Isaba/Aladja: Urhobo Groans While The Enemy Rejoices

By Annabel Ogheneganre

In December 2019, I did a piece titled, ‘Urhobo and her vicious enemies’ in which I described the attitude of Itsekiri to issues of concern to Urhobo as the antics of the owl which is synonymous to a witch that inflict pains on the victims at night only to shed some crocodile tears the following day. However, the Itsekiris do not even bother to shed tears. They demonstrate bare-faced pleasure in the pains of the Urhobo nation. The recent Supreme Court judgment, which ceded a portion of Aladja land to Isaba of Warri South-West LGA has sparked jubilation amongst a section of Itsekiri people, and this has brought into vivid focus what these people truly stand for in relation to Urhobo.

I deliberately stated that the judgment under reference has gifted half of Aladja land to the Ijaw nation. That was a hyperbolic expression that the Itsekiri have leveraged on to ridicule Urhobo on social media. Since that material was published, I have moderated a number of comments which gave the Itsekiri away as truly an enemy. They have nothing to benefit from the said judgment. Even if Ijaw were to take over the whole of Aladja, Itsekiri has nothing to gain. Their only joy is that Urhobo have lost a portion of their territory to Ijaw. The Isaba/Aladja land case has truly given up the Itsekiri as a people whose love must be viewed critically before being embraced.

The current Olu is a man of noble qualities, urbane in character, imbued with deep regard for human relations and the courage to take actions to safeguard the future of the Itsekiri race. The steps he has taken to mobilize Itsekiri to look inward to develop Ode-Itsekiri, their ancestral homeland, instead of fighting over Warri with Urhobo and Ijaw, are commendable. But that is not true of the average Itsekiri people with their shrewd outlook of cleverly working to undermine you like the rat that bites into the flesh of the victim and blowing some air to momentarily soothe the pain while it carries out the evil enterprise.

I insist that the average Itsekiri are the typical neighbour who does not want his neighbours’ hen to deliver many chicks. In the said piece above, I made reference to the late Chief Ogute Ottan in his popular epic on Daniel Okumagba over the celebrated Warri ownership tussle which terminated in favour of Urhobo at the Supreme Court, which aptly painted the Itsekiri nation as a people to cautiously dine with, not just with a long spoon, but with all the vigilance and prudence one could muster. To continue to preach peace that will only end up hurting generations yet unborn is to be unfair to the future of Urhobo nation.

Isreal, a nation chosen by God has enemies that they have identified to be enemies indeed. Isreal deals with her enemies as such and take no shit from them less the nation is overtaken by vicious enemies. The ongoing war with Iran is a fresh case at hand. Our children should be taught to view Itsekiri with some degree of caution and discretion. A man who goes to court to complain that you have too many children can do anything against you in secret. Such an unfriendly friend should be rightly profiled and discretion exercised in dealing with him.

I insist that nobody should preach brotherliness to me because what Itsekiri is doing lacks morality and ingredients for peace. A man who overtly challenges God for blessing you instead of asking for his own blessing can and should never be treated as a friend. The instant judgment under reference cannot bring peace between Ijaw and Urhobo for many years to come; the deep-rooted acrimony and pain will erupt into greater discord and crisis between both communities. The fate of Ayama and Epame, two Urhobo communities, is hanging in the balance. The Supreme Court has set two neighbours on a war path, like when an elder sets the stage for two children to fight. But Urhobo will get over this, and Aladja shall regain her strength over time. This I know for sure.

That Urhobo owns Warri is no longer in contention. Urhobo has two monarchs in Warri metropolis, and the language predominantly spoken in Warri is Urhobo. Go to Abuja and such other cities across Nigeria, once you say you are Urhobo, they easily place you in Warri, particularly non-indigenes who have lived in Delta State. Urhobo should lose no sleep over Warri ownership, but all must be vigilant. We have an enemy, lurking around like a roaring lion, seeking whom to devour.

Urhobo have fought more wars with Ijaws than Itsekiri in the course of history. But Urhobo still prefer Ijaw to Itsekiri because an angry Ijaw man does not pretend about his grievances. They fight you and let it out of their mind. The Itsekiri will not raise a finger but will do everything to undermine, demoralize, destabilize and undercut you all your life. Itsekiri will pretend to be a friend but will never let go until you are down and out through any means possible, foul, mean and cruel.

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However, in the instant case, for Ijaws to team up with Itsekiri to undermine Urhobo in the Isaba/Aladja case, Urhobo must learn to behave like Isreal that is surrounded by enemies. We must be on red alert because the enemies are increasing by the day. Ijaws deployed the Itsekiri tactics in this case, and we have to be extra-vigilant. Urhobo should beware.

The position of the Isoko Youth Leaders Political Forum led by one Comrade Daniel Omoraro on the Warri delineation matter is another dimension that should not be taken likely. The Isoko Development Union should tame these unruly and delinquent set of youth leaders. When a man and his wife quarrel over sex, the child cannot adjudicate on the matter. The Isokos have no business with issue of wards delineation in Warri. Whoever is sponsoring these elements is not a friend of the Isoko nation. A word is enough for the wise.

The Abraka/Herdsmen Saga

The insecurity in Abraka, the famous University town in Delta State has grown beyond mere herdsmen and farmers clashes. I think a well-organised criminal group are terrorising Abraka, and this must be nib in the bud before it gets out of hand. The Benue experience is enough for our people to be on perpetual guard. Urhobo must identify the root cause of the crisis and deal with it decisively. If the conventional security agencies are not up to the game, local security apparatus should be encouraged to move into the situation and get rid of the hooligans before the situation snowballs into a wider conflagration.

In the days of Hon Evance Iwurie in the House of Assembly, he was physically involved in chasing the rascals into the forest. He was proactively decisive in engaging the so-called weapon-bearing herdsmen. Government officials in Ethiope East LGA should raise a squad of rugged security forces that would comb the whole of Abraka forest and flush out all suspicious elements living therein. Such operations should be carried out with the full involvement of sister local government areas and states.

The Fulani elements in the towns, cities and bushes should be properly profiled and their population ascertained. Any of them caught without proper profiling should be sent to wherever they came from. These people bear dangerous weapons that are not available to the locals and so could be potential threats to security at any time. Security matters must not be taken lightly. That is the reason why President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had to visit Benue State on Wednesday June 18, 2025, days after the bandits killed close to 200 natives in one night. Blood sucking bandits do not deserve to be pampered.

Uwheru was at the mercy of herdsmen for a long time. I guess sanity has been restored in those areas to a reasonable extent. Whatever measure was adopted to bring the situation under control in Uwheru should be replicated in Abraka. Innocent school children live in Abraka to learn and not to be harassed by herdsmen. Governor Sheriff Oborevwori should do everything to bring the situation under control. The reasons for the perennial confrontations should be identified, and long-lasting solutions should be provided. A visitor who inflicts pain on his host should embrace peace or be repatriated. There should be peace in Abraka.

Annabel Ogheneganre of the Urhobo Voice Newspaper writes from Abuja. (08074542421 SMS Only or Whatsapp messages)