Okuama PG’s Death In Military Detention: Urhobo Is Rudderless

Precisely on 12th November 2024, I had advised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to impress on the military to unconditionally release Professor of Physics and President General of Ewu, Arthur Ekpokpo and other Okuama leaders of the Ughelli South LGA.

My plea fell to the deaf ears of Tinubu who should understand he is leading a civilian government and not a military regime where human rights are trampled upon with impunity.

Today, the President General of Okuama, James Achovwuko Oghoroko, who was arrested along with Prof Ekpokpo has died from reported torture in the military cell.

The Nigerian military has no such powers to detain civilians without court trials? Any alleged offence committed by civilians against the military should be left for the Nigerian Police with the statutory duty to investigate and prosecute in the law courts.

Besides, irrespective of the perceived crimes, the Okuama leaders being held cannot be guilty as alleged. They are presumed innocent till proven otherwise by a court of law.

The Okuama crises that led to the killings of soldiers, Okuama indegenes and burning down of Okuama community is the product of a dysfunctional society.

The murder of soldiers and the undisclosed number of civilians they killed in reprisal is unfortunate. However, till this moment, the said ‘peace mission’ of Soldiers to Okuama that led to the killings remains doubtful.

Why should soldiers leave their oil assets guarding beat in Utorogu Gas Plant for Okuama on a doubtful ‘peace mission’? There is no relationship between Okuama community and soldiers in the first place.

Again, this was same military that admitted by their own intelligence gathering that the real mastermind of the killing of soldiers was an Ijaw militant who they said invaded and killed the soldiers for military disruption of his oil theft escapades.

The militant leader is not related to Okuama, does not live there. They traced him to a community in neighboring Bayelsa state. They burnt his house. Since then, with all their boast, the military has not been able to catch the invisible militant. This was after invading, burning down and killing every resident on sight.

I’ve said it that the Nigerian military is only strong against the weak. I bet if Okuama were an Ijaw town, the military wouldn’t dare the petty show of force against the community and larger Ewu kingdom.

Ijaws would have risen to destroy oil and gas assets and disrupt operations in the area and government will rest the matter because violence is the language government understands.

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First, the military humiliated Ewu monarch, arrested him like common criminal. Now the Chairman of Okuama has died in military cell with Prof Ekpokpo and other community leaders still languishing in their custody. Nobody knows their condition as we speak.

But do I blame undemocratic and heartless Tinubu? Urhobo has become rudderless. We have a UPU leadership that is a praise singing arm of Delta state ruling PDP which imposed them as UPU leaders. All Ese Gam Owe and his scam of UPU do is worship any Delta governor in power. Ese Gam Owe and his entire UPU EXCO are cards carrying members of the PDP.

Since Okuama started, through the invasion and destruction of the community and dehumanisation of Okuama people, Ese Gam Owe and his scam of UPU EXCO have not found any voice to speak against the ethnic hate against Okuama.

At the helms of Delta government, Governor Sheriff Oborevwori would rather play spokesman for the military, endorsing all their atrocities against Okuama as the right thing to do. The military only invited him into Okuama after trying desperately to bury their atrocities.

But even hard as they tried, there were still corpses buried in the rumbles when Oborevwori visited Okuama after the vengeful military destruction. Till date, an Urhobo governor couldn’t admit that innocent civilians died in the Okuama crisis. And because he must be seen on the side of governor, UPU under Ese Gam cannot speak against the military’s rights abuse against the Okuama people because they must not speak against the governor.

When I say Urhobo has become rudderless. Is it our beggarly monarchs who couldn’t raise a voice. In the heat of the humiliation of Ewu monarch who was thrown into military cell like a common criminal, Urhobo greedy and hungry ‘Ivie’ , including those who call selves Pastors, queued to be ferried to serve Egbesu in Gbaramatu Kingdom. It took Sen Ned Nwoko, a non Urhobo to negotiate the release of Ewu monarch.

Tomorrow, UPU under Ese Gam Owe will go and worship Governor Oborovwori at Ovwiamuge in the name of UPU Day. We call for a boycott. No sensible Urhobo person should attend Ese Gam Owe staged Urhobo Day.

We challenge Tinubu and the military to tell Urhobo and the world the cause of the death of Okuama PG in military cell. Whoever is involved should answer questions. This is a civilian administration and nothing should be hidden from the public.

Governor Oborevwori is shameless. He uses every given opportunity to humiliate Urhobo Nation. Earlier in the year he shunned all appeals to personally present Staff of Office to Ovie of Agbarha-Warri Kingdom, a critical opportunity to reaffirm Urhobo ownership rights to Warri Township.

The governor refused with a lame excuse. That he has delegated Staff of Office presentation to his Deputy and he won’t do it himself. But same Oborevwori smiled into the cameras to personally present Staff of Office to the Asagba of Asaba. What self mockery.

I condemn killing of any person. No human being should be killed. No disagreements is worth killings of any person. Tinubu and his military have questions to answer over the death of James Achovwuko Oghoroko.

I ask Tinubu and his military to release Prof Ekpokpo and all remaining Okuama detainees from military detention.

Zik Gbemre
December 6,2024

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