipr; and the Chairman, House Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Hon. Akintunde Rotimi Jr were among the participants at the two-day event hosted by the President of the NIPR, Dr. Ike Neliaku, fnipr.
The Joint Congress of the Radio, Television, Theatre and Arts Workers Union of Nigeria (RATTAWU) and the Amalgamated Union Public Corporations, Civil Service, Technical and Recreational Services Employees (AUPCTRE) on Thursday expressed deep concerns over the troubling state of affairs at the National Theatre Complex.
‘’At the inception of the renovation of the National Theatre, the then Honourable Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, assured all stakeholders, including organized labour that the renovation would be completed within eighteen months and that no single job would be lost as a result of the process. These assurances were meant to inspire confidence, safeguard institutional integrity and protect workers’ rights during the transformational phase of this iconic national asset. However, five years after the commencement of the said renovation project, we regret to inform you that these promises have remained largely unfulfilled and the realities on the ground are now completely at variance with the assurance given’’
They also condemned the denial of access to designated offices within the National Theatre complex.
‘’This continued restriction has not only affected administrative productivity but has also subjected our members to psychological discomfort, professional displacement and operational stagnation. The absence of access to official workspaces is in direct contradiction to earlier commitments and undermines the fundamental principles of fairness and workplace inclusion’’
At a world press conference in Lagos, the Labour Unions lamented the sidelining of the management of the National Theatre, particularly the General Manager/Chief Executive Officer.
‘’The General Manager is often not informed about high-level visits and official tours within the complex. A recent example is the visit of the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the delegation recently. Such visits occurring without the knowledge of the substantive management, represents a serious breakdown in institutional protocol, coordination and transparency. This anomaly has become recurrent and portends a threat to the autonomy and operational integrity of the management structure of the National Theatre’’.
The stance of the unions was presented to journalists in Lagos by Comrade Ishola Adejumo, RATTAWU Chairman, Lagos State, Comrade Bimbola Oluyeye, RATTAWU Secretary, Lagos State, Comrade Olatunji Omodolapo, AUPCTRE Chairperson and Comrade Omotola Babatunde, AUPCTRE Secretary.
‘’The National Theatre is the nation’s heritage and it will be not be ceded to any person or groups as some have chosen to frame it. That the renovation is to restore the National Theatre back to its former glory and it will cost N25, billion to do that. That no single job will be loss as more jobs will be created’’ the unions recollected the words of Alhaji Lai Mohammed.
They said workers were abandoned in the course of the memorandum of understanding signed by Lai Mohammed and the then Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr Godwin Emefiele.
Particularly, the unions decried the inhibition of internally organized programmes despite official payments.
‘’Equally troubling is the recurring refusal to allow National Theatre Staff and departments to organize internal programmes within the complex, even when such programmes have been duly approved and paid for through the Treasury Single Account (TSA). This deliberate suppression of legitimate institutional programing not only affect revenue generation but also contradict the very essence of the National Theatre as a hub for cultural expression and creativity’’
Community leaders in Delta State on Friday denounced the new height of perfidy in the Niger Delta region.
‘’Leaders of the Sapele Okpe Community recently embarked on a campaign of name calling and misinformation’’
They also accused the Sapele Okpe community leaders of concocting lies about the Alema of Warri, High Chief Emmanuel Oritsejolomi Uduaghan and the Special Adviser to the Delta State Governor on Peace Building and Conflict Resolution, Chief Edwin Uzor.
‘’ Their reference to the Alema of Warri, an administrative chief of Abigborodo, Ugbekoko and several riverine communities in Warri North and Sapele Local Government Area, Chief Emmanuel Oritsejolomi Uduaghan, is defamatory and grossly disrespectful’’.
In a response to the vicious campaign of falsehood of Chief Onoriode Temiagin, Mr Azan Friday and other members of the Sapele Okpe and Ugbukurusu Communities, the notable Itsekiri leaders described the calls for the removal of the Special Adviser to the governor of Delta State on Peace Building and Conflict Resolution by the Sapele Okpe Community as baseless.
