Activist Seeks Federal Govt’s Intervention On Itsekiri, Urhobo Dispute

Rights activist, Chief Rita Lori Ogbebor, on Friday called on the federal government to urgently intervene in the territorial dispute between the Itsekiri, Urhrobo and Ijaw people.

He maintained that unresolved political and territorial disputes in Warri, Delta State could degenerate any moment into fresh violence and anarchy if urgent action is not taken.

The Igba of Warri Kingdom who solicited the federal government’s intervention at a press conference held in Lagos accused politicians of fuelling ethnic tensions among the Itsekiri, Ijaw and Urhobo people in the oil-rich Warri axis for political and economic gains.

Ogbebor pointed out that public statements by some Ijaw and Urhobo groups at a recent press briefing threatening the Itsekiri people in the full glare of everyone informed her call on the federal government to intervene and protect the Itsekiri people.

She said, “You may say the word genocide is harsh, but it is true. It happened before in this country. It happened in Delta State from 1997 to 2003.’’

Ogbebor, who traced the origin of the conflict to disputes over land ownership and the creation and relocation of local government headquarters in the Warri area, noted that court judgments, including Supreme Court decisions, had affirmed Itsekiri ownership of disputed lands.

“Every inch of land in Warri has a court judgment up to the Supreme Court. That is why they find it difficult to challenge us legally,” she stated.

She said the rival ethnic groups had cultivated the habit of resorting to violence after allegedly failing to succeed through litigation, saying the people were yet to fully recover from the violent Warri crisis of 1997 to 2003 that was triggered by the relocation of the headquarters of Ogidigben Local government.

“The local government was supposed to be in Ogidigben, which is gazetted, but it was moved elsewhere. That was the cause of the fight between 1997 and 2003,” she alleged.

According to her, the administration of former Delta State governor, Chief James Ibori, created local government wards in Warri without due process, saying the development laid the foundation for present conflict.

She called for a probe into the political decisions taken during that period, warning that failure to revisit the issues could plunge the region into another round of violent conflict.

“One day Nigeria will wake up and find that whole area in flames if these issues are not revisited. I am calling on the Nigerian government to give us protection. Give us a state or give us the kind of protection that will keep us from being wiped out,” she said.

Ogbebor, who demanded for the creation of a Warri State, insisted that the Itsekiri people historically existed as a distinct nation before amalgamation and met the constitutional requirements for state creation.

“We want Warri State. We were a nation on our own. Warri is viable and meets the conditions required for state creation,” she added.