Udu: Oghior Community Calls On Monarch To Resign

Elders of Oghior Community in Udu Local Government Area of Delta State have called on the Ovie of Udu Kingdom, HRM Owhorhu 1, to resign from the throne, saying that his installation several years ago was a product of fraud since he was not proper person to be crowned.

The elders, in a statement signed by Pa Agidi Munugo, Chairman, Elders Council and Mr Freeborn Ghaghara, Chairman, Oghior Advisory Council respectively, disclosed that all the processes from the ‘purported’ selection and crowning as Ovie of Udu Kingdom were executed by those he was now referring to as strangers.

The elders explained that the current Ovie of Udu Kingdom was not duly selected by the Owhorhu ruling house and the Evwrirhe sub-clan of Udu before presentation to Udu as monarch.

‘’In the gazette of Udu Kingdom which is in our possession, it is stated clearly that for a king to emerge, he must be duly nominated by the Ruling House of the aspirant.

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“In fact, Barr Emmanuel Delekpe was never in contention. The now late Dogene Erhierhi was the man duly nominated as Ovie of Udu by the Owhorhu ruling house and ratified by the Evwrirhe sub-clan comprising of Adadja, Uloho and Owhorhu ruling houses.

‘’However, prior to the presentation of Dogene, Barr Emmanuel Delekpe was secretly crowned in the House of Chief Edward Sido, the then Otota of Udu Kingdom at Ovwian town. Today, according to statements credited to the Ovie and his already published accursed book on Udu history, most Udu Communities are strangers.

“By implication, Barr Emmanuel Delekpe was crowned by a stranger in the person of Chief Philip Arigbe of Owhrode; he was crowned in the House of another stranger, Chief Edward Sido in Ovwian; the Udu Traditional Council was inaugurated by a stranger, Chief O.A Orugbo, former Executive Chairman of Udu Local Government Council in year 2000, and the oath of office administered on UTC members by another stranger, the late Justice T.K Dugbo of Owhrode. Therefore, Barr E.B.O Delekpe should resign and stop parading himself as Ovie of Udu as everything regarding his ascension to the throne is a product of fraud’’, the Oghior elders posited.

The Oghior elders maintained further that of the seven ruling houses in Udu Kingdom, each of the ruling houses ought to be represented in the UTC by four Chiefs to be elected from their house ‘’but today, the UTC is made up of about 10 members as many members have died and the Ovie do not want to replace them so he can appropriate the 5% deduction from allocations to Udu for his personal interests.

“His greed is driving his actions and he wants everybody labelled as strangers so he could sit on Udu commonwealth all by himself. He wants to create a royal family for himself and wants his children to succeed him against the rotation arrangement in the Udu gazette hence he now tag everybody stranger of offspring of a female child of Udu.

‘’But his cup is now full. We have very credible evidences to prove in Court that he is a product of fraud. He was not prepared for the throne and because he was smuggled in, we thought he would tread with caution so we could let sleeping dogs lie. We are going to court to revisit his coronation to ensure he is kicked out for the proper thing to be done. The illegality of his coronation is affecting him and he is operating like a man under the curse of the gods’’, the elders said.

The statement added that Oghior people are known for civilized approach to public issues and has long believed in the rule of law.

‘’The Sheshare family of Fifia in Oghior community won a land dispute against the Nago family of Oginibo in 1908 in a judicial action at Igbogidi Court a long time before the fore-fathers of Delekpe was born and that was before Nigeria was amalgamated in 1914. How could young Barr. Delekpe call us strangers?

‘’Let Barr Emmanuel Delekpe tell us whom Oghior met in the land he founded when our fathers came here. What history said our fathers fought wars to acquire the lands we occupied? Which of the 10 Communities that we share boundaries with came to the area before Oghior? However, all we can concede is that everybody, including Barr Delekpe, is a product of migration.

‘’Other Udu Communities whom Delekpe tagged strangers can remain silent but not Oghior. if he dares deny his outburst against Oghior at his Aladja palace, he cannot deny his book on Udu history now in our possession that was edited by an Uvwie man

‘’Let the Aladja monarch tell the whole world how his fathers came to settle in the land he now claim to be his own. Did they not migrate from Benin? Udu is a woman, we shall soon tell who the husband of Udu is.

“Let the Courts resume for legal battles on these issues to resume. In the meantime, Barr Delekpe should simply resign since he lacks the capacity to lead Udu in peace and unity,” the statement added.