‘’A night to the visit to locus in quo, SEPLAT energy in collaboration with the Sapele Okpe Community concocted a narrative of false claim of intelligence that there might be armed conflict with a view of preventing the visit of the committee to cover up the obvious facts. When they failed in that ploy, SEPLAT decided to avoid the joint visit. Instead of acting neutral in this investigation, they are fully in league with the Sapele Okpe and Ugbukurusu communities as they were seen in a sea truck boat belonging to SEPLAT together, even when the takeoff point of the visit was well communicated and it was Abigborodo Jetty and the area of investigation is the SEPLAT DREDGING SITE, the communities of Abigborodo, Obotie and other surrounding communities and SEPLAT operational base. This visit by the investigation committee could be done with or without parties. They may even choose not to visit and rely on the visitation report of DSS and the inter-ministerial investigation committee that had physically visited. No matter how it is seen, the visitation had all parties and could not be labeled as biased’’.
The Itsekiri leaders in a press statement issued by the Chairman and Secretary of Abigborodo Management Committee, Hon Misan Ukubeyinje, ESQ and Mr Victor Atseponu in Abigborodo accused the Sapele Okpe Community leaders of trying to cause confusion and breakdown of law and order in Delta State.
‘’All issues surrounding the Okpe Sobo forest reserve have been settled and the decisions have been gazetted in Government White Paper Official Document No. 1 of 2021. Their claim of incursion into the forest reserve is baseless as they have no land in the reserve. However, what is in contention here is the area of Operations of SEPLAT particularly the new area of drilling which the state peace building and conflict resolution is investigating. What is the Business of Sapele Okpe Community in the riverine areas bordering Abigborodo, Obotie and Ugbekoko communities? It is also unbelievable that Ugbukurusu which is over 15 kilometers away is laying claim of ownership in Areas of land in Abigborodo, land surrounded by Abigborodo, Obotie, Ugbekoko and Aja-Okotie’’.
The notable Itsekiri leaders urged the Executive Governor of Delta State to ignore and discountenance the false cry of wolves by the Sapele Okpe Community.
‘’We as a community, the bonafide owner of the land and Host Community to SEPLAT WEST LTD by all intents and purposes are prepared and ready for any other visit as the features, land, water and distance of our community to SEPLAT remain constant and we know the result of all visitation and even subsequent visitation to the Area in contention will remain the same, come rain or sun’’.
They also urged the Governor of Delta State and all well-meaning Deltans to disregard the content of the press statement of the Sapele Okpe Community and allow the investigation of Chief Edwin Uzor, the Special Adviser on Peace Building and Conflict Resolution and his team to do their job without fear, favour or interference.
‘’Abigborodo community from time immemorial are owners of land covering Area of operations of Seplat including Ugbekoko Community housing Seplat jetty, several oil wells, the flow stations and virtually all the drilling locations of SEPLAT WEST LIMITED. The Abigborodo Community had made several entreaties to SEPLAT to be recognized as Host Community all to no avail. While the agitation was ongoing, SEPLAT decided to enter into other areas of our land to commence preparation for new oil wells . We brought it to the notice and urged them to recognize us as the Host Community and stop the illegal trespass into our land. In response, SEPLAT claimed we are the only impacted community, not the Host Community. Upon our refusal to accept the impacted community unknown to the Petroleum necessitated, our consequent action’’
Community leaders in Delta State on Friday denounced the new height of perfidy in the Niger Delta region.
‘’Leaders of the Sapele Okpe Community recently embarked on a campaign of name calling and misinformation’’
They also accused the Sapele Okpe community leaders of concocting lies about the Alema of Warri, High Chief Emmanuel Oritsejolomi Uduaghan and the Special Adviser to the Delta State Governor on Peace Building and Conflict Resolution, Chief Edwin Uzor.
‘’ Their reference to the Alema of Warri, an administrative chief of Abigborodo, Ugbekoko and several riverine communities in Warri North and Sapele Local Government Area, Chief Emmanuel Oritsejolomi Uduaghan, is defamatory and grossly disrespectful’’.
In a response to the vicious campaign of falsehood of Chief Onoriode Temiagin, Mr Azan Friday and other members of the Sapele Okpe and Ugbukurusu Communities, the notable Itsekiri leaders described the calls for the removal of the Special Adviser to the governor of Delta State on Peace Building and Conflict Resolution by the Sapele Okpe Community as baseless.
‘’A night to the visit to locus in quo, SEPLAT energy in collaboration with the Sapele Okpe Community concocted a narrative of false claim of intelligence that there might be armed conflict with a view of preventing the visit of the committee to cover up the obvious facts. When they failed in that ploy, SEPLAT decided to avoid the joint visit. Instead of acting neutral in this investigation, they are fully in league with the Sapele Okpe and Ugbukurusu communities as they were seen in a sea truck boat belonging to SEPLAT together, even when the takeoff point of the visit was well communicated and it was Abigborodo Jetty and the area of investigation is the SEPLAT DREDGING SITE, the communities of Abigborodo, Obotie and other surrounding communities and SEPLAT operational base. This visit by the investigation committee could be done with or without parties. They may even choose not to visit and rely on the visitation report of DSS and the inter-ministerial investigation committee that had physically visited. No matter how it is seen, the visitation had all parties and could not be labeled as biased’’.
The Itsekiri leaders in a press statement issued by the Chairman and Secretary of Abigborodo Management Committee, Hon Misan Ukubeyinje, ESQ and Mr Victor Atseponu in Abigborodo accused the Sapele Okpe Community leaders of trying to cause confusion and breakdown of law and order in Delta State.
‘’All issues surrounding the Okpe Sobo forest reserve have been settled, and the decisions have been gazetted in Government White Paper Official Document No. 1 of 2021. Their claim of incursion into the forest reserve is baseless as they have no land in the reserve. However, what is in contention here is the area of Operations of SEPLAT particularly the new area of drilling which the state peace building and conflict resolution is investigating. What is the Business of Sapele Okpe Community in the riverine areas bordering Abigborodo, Obotie and Ugbekoko communities? It is also unbelievable that Ugbukurusu which is over 15 kilometers away is laying claim of ownership in Areas of land in Abigborodo, land surrounded by Abigborodo, Obotie, Ugbekoko and Aja-Okotie’’.
The notable Itsekiri leaders urged the Executive Governor of Delta State to ignore and discountenance the false cry of wolves by the Sapele Okpe Community.
‘’We as a community, the bonafide owner of the land and Host Community to SEPLAT WEST LTD by all intents and purposes are prepared and ready for any other visit as the features, land, water and distance of our community to SEPLAT remain constant and we know the result of all visitation and even subsequent visitation to the Area in contention will remain the same, come rain or sun’’.
They also urged the Governor of Delta State and all well-meaning Deltans to disregard the content of the press statement of the Sapele Okpe Community and allow the investigation of Chief Edwin Uzor, the Special Adviser on Peace Building and Conflict Resolution and his team to do their job without fear, favour or interference.
‘’Abigborodo community from time immemorial are owners of land covering Area of operations of Seplat including Ugbekoko Community housing Seplat jetty, several oil wells, the flow stations and virtually all the drilling locations of SEPLAT WEST LIMITED. The Abigborodo Community had made several entreaties to SEPLAT to be recognized as Host Community all to no avail. While the agitation was ongoing, SEPLAT decided to enter into other areas of our land to commence preparation for new oil wells. We brought it to the notice and urged them to recognize us as the Host Community and stop the illegal trespass into our land. In response, SEPLAT claimed we are the only impacted community, not the Host Community. Upon our refusal to accept the impacted community unknown to the Petroleum necessitated, our consequent action”
Similarly, leadership of Ugbekoko Community of Delta State at the weekend said the defence being put up by the Chairman of Sapele Okpe Community, Chief Onoriode Temiagin that Ugbekoko land belongs to Sapele Okpe Community because of a market built there lacked merit.
‘’This is the stock in trade to claim land by any means. Their illegal incursion into our land with the connivance of SEPLAT will be resisted forcefully within the ambit of the laws of our land’’
The leadership of Ugbekoko community in a statement said virtually all petroleum upstream operations of SEPLAT Sapele West Limited were in Ugbekoko land.
‘’This includes the flow station, jetty, well heads, pipeline and the new drilling site subject of the investigation arising from protests of Abigborodo, Obotie and Ugbekoko communities’’.
The statement signed by Henry Mabamue, Chairman, Sunday Omalor, Secretary and Rieco Tsoluwa, Public Relations Officer of Ugbekoko Community Management Committee challenged the claim of bias raised by the Sapele Okpe Community on the visit to the locus in quo by the Chief Edwin Uzor led committee.
‘’The leadership of Sapele Okpe, Ugbukurusu and representatives of SEPLAT were together in a sea truck boat during the visit. They deliberately decided to go on their own voyage. Their request for the removal of Chief Uzor and his team is a ploy to cow the investigation panel and call on the involvement of the Executive Governor of Delta State to their favour against the truth’’.
The leaders urged the Delta State Governor, Rt Hon Sheriff Oborevwori to ignore calls by the Sapele Okpe and Ugbukurusu communities for the removal of Chief Edwin Uzor and his team.
‘’They never wanted the panel to visit and see for themselves the true state of affairs. We as a community are ready and prepared to be part of any other visit that may be scheduled in the course of this investigation’’.
Particularly, the leaders threw back the challenge at the Sapele Okpe Community to check its records and be specific on the Okpe Sobo Forest Reserve.
‘’The Sapele Okpe Community do not have any land in the Okpe Sobo forest reserve as the 1,200 hectares cutout released to them sold by them to CEDDI Corporation Limited. The said Judicial Commission of Enquiry found out that CEDDI Corporation Limited attempted to lay claim in excess of the 1,200 hectares by another 760.63 hectares vide a gazette legal Notice No 18 of 2005 purporting to amend the survey description in DSLN of 1999 which de reserved 1,200 hectares to Sapele Okpe Community. This was done in tacit connivance of the people/leadership of Sapele Okpe Community.
According to Ugbekoko leaders, the said judicial commission of enquiry found and made pronouncement on the failure of the oil companies operating in Ugbekoko land to pay royalties to Ugbekoko Community, the owners of the land.
‘’This raises the question, having ceded all lands given to them, where lies claim of lands in and around the forest reserves by the Sapele Okpe Community? The Judicial Commission of Enquiry actually mandated the state Peace Building and Conflict Resolution and the State Advisory Council to investigate the matter. From the decision of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the Okpe Sobo Forest Reserve contained in the white paper, the visitation of Chief Edwin Uzor led peace building and conflict resolution team is legally authorized to carry out the investigation even without the prompting of any interested party be it SEPLAT or Abigborodo Community’’.
The leaders said ‘’the existence of Ugbekoko predates the advent of the Okpe Sobo forest reserve referred to then as the Ukpe Sobo native administration Reserve Constituted by Order No 33 of 1933 during the rule of the British administration in Nigeria’’.
‘’We are descendants of Aribiowu from IFON who migrated to the farm and found the Ekoko Farm fertile enough. The said farm was given to him by the Abigborodo people through a lease agreement dated 24th May 1913 executed by Pa Edun and Okomama on behalf of Abigborodo Community. When Ugbekoko was forcefully included in the Okpe Sobo Forest reserve without the notice of our fore-fathers and the Abigborodo people, the head lessors, it was the effort of Chief Okonedo, the then Alema of Warri who engaged the British Administration with several letters that caused the release from the forest reserve by the Delta State Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the Okpe Sobo forest reserve and given effect to by the Delta State Government in the consequential white paper’’.
They also stressed the efforts of their landlords that tremendously assisted in the discharge of farmers arrested and charged to court for farming on the forest reserve without authority of the administration of the forest reserve.
‘’We further state that the Delta State Judicial Commission of Enquiry investigated the case of force and legal encroachment of Ugbekoko land by the Sapele Okpe Community and indeed Oton people”
In the same vein, top leaders of the Obotie Community on Monday denounced the contention made recently by the Sapele Okpe and Ugbukurusu communities in Delta State.
‘’The Government white paper on the report of judicial panel of enquiry into the Okpe Urhobo (Okpe Sobo) Forest Reserve and other ancillary matter relating to deserved portion(s) and encroachment, the panel held that Sapele Okpe Community claim of the ownership of the Okpe Urhobo (Ukpe Sobo) Forest Reserve cannot be substantiated as several communities were living in the Area prior to its constitution and some of these communities were not of Sapele Okpe extraction and they exercised acts of ownership over the land they occupied’’.
They also condemned the horrifying distortions of the exploration area, cheap blackmail, vituperations, name calling and attack by the Sapele Okpe Community.
‘’This is just to disrupt the peaceful resolution process that culminated in the inspection/assessment/visits to affected areas. Representatives of the Sapele Okpe Community, Ugbukurusu and SEPLAT were seen in boat during the visitation that was conducted by the Special Adviser to the Governor on peace building and conflict resolution. The sack calls made by Chief Onoriode Temiagin is not only laughable but an attempt to shift the goal post in the middle of a match as there is no justifiable reason to make such calls. The question that begs for an answer is whether Obotie Community is within the 5 (kilometres radius to the exploration area’’
In a statement titled: Re-press briefing granted by one Chief Onome Temiagin (Chairman, Sapele Okpe Community), one Mr Azan Friday (Chairman, Ugbukurusu Community) and others, crass display of ignorance, hogwash and their unrepentant nature of peddling lies – setting the record straight, the Obotie leaders said Chief Onoriode Temiagin and his co-travellers spoke from ignorance when they ascribed exclusive ownership of the Okpe Sobo Forest reserve to the Sapele Okpe Community.
‘’We make bold to say that the Obotie Community is among the communities that are not of Okpe extraction but have been in the Okpe Sobo forest reserve prior to the constitution of the reserve. The legal status of Obotie People as it concerns the ownership of Obotie Community is casted in gold from time immemorial and has been given judicial approval in the ear 1925 by the Supreme Court of Nigeria in the case of Muwunum vs Achydoma in suit No MW/452/53 BETWEEN Jewiragba& Co vs Jonomi. The court further ticked the judicial scale in favour of Obotie people as it concerns the ownership of Obotie Community’’.
The statement was signed by Pa Simeon Brikinn, Chairman, Pa Peter Ogholaja, Vice Chairman, Mr George Facah, Secretary of Obotie Elders Council, Engr. Samuel Atiwe, Chairman, and Hon Fanemigho, Secretary, Obotie Management Council.
The leaders accused the Sapele Okpe Community leaders of peddling lies.
‘’It is not in our nature to reply neither is it our character to glorify crass display of ignorance, hogwash, inordinate narrations and unrepentant attitude of lies peddling that were ignobly displayed by Chief Onoriode Temiagin and others but it is charitable to educate members of the public hence it becomes imperative to set the record straight as it concerns the stentorian lies and sinister narratives that were copiously repeated in the said press briefing’’.
The Itsekiri leaders came out heavily on the Okpe communities for the unjustifiable, reckless, inordinate and senseless attacks melted on the Special Adviser to Governor Sheriff Oborevwori on peace building and conflict resolution and his team.
‘’These nefarious actions are not new to us. A typical example is the inability of Ugbukurusu Community to open her defense for more than 14 (fourteen) years in a trespass suit that was filed against her (Ugbukurusu Community) by Obotie Community. Instead, the Ugbukurusu Community has been resorting to physical attacks, trying to make the case to start denovo and other immature displays of technicalities’’.
They described the Okpe Sapele Community as a casual blackboard for juvenile graffiti.
‘’The Special Adviser to the governor have been unbiased and true to an amiable peaceful resolution that represent the true state of things as they affect SEPLAT operations and the impact they have on all impacted communities hence Chief Onoriode Temiagin and his people resorted to playing shenanigans even when the report on the investigation is not yet out’’.
They also frowned at the attempt of Okpe leaders to foist their position on SEPLAT.
‘’The Sapele Okpe Community in league with SEPLAT have been hatching and orchestrating all sorts of sinister plans to undermine the Obotie Community from getting her benefits as a community that is impacted by the activities of SEPLAT. SEPLAT has recruited the leadership of the Sapele Okpe Community to frustrate the innocuous and legal claims of Obotie Community hence this kind of ill motivated press briefing that is credited to Chief Onoriode Temiagin and is likes’’.
Particularly, the top Itsekiri leaders accused the Sapele Okpe Community of spreading falsehood.
‘’Another question that begs for an answer is how did Chief Onoriode Temiagin and his like become spokespersons for SEPLAT that warrants making submission for SEPLAT? Again, these exhibit heinous conspiracy between Sapele Okpe Community and SEPLAT to deprive Obotie Community from her legal rights, privileges and benefits that are accruable to her as her impacted community to SEPLAT operations’’.
They also called for the protection of Governor Oborevwori against the oppression of the leadership of Sapele Okpe Community and Sapele Local Government Area.
‘’At this point, we are passionately requesting the protection of Governor Sheriff Oborevwori against the oppression of both the leadership of Sapele Okpe Community and that of Sapele.
The leaders implored the public in General and Governor Sheriff Oborevwori to ignore the ignorable, callous, sinister and reckless narratives and allegations that are being peddled by Sapele Okpe Community
‘’Just like our ancestors before us, we are determined and in our righteous might, we shall continue to defend the Obotie Community which is our Ancestral Home from the likes of SEPLAT and the Sapele Okpe Community. Chief Onoriode Temiagin subtle threat of war is not new to us as Obotie Community has been a victim of a collective onslaught and aggressions that were poured on our community by premeditated and combined forces of the entire Sapele Okpe Community. The Obotie Community survived it and we will continue to defend the Obotie Community with legal means within the ambit of the law.
‘’These ignoble calls that are credited to Chief Onoriode Temiagin and his group of warmongers bring to mind the judgement of king Solomon as it concerns the biblical story of the two women laying claims to a living baby as posted in 1 Kings 3: 16-28. Chief Onoriode Temiagin and others have forgotten that Governor Sheriff Oborevwori is a governor of, by and for all Deltans and not a governor for, by and of the Okpe people. Chief Onoriode Temiagin lacks the capacity to drag the exalted Office of Governor of Delta State into petty tribal/ethnic tension as the Governor is a father of all Deltans and all tribes in Delta State. We are confident that His Excellency Governor Sheriff Oborevwori will not act on the utterance of Chief Onoriode Temiagin and his likes who are behaving like football players who are anticipating defect to a stronger team’ ’the statement added.
The hope of Ndigbo in Lagos was rekindled on Thursday as business leaders of South-East extraction reiterated their choice of Seyi Tinubu as the next governor of Lagos State.
‘’The 2027 governorship election lies in the hands of the electorate. They have the ultimate say in election matters’’
The South-East body also advised the leader of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, Primate Elijah Ayodele, detractors and willful critics to steer clear of Lagos politics.
‘’Certainly by 2027, Primate Ayodele and others like him, will acknowledge the people’s verdict and the present position of Igbo Entrepreneurs within and outside the shores of Nigeria’’
A statement in Lagos by the President of the Ndigbo Entrepreneurs in Nigeria and Abroad, Chief Hon Linus Obi described the comments of Primate Ayodele as diversionary, misleading and part of a larger plot to market his candidate.
‘’It is very clear from his misguided statements that Primate Ayodele has suddenly forgotten his past failed prophesies on football in Europe and politics in Nigeria. Perhaps Primate Ayodele has been out of touch with political realities which may explain why he seems not to have noticed the current direction of Lagos politics and development’’
The Igbo businessmen and women applauded the good people of Lagos for refusing to be hoodwinked by the tissues of lies, propaganda and fake prophesies manufactured and disseminated by people seeking attention and recognition in the country.
‘’We wish to reiterate that Seyi Tinubu is the choice of the stakeholders in Lagos State’’
The Igbo entrepreneurs praised Seyi Tinubu for his humility, diligence and respect for constituted authority.
‘’The governorship role requires a successful entrepreneur with wisdom, honesty, empathy, courage, restraint, humility and discipline. Seyi Tinubu is decent, kind-hearted, approachable, generous and very bright’’
The pan-Igbo group is out to vigorously champion the cause of Igbo businessmen and women in a manner that is just, fair and constitutional.